Lunches

Anyone have some good suggestions for a healthy and low calorie lunch?  I'm tired of bring Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice frozen meals.  I'd like some alternatives that will be healthy and not overburdened with fat and calories.  What works for any of you?

We have a full kitchen where I work, so I generally make one of three things:

-a serving of quinoa with some vegetables tossed in to steam (172 calories for the quinoa plus whatever I add to it...normally about 200-225 calories total)

-a serving of Birds Eye Teriyaki Stir-Fry Asian-Style Vegetables with Noodles (170 calories)

-a cup of rice with a mushroom "alfredo" sauce made from Silk Light Plain Soymilk, a wedge of Laughing Cow cheese, a tablespoon of low-fat Parmesan cheese, a tablespoon of ground flax seed, and plenty of mushrooms sliced up (205 calories for the rice plus 140 for the mushroom sauce for a total of 345)

That sounds yummy!  Thanks for the tip.  I'd have to make it up ahead of time and warm it in the microwave, but it sounds like something I'd love to try.  Thanks again!

One thing I like to do is make a dinner that will purposefully have leftovers  - such as Chilli, chicken and veggie casserole, any kind of stew,  and put whatever is not my portion for that evening into a plastic container right away that I can take the next day for work.  It takes a little extra planning but it's one idea.

OOOOOOOOOO...That chicken & veggie casserole sounds good. Do you have a recipe for it?

Sorry for sounding ignorant, but what is quinoa?

quinoa is an excellent grain that also happens to be a good source of complete protein... ok, technically it's not actually a grain, but for the sake of simplicity, you treat it like a grain :) here's a bit of what wikipedia has to say;

In contemporary times, this crop has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high (12%–18%), making it a healthful choice for vegetarians and vegans. Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source.[3] It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest.  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa)

Huh. Sounds like something I need to try. I wonder if I can find it in my neighborhood grocery store or if I need to go to a health food store or farmer's market? I'll look for it this weekend.

I was just discussing this with my wife. I usually bring a sandwich and chips for lunch and im looking for something with less salt as i have high bp. I am looking for something i can make quickly in the morning or the night before and doesnt need much if any prep to eat it at work since i dont really have a place to cook anything at.

Any ideas?

I just had the most glorious lunch of pita bread (Joseph's makes a great whole wheat pita that has 120 cals and 4g fiber for a nice-sized half-pita), spread with homemade hummus, stuffed with homemade tabbouleh salad, all on a bed of cucumbers and romaine lettuce, topped with alfalfa sprouts and homemade tzatziki sauce. All three of the recipes are posted in the Recipes section of CC and everything clocked in at about 300 calories with lots of fiber, protein, and calcium. You can make it on Sunday night, let everything marinate overnight, and pack it all in a plastic container in the morning for lunch. You could even pre-portion out a week's lunches if you've got enough tupperware and your morning's busy. No microwave needed and not a single artificial ingredient! It would need to be refrigerated though, what with the yogurt in the tzatziki. ( Tabbouleh Salad , Tzatziki Sauce , Garlic & Tahini Hummus )

Today I had a baked potato topped with homemade black bean salsa.  The salsa is very easy and good and made from common pantry ingredients...I will share the recipe if anyone is interested.  The nice thing about this lunch is it was fast to fix, no dishes to wash, and I will be "full" until supper!  :)

If I dont make a dish that's large like what lizzie was talking about I will make my own lunch full of snacks.

I buy those little snack bags, and I will fill them up with a couple different fruits and veggies.  I have a digital food scale at home and I will measure out the weight the night before so I can accurately log the calories.  Then i will grab some sort of dairy, either a light string cheese or a non-fat yogurt (I prefer greek yogurt or yogurt made with coconut milk) and maybe some sort of nuts and crackers that are yummy and good for you.  Usually if I bring a bunch of stuff to eat that adds up to 300 or 400 calories, my belly gets satisfied as I graze.  It's really not as much work as it sounds, but it really helps doing it the night before.

If I do make a large meal, what I will do is make a special dish Sunday night for the week that is healthy and put it in tupperware containers in the fridge so I can grab and go.  Not all food is good for 5 days in the fridge though, something with beans and veggies usually work :o)