STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Grace · BCBG

Easy Healthy Lunches

pollyjean23 · Marc Jacobs

THis isn't a whole lunch, but I have discovered how awesome bags of frozen vegetables are. I keep at least one bag of broccoli and one bag of shelled edamame in the freezer at work at all times. That way, if I need a side dish for lunch (whether by surprise or planned), I have it on-hand.

I have been cooking brown rice the night before and bringing it to work the next day. One batch usually lasts me through 3 work days (breakfast and lunch).

I will also cook up some chicken, fish, or turkey, cut it into easy-to-manage pieces, throw them in a bowl, and bring them to work. Add all these items together, and they make for a healthy lunch.

I am not very organized, but just a little bit of planning helps so much.

fairywings · Dooney & Bourke

Hummus is always good and easy. You can dip carrots, celery, or pita bread in it. I second the broccoli idea. Recently I've been eating raw broccoli and mixed veggies with a really tangy lowfat Italian dressing and it's sooo good. You would think that veggies don't fill you up, but they really do. If you want to buy food out, I recommend Chinese food because a lot of it can be prepared really healthily. I order steamed chicken and veggies with the sauce on the side and it's great; not fried and covered with salt.

Suasoria · Chanel

Hardly anything is easier than last night's leftovers.

Or canned soup and pretzels, the big sourdough kind that hurt your jaw to bite. Love those.

Or salad greens and kidney or garbanzo beans in a tortilla, maybe with a salad dressing you like (pack everything separately and assemble at work). I even like PB&J in a flour tortilla - it's better than bread. Or PB & apple slices. Or almond butter and apples.

Fresh veggies and almond butter or tahini is good. You can cut up a lot of veggies on Sunday and bring the whole thing to work. If you eat eggs, hard-boiled eggs are very portable.

wicked · Coach

My lunch is usually a cup of plain yogurt, a banana and or baby carrots, and 1/4 C each of almonds and raisins.

Elle · Hermes

Suasoria wrote:

Hardly anything is easier than last night's leftovers.

Amen. I always make more servings than we need for dinner, so hubby and I both have lunches for at least one day. Soup is easy to make alot of and keeps well for a few days. Another thing I used to do when I was working alot is chop up an enormous amount of lettuce (like 3 heads of romaine) or buy a big bag of baby greans, and then make a huge bowl of 'toppings' - chopped tomatoes, avocados, peppers, red onions, parsley, olives, hardboiled egg whites, and beans and then douse it all in vinegar/salt/pepper. Keeping the seasoned toppings and the greens in different containers keeps things fresher, and each morning I'd stuff a handfull of greens in a container and slop in a few big spoonfulls of my topping and I was good to go.

You can also switch it up and do a grain salad (quinoa, brown rice, bulghur) with corn, black beans, cilantro, cucumber, and lots of lime juice. Top with a grilled chicken breast if you want.

I also find staying stocked up on lots of filler/side items helps too, so I only have to think about the main dish - string cheese, yogurt, pudding cups, baby carrots, 100-cal packs of cookies/crackers, fruit, etc are all pretty easy to keep on hand. Those are all things you can get at Costco for cheap too, which makes it even easier to always have stuff on hand.

Grace · BCBG

Elle wrote:

Another thing I used to do when I was working alot is chop up an enormous amount of lettuce (like 3 heads of romaine) or buy a big bag of baby greans, and then make a huge bowl of 'toppings' - chopped tomatoes, avocados, peppers, red onions, parsley, olives, hardboiled egg whites, and beans and then douse it all in vinegar/salt/pepper.

You can also switch it up and do a grain salad (quinoa, brown rice, bulghur) with corn, black beans, cilantro, cucumber, and lots of lime juice. Top with a grilled chicken breast if you want.

These both sound so good. One question....does the vinegar keep the avocados from turning brown?

blubirde · Chanel

I bring practically the same thing for lunch everyday. I bring a salad (about 2 cups of whatever kind of greens you like, a handful of craisins, and 2 tbsp of reduced-fat feta cheese). It's pretty good, esp. for a salad. I keep light dressing at work that I use sparingly. I also bring a can of flavored tuna: spicy thai. It's completely awesome! I eat it straight from the can - it doesn't need anything added to it. It's 200 calories, which is a bit more than regular tuna but the flavor is definitely worth it and it has a lot of protein.

It takes me about 5 minutes to get my lunch together in the morning. I only have to pour the salad ingredients in a plastic thing, throw a can of tuna and a fork in my bag, and I'm out the door.

I highly recommend the flavored tuna. It comes in other flavors (lemon something and sun-dried tomato) and they suck. But the spicy thai is so good and I don't even like tuna that much. It is a bit spicy but I'm a complete wuss and I can handle it. Try it!

Grace · BCBG

I will try the spicy thai tuna. I'm not a huge tuna fan but I want to like it because it's easy and good for you. Maybe the flavored kind will do the trick.

Now that I have everyone's great suggestions I need to make my grocery list and go shopping!

Elle · Hermes

Grace wrote:

These both sound so good. One question....does the vinegar keep the avocados from turning brown?

To a point. They last maybe 3 or 4 days in the mix, but I've usually fished them all out by then anyway . !

needsfashionadvice · Kate Spade

blubirde wrote:
I also bring a can of flavored tuna: spicy thai. It's completely awesome! I eat it straight from the can - it doesn't need anything added to it. It's 200 calories, which is a bit more than regular tuna but the flavor is definitely worth it and it has a lot of protein.

OMG I agree, that stuff is so good! I used to love the smokey flavored tuna in the pouches but this tuna is a million times better. I have to pick that red pepper off the top of the can though, it too hot with it there!

Grace · BCBG

Elle wrote:

Grace wrote:

These both sound so good. One question....does the vinegar keep the avocados from turning brown?

To a point. They last maybe 3 or 4 days in the mix, but I've usually fished them all out by then anyway . !

One more question, what kind of vinegar? Thanks for the yummy idea!

Elle · Hermes

I usually do a mixture of balsamic and red wine vinegars (1:4 ratio maybe), sometimes with lime or lemon juice too if I have some around. Rice vinegar and lime/lemon juice is nice way to switch it up, and you can throw some sesame seeds in and a little toasted sesame oil too to make it more of an asian flavor.

blubirde · Chanel

needsfashionadvice wrote:

blubirde wrote:
I also bring a can of flavored tuna: spicy thai. It's completely awesome! I eat it straight from the can - it doesn't need anything added to it. It's 200 calories, which is a bit more than regular tuna but the flavor is definitely worth it and it has a lot of protein.
OMG I agree, that stuff is so good! I used to love the smokey flavored tuna in the pouches but this tuna is a million times better. I have to pick that red pepper off the top of the can though, it too hot with it there!

Ha! I do that too!

HeatherLynn · Gucci

I usually make up some pasta salad on Sunday and take it during the week with some grilled chicken.

luckyclover · Dooney & Bourke

fairywings wrote:

Recently I've been eating raw broccoli and mixed veggies with a really tangy lowfat Italian dressing and it's sooo good. You would think that veggies don't fill you up, but they really do.

yum it's been awhile since I did that I think I will next week thanks!

Kincali · Dooney & Bourke

This is one of my favorite easy recipes from Orangette. I like to add garlic, cayenne, and cumin to mine and put it on top of a bed of mixed greens.

Chickpea Salad with Lemon and Parmesan

This little salad only has five ingredients, so make sure that theyre all of good quality. Theres no room for second-rate pantry closet cast-offs here, so dont even think about it, missie. First of all, be sure to use a good brand of chickpeas. I would never have thought about this sort of thing prior to meeting Brandon, Mr. Chana Masala Man, but hes got me convinced: the best canned chickpeas are produced by Goya, Bush, and Trader Joes. Other brands, such as generic supermarket ones, can be mealy, bland, and / or mushy, rather than firm, fat, and earthy-sweet. Also, get out your best olive oil one youd want to eat from a spoon, if youre into that sort of thing. We like to use a dash of this luscious brand, to which we were introduced by the lovely Tea. It really seals the deal.

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 ½ tsp. olive oil
A pinch of salt
¼ cup loosely packed shredded Parmigiano Reggiano

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and stir gently to mix. Taste, and adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve immediately, or chill, covered, until serving.

Note: This salad keeps well in the fridge and is, in my humble opinion, best eaten cold.

Yield: 2 servings