Lunches

[from December 2012]

Believe it or not lunches seem to stump people the most that I’ve talked to. I’m going to go back to the fact that planning helps! Embrace planning! It is one of the keys that have helped us to maintain variety and interest in our new life style.  

Every morning in our house there are 4 breakfasts to make and 4 lunches. Since everyone has a hand in the menu at the start of the week there should be NO gripes about what is put in lunches. I know very well that the kids aren’t going to eat a salad for lunch, whereas Kevin and I certainly will. So we do not all share the same lunches. However to keep from having to make to many things I’ll do different takes on the same ingredients.

Example:

Main ingredient: pre baked olive oil and salt / pepper chicken

Boys lunch: baked chicken slices, green beans, apple and nuts or plantain chips

Adult lunch: salad with baked chicken, almond slices, carrot curls and white balsamic vinegar

Winter proved to be a little more challenging with so many of the summer fruits and vegetables not available. Just because they are at the store doesn’t mean they are in season or taste the best. I worked through it but summer is so much more fun. Charlie, the youngest, has the most things in his lunch and keeps me on my toes for variety.

Here are some of his:

-       Chicken salad, Ham roll on a skewer with green olives (anything on a stick works for him, keeps it fun), baked sweet potato chips (TERRA brand) and apple slices 

-       Ham lettuce wraps (Hormel Natural Choice), broccoli, fresh berries, plantain chips with nuts and a container of coconut milk that he later dumped his berries into for eating. 

-       ABJ Sandwiches (almond butter and jam with fluffy coconut pancakes for the ‘bread’), chicken salad, baked sweet potato chips, carrots and coconut water (this is a treat once each week)  

Baked chicken and cucumbers on a skewer (again anything on a stick works), plantain chips with beef jerky, carrot rounds (different shapes keep it interesting), and fruit on a skewer (again with the stick thing) 

-       Ham and salami sandwiched between two granny smith apple slices – this was a snack one day for a lunch.  

-       Fruit skewers: these went in every ones lunch except Charlie’s on this particular day because he wanted eyeballs. Eyeballs are now a summer specialty which are raspberries stuffed with blueberries. They have smile factor. 

-       Ham and salami wraps on a toothpick (colored toothpicks make it fun), fresh berries and broccoli  

None of these lunches take a great deal to put together, you just needing to have the ingredients. Have fun with your lunches and make the presentation nice. You do not need to have the same boring salad day in and day out.

BONUS: Yvonne’s Secret Chicken Salad Recipe (shhhh don’t tell anyone)

            1 pound chicken, baked, shredded

            ½ cup green pepper , diced

            ½ cup green onions, chopped (both green and white parts)

            ½ cup mayonnaise (We use the recipe from www.theclothesmakethegirl.com)

            pinch salt, to taste

                        pinch pepper, to taste

-       Coat your chicken in olive oil and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Bake chicken on cookie sheet at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes until done. Chop chicken up or shred lightly in food processor.

-       Add green peppers, green onions and home made mayonnaise then mix well with spoon. Add salt and pepper if needed. We find that when the baked chicken is cooked with enough salt and pepper then you may not need it for the salad.

Enjoy!

Yvonne