photo by tunnelarmr
Well, I haven’t posted in a little while, and since I’m not doing the work I need to get done this evening anyway, I thought I’d say hello.
I’d venture to say this is the busiest summer I’ve ever had. I am taking three classes (one online), working about 25 hours a week, trying to study for my GREs ( I need to take the general one and the psychology subject test) and I’m getting outside whenever I can because it’s summer and it’s great! On my long days, I get to school at 9:30am and get home around 9pm (yikes!). On my shorter days, I get to school around 10am and get home around 4pm. On these shorter days, I like to walk home. When I walk home, I’ve calculated I walk at least 3 miles a day. I’ve managed to get pretty tan already this summer. Hooray!
Though I’m busy, I must say, I’m pretty darn happy. I’m in school, which I love. I’m working in the psychology department as a research assistant, which will look good on my grad school application. I’m making money (hello, old friend) and I actually like my job!
With such a wacky schedule, I generally pack a Zip-lock lunch every day. Unfortunately, my lunches are lacking in…zest. My go-to meal is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a thermos of coffee. I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of the ol’ PB&J. Sometimes I switch it up and do a little bag of trail mix or maybe a granola bar and a thermos of coffee (I like my coffee). If I’m being naughty, my lunch is a vegan cookie by Alternative Baking Company from the Gopher Express quick mart. That place has a surprising number of vegan options for how small it is. And, yet, I consistently pick the item with the most sugar. Is a sweet tooth genetic?
Needless to say, my lunches are pretty shameful these days. But don’t worry, I take multivitamins every morning, and make sure to eat fruits and veggies when I’m at home.
I guess what I’d love to know is: what do you guys eat for lunch? What’s your favorite go-to meal? Even if you think it’s less exciting than mine, please, do share 
Lets pool our ideas together and jazz up our lunches! Hooray!!
Marion Says:
I have the same problem-time crunch=peanut butter sandwich. My latest attempts to diverge from this are wraps: just buy a pack of tortillas you like, toast them lightly on each side (good sog-proofing move), fill and wrap! If you line the wrap with lettuce, it should not get soggy. Favorite fillings: 1)steamed kale,lightly dressed with umeboshi vinegar, with Daiya soy cheese sprinkled on top. 2)tofu salad, lettuce, grated carrot. 3) greens and any other salad type vegetable-spread tortilla with tahini first.
I know these are ridiculously simple and we all know how to make them-but I had kind of totally forgotten about them for over a year and had an a-HA moment when I finally remembered.
I am also a fan of buying nice lettuce (the baby spring mix kind), and just throwing some in a reusable container with any veggies on hand. Toss a bread roll in, add little containers of salad dressing and olive oil (for the bread roll) and I have a much better salad than most of the ones I can buy.
If you shop with a plan and have the right ingredients on hand, you can easily blast out of the peanut butter rut. I usually whip up lunch in literally 5 mins every morning-so all these yummy options take about as much time as a peanut butter sandwich.
One last idea I have been craving lately-cold edamame salad. (this does involve cooking the beans ). I just toss the edamame with little cubes of tofu, nori torn into chunks, and just a hint of umeboshi vinegar and oil.
June 23rd, 2010 at 5:26 pm
Lily Says:
I love making rice salads for lunch–super simple and super healthy. I toss some brown rice (you can also use quinoa, wild rice, or your other favorite grain) with chopped up vegetables, nuts/beans, and a simple vinaigrette. You can pack the salad in Tupperware and it just gets better and more flavorful as it sits.
Sometimes I’ll also stuff some “egg” salad (made with tofu) in a whole wheat pita with some chopped celery (for some added crunch) and have that for lunch. Leftovers also make for great lunches!
June 23rd, 2010 at 8:18 pm
miyuki Says:
When I was at school I’d try to make extra dinner the night before and just pack left overs. Noodle dishes are especially good if you don’t have a microwave handy. You could also try baking some savoury muffins and keep some in the freezer. Just pull one out the night before and it’ll be good to eat the next day!
June 23rd, 2010 at 11:11 pm
Emily Says:
My CSA started a few weeks ago so I’ve had awesome salads recently! My favorite has been arugula, strawberries and balsamic vinaigrette. When I eventually get sick of salads, I mix some rotini pasta with some roasted veggies like beets and summer squash, along with a bit of olive oil, vinegar and herbes de provence.
June 25th, 2010 at 1:16 pm
Gina Kervan Says:
I love a great quinoa salad for lunch stuffed in a tomato. Or I make gluten free zucchini parm. and freeze it in individual servings and take it out the night before and put it on a gluten free roll. I also really love mock tuna salad with chick peas instead of salad rolled in a leaf of lettuce. Hummas wraps are also really great for lunch. Happy to share recipes if anyone wants them. I love your blog…
June 29th, 2010 at 10:04 am
sarah Says:
Hello, I’m new around here but will surely visit again. (I just subscribed.)
Lunches are something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately. Your other commenters had a lot of good ideas so far. I want to form a lunch club with a few other colleagues so we can share our healthy lunches. Then each of five of us, say, would make a big item to share once a week. Or if there were two of us it would be every other day. Thanks for sharing!
June 30th, 2010 at 5:18 am