So, while I absolutley love eating tuna sandwiches, I was thinking how great it would be if I could think up some other things that woud be good to pack for a lunch. They need to be able to sit in a lunchbox for several hours without going bad, require a minimum of fuss to prepare, and be tasty.
Also, it helps if it can be made on the cheap, some prepwork or cooking the night before is fine for me.
So Dopers, what do YOU pack for lunch?
Take two slices of rye bread (I prefer dark rye), spread one side of each very thinly wiith cream cheese. Fold three slices of ham in half and arrange on one piece of bread, top with the other. No mustard, no mayo, just the cream cheese and ham. An apple or orange works well for dessert. I had this for lunch yesterday, with figs for the fruit, but I don’t think that figs travel well.
My daughter takes a salad to work with her every day in one of those disposable plastic containers, though she usually brings the container back and washes it. A salad with sliced cold cuts and cheeses (chef’s salad) is very nice for lunch.
I have been known to make and eat PB&J sandwiches, even as an adult. I use the whole fruit spread instead of jelly, though…it doesn’t have added sugar and I think it tastes better.
The blue ice thingies that freeze solid and keep stuff cold are wonderful. They’re quite cheap, and even if they’re not frozen solid, if they’re chilled they’ll keep your lunch chilled. Just put them in the freezer when you get home, or buy two of them and keep one in the freezer while the other’s in your lunch box.
I pack lunches for the kids, so I hope you get lots of replies to this thread! I have a pretty limited repertoire, since I only make stuff both the kids like. The usual is a sandwich of lunch meat and a pickle slice. (The pickle must be blotted, or you get wet bread.) The other acceptable sandwich fillings are pimento cheese, or peanut butter and honey.
Snacks may be granola bars, pudding cups, applesauce, grapes, chips, raw veggies & dip, or squares of semi-sweet baker’s chocolate. I freeze a juice box or small bottle of water, then wrap it in a paper towel to keep it from getting everything damp as it thaws.
I came in here to get ideas as well. I might as well copy and paste Dangerosa’s post. That’s what I do - fight down to the frozen water bottle wrapped in a paper towel.
I do keep two Blue Ice packs ready for when I forget to freeze a water bottle though.
Shoot - I saw “D” and wrote Dangerosa. I meant Dung Beetle.
Duh.
Oh, and I also swear by Lunchables. But that’s probably not enough food for a grown up.
I have a real challenge on my hands during the school year, because my 6-tear-old mudgirl doesn’t like sandwiches! I let her help pick out her lunch the night before, so I know she has stuff she’ll eat. Her lunch must include:
Protein (a cup of yogurt, a package of “Shapesters”, fun-shaped cheddar cheese pieces) or two slices of American cheese and a few whole-wheat crackers all work well.
Fruit: fresh fruit like apple slices or seedless grapes travel well, as do applesauce in individual serving sizes, diced fruit in little cans; I include a disposable spoon.
Snack: a couple of cookies, a cup of pudding, or a pouch of fruit snacks work fine.
Drink: She likes the flavored water that comes in pouches with an attached straw. I’m in favor of anything that gets her to drink more water!
I’m a SAHM, so I don’t have to worry about brown bag lunches, but, like Lynn Bodoni, I’m a fan of PB&J, made with whole fruit spread in place of jelly, and I like mine on whole wheat. I also like to make them the night before and refrigerate. Somehow, the peanut butter incorporates with the bread this way, and, imho, is extra-tasty.
scans list of Dope milestones, checks off “mistaken for more established poster”
Mr. Bento revolutionised my life
I’ve just re-started bento-ing. I’m aiming for 3 days a week and 2 days drinking my slimfast shakes. I get sick of liquid lunches day in and day out.
Oh my god - that thing looks great!
Oh my god - that thing looks great!
I am on a smoothie kick right now (getting away from school lunches).
If you have access to a break room with a blender you can pack some vanilla yogurt and frozen fruit and make yourself a smoothie.
For awhile I was buying the banquet frozen dinners - they were always on sale for 10 for $10 and even though they sat unfrozen for a few hours at work, they were still fine and took a little less time to nuke. But I’m tired of them now.
I have ten cans of Chef Boyardee spaghetti and meatballs (pop top can) in the cupboard at home (10 for $10) again - I had one of those for lunch today. Along with a bag of cheetos and a little tupperware dealie with pickles in it.
Campbells and Chunky also make soups with a pop top - those heat pretty quickly. Bring some crackers and you’re all set.
I’ve also been known to bring dip and chips with me and make a lunch out of that. Cheeseball and Triscuits - MMMM.
I’ve brought breakfast cereal - that’s always good.
Sandwiches can also be made in tortillas - and they’ll stay fresh for a few hours too. So will salads. I actually have a Martha Stewart Living or two at home that has lunch ideas - I’ll see if I can scrounge them up for you.
Every Sunday I cook a bag of pasta shells/twists, add a jar of either pesto or sun-dried tomato pasta sauce, a can of drained tuna and maybe a few chopped olives if I have them. I let it cool, dish it out into little containers, then freeze. Each morning I take one out, it sits on my desk all morning and by lunchtime it’s defrosted. I’ll either eat it cold or nuke it for a minute and stir before eating. I use wholewheat pasta and only cook the pasta al dente so it’s all lower GI than regular pasta salad. This all costs me the princely sum of £2 for lunch for one week, in comparison to the £5 I was spending per day when I was buying lunch. I vary sauces - this week I’m roasting veggies (homegrown cherry tomatoes, a couple of red bell peppers, some garlic and rosemary, small teaspoon of olive oil) for half an hour in a hot oven, blending them until they’re smooth and using that as my pasta sauce. Having a different sauce per week means I don’t get too bored. I’ll also chuck leftover veggies from the night before in, if I remember.