Tag: lunch ideas

Fresh Winter Flavours

It’s easy to get on a soup kick in the wintertime, but there are still lots of seasonal salad options, even as the cold weather has taken hold. We are fortunate to be able to get local, greenhouse-grown lettuce until spring returns, but cabbage or kale or other winter-hardy greens would work just as well.

Fill your plate with…

2c / 500ml lettuce, washed and torn

Top with

1 pear, sliced

Drizzle with a mixture of 1/2 T or 7ml each 

Dijon mustard 

Crunchy mustard

Olive oil

Cider vinegar

Then grate or crumble 1 oz aged cheddar or other cheese you need to use up since the holidays

And sprinkle with 1T / 15ml chopped walnuts or spiced nuts – (thanks for these @dickiedanger @icfplanetweird) and 1T / 15ml raisins.

Switch out the greens, the pears for apples or citrus, different nuts (or even cooked pulses) and cheese – and your winter salad repertoire will be infinite.

Enjoy!

  

"I'm not missing bread", he said…

Back in the city, (did I mention we’ve moved?) we have returned to many healthy, happy habits. The first is walking – everywhere. Although we are still eating  freshly-prepared homemade food, there’s been a decided absence of baked goods. Generally I only have homemade bread, and we have been busy moving across the country. Somehow, bread making just hasn’t happened at this point, a month in. 
This morning my husband commented that he hadn’t been missing the bread at all. So here’s another bread-free, use-it-up recipe, for two.

Bring to a boil:

2 c homemade salt free vwgetable stock

1/2 c sliced onion

1 sliced celery stalk

1 grated carrot

2 t cider vinegar

1 t sesame oil

1 T grated ginger 

Divide 

1-1/2 c cooked brown rice (leftover) into two bowls

Top each with

1/2 can water packed tuna or 1/2 c leftover cooked fish 

Pour hot broth and veg mic over

Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

So good!

Take 5!

   Today’s lunch is a new twist on an old favourite: rice and beans. Veggie bowls like these are a cheap and cheerful way to get your five to ten servings of fruit and vegetables, too. We started with reheated leftover brown rice and cooked beans. Then we topped this with grilled pattypan and orange bell pepper, and some diced avocado. Finally, a dressing (for two) with 1 T (15ml) each lemon juice, soy sauce, maple syrup, sesame oil and 1 t (5ml) wasabi paste for just the right fusion of flavour.

We're Eating in Technicolor…

  “Eat your colours” is a great description to get kids to tuck in to a variety of fruits and vegetables. Eye appeal works just as well for us, the “grown-ups”. That’s the whole idea behind today’s Super Sesame Salmon Bowl. (A vegan version could just as easily feature sautéed mushrooms, chickpeas, or seitan).

2 c /500ml broccoli florets and stems cut in coins

1 c /250 ml sliced red cabbage

2 small avocados, diced

1 apricot, sliced

1 ripe tomato, sliced

2 t / 10 ml sesame oil

1t / 5 ml honey

15 ml sesame seeds 

1 can salmon 

For two, we steamed the broccoli for a minute or so in the microwave in a large bowl with the juice of a lemon. Put veggies (except avocado) in a bowl w the steamed broccoli. Drizzle with sesame oil, honey, and sprinkle in the seeds. Toss lightly.

Add the salmon and avocado and mix gently. Eat and enjoy.

Creamy, Dreamy Sandwiches

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We were craving something delicious for lunch and there was an avocado that had just reached that moment of perfect ripeness. We diced it into some salmon and mayo, and served it on homemade whole wheat sourdough bread. Delicious with a cold glass of milk!

Gardening is hungry work!

Yesterday was an absolutely glorious day, and hearing that there was snow in Calgary yesterday, we are grateful for the mild temperature we experienced. It let us get the garden cleaned up, prepped, and some cool weather crops sown for our spring table.

Of course digging and weeding all this (and more) in a locale that is too rocky for a tiller is no mean feat!

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This meant our salmon avocado tomato sandwiches were all the more welcome.

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For two, mix gently and spread on multigrain bread:

1 diced avocado, sprinkled w 15ml/1T lemon juice
4 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 can wild salmon, drained and mashed
30ml/2T light mayo

Enjoy!

How Can We Use this for Lunch?

January is a time of renewal in our family – and frugality of a multitude of sorts. Most of us who aren’t already abstainers (shout out to the in-laws) give up “the drink”. We also usually get back on the horse (or treadmill, bike, road, pool, or trail) if we have been lax of late. In our house we’ve decided to take a tip from our old East Lynn Danforth friends and try not to spend money on non-essentials as well. We were inspired when the Daughter and Son and their loves showed up with a plethora of handmade and homemade things at Christmas.

It calls to mind an old poem, really words to live by in this consumerist age:

Use it up
Wear it out
Make it do
Or do without

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On that note, our lunch quest was, “what have we got in the house to eat that doesn’t require going out for supplies?”

We made this awesomely delicious pasta:

For two:

Cook 1c/250ml multicolour veg pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, dice 2 very ripe tomatoes (ok, ours were VERY ripe) and 1/2 head of broccoli, stems and florets (or either)

Drain a can of salmon.

Chop up a hot pickled pepper languishing alone in its jar (clean and save jar for next year’s canning).

Dig out that 30g/1oz end of herbed goat cheese from the fridge.

Chop a couple of anchovies.

When the pasta is done, strain it. Put the pot back on the stove and dump in the other ingredients except salmon. Stir until the cheese melts in, then add the pasta and the salmon, quickly mixing to coat.

Give thanks for leftovers and good things hiding in the fridge!

Tuna Melts with French Flair

In just barely more time than it takes to assemble and slice sandwiches, you can have this delicious tuna melt, to warm you on a chilly day near the coast. Makes 3 or 4:

3-4 slices of multigrain toast (not buttered)
1 can tuna in water, drained, and mixed with
1 diced tomato
15 ml Dijon
15 ml mayonnaise

Preheat broiler to high. Make the filling and put it on the toast. Grate over top, a thin layer of Comté cheese (aged cheddar works well also). Voilà, a satisfying lunch for 2.

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The Leftover Trend Continues

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Last night’s grilled chicken was organized for three, and one dropped off the list. (When you’re semi empty nest this happens). So we used the leftovers, plus some soda bread from the weekend’s festivities, and made a sandwich:

For two…

Four slices soda bread
Chop chicken and one tomato in 1cm or 1/2″ dice. Mix with 15ml/1T fat free sour cream and the same amount of Dijon.

Enjoy!

It's the Great Pumpernickel

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This weekend I tried pumpernickel from Jean Paré’s classic cookbook, “Breads”.

It turned out so well I kept looking for excuses to eat it. So lunch had to be a sandwich! Albacore tuna mixed with tomato, dill, grainy mustard and light mayo made the filling tasty enough to hold up to the robust flavour of the bread. And with the whole grain rye flour, the loaf has enough fibre to enjoy without regrets.