The start of school is just around the corner and for many people that means chaos during which priorities can get neglected. Admitedly for those first few years of switching my children from homeschool to public school I felt completely lost, and during that time a lot of my healthy habits fell lower on my priority list. But, little by little and one by one I am starting to reclaim them. Now that I work outside the home half the week, healthy homemade meals are one of those things that I have really struggled with.
I'm not hungry at 5:00 a.m. when it's time to decide what I'll be having for two out of my three meals for the day, and I'm so tired by the time that 6:00 p.m. rolls around and I walk through my door again that I don't care what I eat, as long as I can eat it quickly and then go to bed, which is why I am more likely to give in to processed convenience foods at these times.
Processed foods contribute to a host of health problems and I would rather avoid them as much as possbile. The best way to combat the stress, fatigue, and indecision that can lead to junk food overload instead of nourishing homecooking is to have a plan and stick to it. Which is why, I thought it would be nice to share with you a week's worth of my easy to prepare lunches that are satisfying and healthy. *Unfortunately, I did not take beautiful, well-lit photos of my meals, just snapped a quick pic at my desk or kitchen counter before chowing down, so please forgive the quality of the photos. I also am not going to discuss my portion sizes or calorie content. These are the amounts at which I feel full, they may not work for everyone and that's ok. This is what works for me and has for over two decades. So, take the ideas if you wish and tailor them to your portion and calorie needs. No comments necessary.
Day 1: Tuna Bowl
This meal contains 1 packet of seaweed (sometimes 2), sliced ripe avocado, a can of tuna with mayo, sliced boiled egg, and white rice. For this recipe, I start the rice cooking while I prepare the rest of the bowl. It only takes about 10-15 minutes for the rice to cook, so I can make this quickly in the mornings for my brown bag lunches. I don't focus much on counting calories or carbs, etc, just as long as the meal is comprised of whole foods with a good balance of protein, fat, carbs, fiber.
Day 2: Grilled Cheese
This meal contains organic sourdough bread with sliced gruyere. A small amount of organic cashews, organic strawberries, organic blueberries, sugar snap peas, and sliced cucumber. This meal requires me to grill the cheese sandwich, which only takes a few minutes, and the rest is all washing, a little slicing, and packing.
Day 3: Simple Charcuterie
I love "slow" foods, meaning a meal that requires lots of attention and time to eat it. Mindless meals that I can swallow in seconds are not satisfying in the least. So, this little charcuterie is comprised of some Triscuits, and orange, salami, smoked gouda slices, and sugar snap peas. You can tell what I bought during my grocery week, because you will see the same ingredients popping up over and over throughout the week. Also, in this Day 3 meal, I had eaten half the meat, cheese, and crackers before I thought of snapping a pic, so it was double the portion shown here.
Day 4: Finger Foods
Organic blueberries, organic strawberries, cucumber slices, salami slices, provolone slices. What I love about these meals is that they take only minutes to assemble in the morning, but they are the kinds of foods that take time to eat, which means I feel more satsified at the end of a meal like this rather than something I scarf down in 5 minutes or less.
Day 5: Oh, Lala
Take and bake mini croissants each split and stuffed with deli turkey and slices of gruyere, cucumber slices, salted tomato slices, and fresh pineapple chunks.
All of these meals are quick and easy to assemble, nutritious, and because with a few simple ingredients can make so many combinations, I never really get tired of this food.
