Packing lunches

[feezle]

If I have to eat one more PB&J or ham sandwich, I'm gonna puke. Same with quick runs to Burger King. How do you keep packing lunch for work from getting so boring? Wouldn't mind making it a bit healthier as well.

Any tips would be appreciated!

 

[chuckabone]

It sounds like you may not have access to heat a plate, so leftovers may be out. Hope some of these ideas work for you.

Fried chicken, celery sticks with dressing and single cups of applesauce
lunchmeat of any kind rolled up with cheese and dipping sauce
a salad . You can buy small bags of dressing at the salad bar at the grocery.
a salad topped with chicken or shrimp or whatever you like
Sometimes my kiddo's take crackers and pepperoni with cheese. cut it bite size and it is like a appetizer.
They sell single bags of apples that have 7 or 8 slices in them, much easier than a whole apple
Get a good thermos and boil soup on the stove or micro b4 you leave the house, it should still be hot by lunch time. You can do it with chili, or ravoli etc.. FYI, use a GOOD thermos, the ones from the dollar store do not work.
Check around your grocery for bowls and plates that you freeze at night then they keep the food cold during the day. They are like tupperware.
I got one at Giant and my dd can keep all her food cold till lunch at 12.
They have the same material in them that gel packs do.

Mary

 

[lovesmurfs]

It sounds like you may not have access to heat a plate, so leftovers may be out. Hope some of these ideas work for you.

Fried chicken, celery sticks with dressing and single cups of applesauce
lunchmeat of any kind rolled up with cheese and dipping sauce
a salad . You can buy small bags of dressing at the salad bar at the grocery.
a salad topped with chicken or shrimp or whatever you like
Sometimes my kiddo's take crackers and pepperoni with cheese. cut it bite size and it is like a appetizer.
They sell single bags of apples that have 7 or 8 slices in them, much easier than a whole apple
Get a good thermos and boil soup on the stove or micro b4 you leave the house, it should still be hot by lunch time. You can do it with chili, or ravoli etc.. FYI, use a GOOD thermos, the ones from the dollar store do not work.
Check around your grocery for bowls and plates that you freeze at night then they keep the food cold during the day. They are like tupperware.
I got one at Giant and my dd can keep all her food cold till lunch at 12.
They have the same material in them that gel packs do.

Mary

This! You can also preheat the thermos by putting boiling water in it for a minute or so.

I bring breakfast and lunch -- often leftovers. If I make a sandwich, it's with leftover meat from dinner the night before. Sometimes I bring yogurt, hardboiled egg, granola bar for breakfast -- fruit works great.

Today for lunch I have leftover turkey rice soup, wheat thins, an apple and some Nilla wafers. I use a good insulated bag (from ebags when I got a 30% coupon -- they run about $20) and generally don't use a cold pack.

Grapes, apples, oranges, pears all travel well. You can also get a pack of tuna (they come in a bag). Salad mix, and you're all set (when I bring salad, I do use a cold pack).

Around the beginning of the school year, there are lots of "what do I pack for my kids' lunch" threads -- you could search on those for some good suggestions.

Have fun with it. Some sandwiches: fried egg, ham salad, meatloaf, leftover chicken breast, etc.

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

a few weeks ago I did a whole chicken in the crock pot. Lemon and rosemary inside the chicken, more lemon slices, garlic and rosemary on top. Had an awesome dinner and then turned all the leftover into chicken salad for lunches. Can so the same for turkey- make salad or a turkey sandwich (scoop of stuffing, cranberry)

Make a wrap of lettuce or spinach, add cooked chicken- can get the already cooked purdue or tyson chicken. Add a little bit of light creamy dressing.

This week we having spiral ham instead of deli ham- today I am getting criossants and swiss, DH likes a little apricot jelly on the ham. Love how gooey the get when heated up.

Once it spring hits I like to make pasta salad. Walmart sells a cheap version of Barilla tortelloni (sp?), I add grape tomatoes, cooked squash and just add any italian salad dressing I have (favorite is the Kraft Roasted Red Pepper). Sometimes just I add any veggies I have in the fridge.

 

[feezle]

Actually, I do have microwave. I eat a lot of frozen dinners as well. Lots of good ideas here so far guys! Thanks!

It is always helpful to see how other people do things. Gets the wheels turning.

 

[kymmyk13]

I made a big bowl of macaroni salad this weekend and will eat that several days for lunch this week, I also will sometimes add a can of tuna fish to it. Also put boneless chicken into the crock pot with a bottle of BBQ sauce and cook for sveral hours. I put this with some rice and it is an easy lunch.

 

[SnowWhite607]

Do you like hummus? I sometimes do hummus with baby carrots and crackers. Add a small cheese stick, boiled egg and a piece of fruit and thats a pretty healthy lunch, all food groups covered.

I do wrap sandwiches on tortillas.
Big salads

 

[crazelion]

In the summer I eat a lot of salads,egg, pasta, maconi and garden salad.

I love eat cold fried chicken.

 

[Kycha]

You can get those ready made tuna salad packs. They don't need refrigeration, so I usually keep a couple on hand for quick snacks. Or just make your own tuna salad and make sandwiches or spread on crackers. Or I just like to eat the tuna salad on it's own or with veggies...veggies, celery, tomatoes.

 

[Harters2WDW]

Make chicken fried rice ahead of time. I make a large batch of this and eat it for dinner one night and a few days for lunch. Honestly, I like it better warmed up the second time around!

 

[dizluvah]

Many of my suggestions have been listed - hummus with veggies or chips for a crunch, pickles, cottage cheese, cheese sticks, yogurt, granola bars. DH brings fresh fruit and protein bars to work, he also likes instant oatmeal packs to keep in his desk (can just use the hot water from the water cooler and coffee cup to mix oatmeal) even a cup of noodles or can of soup for those days when something unexpected keeps you from grabbing lunch

 

[figment3258]

I just made for my husband yesterday his lunch for three days. I cooked chicken and pats a with stir fri veggies in a cream sauce just a little planning ahead goes a long way.

 

[skaliscik]

take a jar of tomato sauce or alfredo sauce (or both if you want a variety) and freeze in ice cube trays...once they are frozen pop the cubes into a freezer bag. Then when you need a lunch, you just have to make some pasta (one of the brands even has a "quick" pasta..only takes 3 minutes to cook). I usually make my daughter chicken and broccoli alfredo in the morning by throwing some water on to boil, throw some frozen precooked chicken and broccoli into it, and once it starts boiling, throw in the pasta to cook...by the time the pasta cooks the chicken and broccoli are heated through. Then i put a cube or two of the alfredo sauce in the pan with the hot, drained pasta (if i'm putting it in a thermos to keep it warm i usually defrost the sauce cubes in the micro before mixing them). It only take a few minutes to make in the morning and it's her favorite lunch!

 

[ilovejack02]

I buy a rotissarie chicken, sometimes just pull the chicken off and put it on flatbread with hummus, and I make chicken salad with it too.

 

[Poohforyou]

I'm in the office 3 days a week and usually take a quinoa and roasted vegetable mix from Trader Joe's. It's the only grain that is a complete source of protein. Sometimes I heat it but it's also really good at room temp.

 

[dakcp2001]

I buy cut up fruit at Whole Foods each week. Pineapple, melon, strawberry etc. I throw some in a little round tupperware with either vanilla yogurt or fat free cottage cheese.

I love Polyo String cheese. I like to pair it with some grapes and crackers.

Leftover pasta with chicken.

Soup. Kashi makes delicious frozen meals if you are used to lean cuisine or the like, you gotta try Kashi!

Celery sticks filled with laughing cow cheese. Celery sticks with peanut butter and raisins on top.

Sandwiches made with a spread of hummus and lots of veggies.

Sometimes just taking 2 slices of bread and tossing them in the toaster before putting your sandwich meat makes for a nice change of sandwich. Nuke the roast beef and cheese for a few seconds and toast the bread.

 

[KBW]

I don't eat any meat so I need to get creative. This week, I am eating homemade hummus and whole wheat pita (store-bought would be even easier), plus a small baby spinach salad with cucumber, mushrooms, red onion, olives, and feta and a creamy dijon dressing (just mix equal parts mayo and dijon, thin with some red wine vinegar. I made enough dressing this morning to last for the week). Sometimes I also eat just a bigger version of the salad, in which case I'll throw in some extra veggies (like asparagus or artichokes, plus some white beans or sliced hard-boiled egg for protein).

The other thing that's easy that I eat a lot is a curried "chicken" salad (made with mashed chick peas instead of chicken). Mash up (or put in a small food processor) a can of chickpeas--rinsed and drained, add about half of a small yellow onion, mayo and a little olive oil, and some indian spices (I add a 1/2 tsp each of cumin, ground coriander, turmeric...you could easily use a curry powder too if you don't want to buy all the separate spices), and cayenne, to taste. I usually eat it as a sandwich, but crackers are good too. If you double it, it's enough for about 6 sandwiches.

Or try a couscous salad...and add whatever veggies you like. I usually do artichoke hearts, olives, cucumber, tomato, onion, cheese, cannellini or garbanzo beans, fresh parsley, olive oil and lemon juice (or whatever is your favorite bottled salad dressing). Trader Joe's sells whole wheat couscous which is really good...and, unlike pasta, I can't tell the difference between the whole wheat and regular.

In the winter, you can make a big pot of soup or chili and eat that all week too.

 

[SleepyatDVC]

I'm in the office 3 days a week and usually take a quinoa and roasted vegetable mix from Trader Joe's. It's the only grain that is a complete source of protein. Sometimes I heat it but it's also really good at room temp.

My Dad bought a big bag of quinoa at Costco and decided he didn't like it and gave it to me. I finally cooked some up this weekend and figured out why he didn't like it.

It tasted fine, actually tasted pretty good.

BUT... it gave me the shivers looking at it. I couldn't eat more than a bit of it and only if I didn't look at it at all. Just the THOUGHT of what it looks like cooked freaks me out a bit. Makes my skin crawl all over.

Looks like maggots in my food with the spiral tails. Or tiny condoms. Or pus-filled pockets. Argh...

My Dad and I both have a mild form of trypophobia (fear of holey looking things). My older daughter has it too. She use to cry every time she saw this toy filled with beads with she was an infant. I don't like to look at coral or craters or fugus - things like that. Things with teeny tiny holes. Thought of eating it?

Some times I would see a picture of something icky and DD would go YUCKY before I would. DH and other DD wouldn't see what would bother us about the picture.

Sorry to take the OP's thread so OT. LOL.

 

[Celidh]

My son hates sandwiches but he does like wraps. We have put chicken, roast beef, left over steak,and left over seasoned ground beef from tacos in them. They always have cheese in them too. He just heats them up at school and voila, lunch.

Dd, she doesn't like sandwiches either. As much as she would like it, she is not allowed to have canned soup and chef boyardee every day of the week. I sometimes give her homemade soup in her thermos but she has also had other left overs in it. Most recently, her lunch has been cereal. I know, not great but better than her not eating at all. I put Rice Krispies (her current fave) in a container with a bit of sugar and she buys a small carton of milk at school. My rule is they always have to have some sort of fruit in their lunch and then they get cookies, lunch snack or some other sweet treat. she will sometimes take a cheeze string and crackers too but that has been out lately. Kids are fickle!

I like egg salad sandwiches, even if they are stinky!

 

[MickeyManiac]

My Dad bought a big bag of quinoa at Costco and decided he didn't like it and gave it to me. I finally cooked some up this weekend and figured out why he didn't like it.

It tasted fine, actually tasted pretty good.

BUT... it gave me the shivers looking at it. I couldn't eat more than a bit of it and only if I didn't look at it at all. Just the THOUGHT of what it looks like cooked freaks me out a bit. Makes my skin crawl all over.

Looks like maggots in my food with the spiral tails. Or tiny condoms. Or pus-filled pockets. Argh...:

And with that description quinoa is NOT something I will be trying any time soon.