Healthy Vegetarian Lunch Options?
FindingCynSporation
Posts: 31 Member
I would love to get some fresh ideas on healthy vegetarian lunch options. It's a bit hard to work in an office where the whole staff goes out to lunch every day - not only is it pricey, but it's not very healthy either. I hope to hear about some (easy) lunch options that are filling and high in protein that works for others!
1
Replies
-
Whole wheat tortilla with peanut butter, honey and banana slices rolled up!4
-
That sounds DELISH! Love it! Thank you!0
-
I love making carrot batons, cucumber, peppers and cherry tomatoes with a small pot of houmous.0
-
I had this today...
http://happyhealthymama.com/southwest-stuffed-sweet-potatoes.html
We had them for dinner last night and instead of making two I made four so that we would have leftovers for lunch. Super easy and delicious. I make my own salsa fresca.
That's what we do most of the time...we just make extra for dinner so we have leftovers for the next day or some other day that week.7 -
Hummus with veggies (I have a recipe for butterbean hummus if you'd like it; I'm not a fan of the texture of garbanzo beans)
vegetarian chili
black bean burgers (several recipes on internet). I don't know if you know it but instead of eggs, you can soak chia seeds in water. They become jelly like and work great as a binder.
bean burrito (if you're afraid of the fat, mash up a can of drained pintos - add cumin and cayenne, etc)
pasta with simple marinara (I usually will make one with crushed tomatoes, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, basil)
pasta salad with whole grain pasta, light dressing and variety of vegetables.
bake some corn tortillas sprayed with nonstick spray in oven and have salsa on side
Mexican pizza (top pita bread with refried beans seasoned with taco seasoning, lettuce, tomatoes, green onions, salsa, etc)
Soups (alone or with side salad):
Zucchini soup. Cook sliced zucchini in vegetable broth with garlic and onions. When tender, drain & puree.
(I normally use 1 tbsp. of light sour cream but that's optional. It just makes it creamier). Season however
you like. If you eat cheese, I sprinkle with parm and croutons.
Broccoli soup. For this I use milk, but I'm sure you could substitute almond milk. I cook frozen broccoli. For
thickness, I cook diced onions in 2 tsp of oil, once it's done, add same amount of flour, allow to lightly
brown then add milk and stir until thick. I then blend the broccoli with the creamy mixture and enough liquid
to thin out. You get the idea.
Tomato soup. Easy with side of garlic toast or croutons.
Stuffed pepper. Instead of the meat, use lentils, mushrooms or beans.
I'm not vegetarian. I've eaten vegetarian before. I love my vegetables !!!
Note: these don't seem easy but I make them at night then bring for lunch....4 -
cwolfman - that looks absolutely amazing!! And I'm sure it's filling too. How perfect!
Steph38878 - Thank you for all of those wonderful suggestions! I'm a big fan of bringing in leftovers, so making them the night before works best for me. I've never had zucchini soup, and I'm anxious to try that! These are all incredible options!!2 -
Lentil salad with lime-cumin vinaigrette.
In a bowl, mix up the vinaigrettre. Add one can of drained, rinsed lentils. Additions to this salad: green onions, raisins, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, brown rice. It will taste better if prepared in advance. When I'm ready to eat, I like to add a few bits of feta cheese.2 -
My go to is a taco salad. Black beans, cheese, wholly guacamole, salsa, onions, tomatoes on a bed of lettuce. Yummy I'm hungry now.1
-
littlewingMandy wrote: »Whole wheat tortilla with peanut butter, honey and banana slices rolled up!
I'd skip the honey and use Hershey's syrup or chocolate chips. Dessert and lunch in one.2 -
I made a week's worth of hummus this weekend and have been using it for sandwiches, and also as a salad dressing ingredient. Today, I sandwiched it, and had some Concord grapes for dessert.
The hummus was a combo of (low sodium) garbanzos and lentils; olive oil and sunflower seeds, flavored up with lemon juice and pepper, with some other spices. No added salt - none needed. Threw it all in my Vitamix and let it go for a minute. It's lasted me the whole week and more so far.0 -
I made a week's worth of hummus this weekend and have been using it for sandwiches, and also as a salad dressing ingredient. Today, I sandwiched it, and had some Concord grapes for dessert.
The hummus was a combo of (low sodium) garbanzos and lentils; olive oil and sunflower seeds, flavored up with lemon juice and pepper, with some other spices. No added salt - none needed. Threw it all in my Vitamix and let it go for a minute. It's lasted me the whole week and more so far.
This sounds delicious! I haven't made hummus in forever, I need to get back to it. Thank you for this suggestion!0 -
I just started a new job and no one eats lunch. First time that's ever happened. One girl eats protein bars throughout the day and the other girl has health issues - glutten free plus other so she has a container of yogurt at her desk as she's working. I'm the only one who eats lunch and I only have 30 minutes. I'm kind of stuck in a corner until we get our new office. So I literally turn around and sit at the table right behind me. I have been walking around the block once each day just for a change of scenery. Love, Love, Love my new job but can't wait til we get our own space. My boss is on the same page as me. She thinks it's not healthy to not take a lunch break. You need it for a sanity break. Lol I'm used to an hour in all of my past jobs.
So I'm looking for quick and easy too. I feel so much better when I eat Whole Food Plant Based but there don't seem to be many "convenient" fast options for that lifestyle. I've been looking for crock pot recipes and things to prep on the weekends so that everything is quick and easy. Dinners haven't been the best lately either. Too tired to cook when I get home so we throw something together like the other night it was just pasta with Prego. Normally I would have had mushrooms, onions, zuchinni, peppers and a ton of other veggies in it. Needless to say that's not filling me up and I'm reaching for the chips, chocolate and sodas again. Putting the brakes on. Hopefully this week will look more "normal" food wise to me. Headed to Whole Foods and Wally World. Thanks for starting this thread.2 -
I love leftover veggie chilli and baked sweet potato for lunch.0
-
Any kind of veggie wrap throw down a tortilla, put hummus/peanut butter on it, throw in sliced veggies (cucumbers, peppers, etc are always good) and roll 'er up. 1
-
These are really good and they freeze really well:
http://cookingwhims.com/2012/02/22/whip-it-up-wednesday-chickpea-tahini-patties/
My husband and I enjoy them so much that we've made them part of our regular meal rotation. I serve them on a hamburger bun topped with spinach and tomato slices. They're also quite nice topped with a bit of hummus!
EDIT: Oops, it seems like the website is no longer there!
I use the recipe so often that I haven't tried to follow that link for a long time, and just posted it without clicking. Darn it. But here's the recipe that I got from it:
Vegetarian Chickpea Patties
Makes 6 patties
Ingredients:
• 400g can of chickpeas, drained (260 grams net)
• 80g plain breadcrumbs
• 30g tahina
• 7.5g cumin (1.5 tsp)
• 5g baking powder
• 100g onions, chopped finely
• 3 large garlic cloves, grated
• 20g parsley, chopped
• 20g coriander, chopped
• 0.5 lemon, juiced
• Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F
2. Mix the breadcrumbs, baking powder, cumin, salt, and pepper together. Set aside.
3. Combine the chopped onions, parsley, coriander, garlic, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside.
4. Add the chickpeas and breadcrumbs to a food processor. Pulse continuously until you have a coarse, crumbly texture.
5. Add the herb mixture and stir the contents of the food processor with a spoon to loosen the mix. Pour in the tahina and mix again. Run the food processor on low to medium until the ingredients are well-combined.
6. Wearing gloves, use your hands to remove the “dough” from the food processor and form it into a ball. Divide it into six parts and shape into patties, placing them on a greased or paper-lined baking sheet as you form them.
7. Bake the patties at 400°F for 15 minutes. Do not attempt to remove them from the baking sheet until they have cooled completely, or they will fall apart.
8. Freeze leftover patties for as long as three months, if needed.
2 -
I eat salad for lunch almost everyday. Its really good with beans and avocado, sliced sweet peppers, lots of mixed greens(maybe some shredded cabbage). I sometimes make homemade pico for dressing. I might have Greek yogurt and a fruit on the side.0
-
FindingCynSporation wrote: »I made a week's worth of hummus this weekend and have been using it for sandwiches, and also as a salad dressing ingredient. Today, I sandwiched it, and had some Concord grapes for dessert.
The hummus was a combo of (low sodium) garbanzos and lentils; olive oil and sunflower seeds, flavored up with lemon juice and pepper, with some other spices. No added salt - none needed. Threw it all in my Vitamix and let it go for a minute. It's lasted me the whole week and more so far.
This sounds delicious! I haven't made hummus in forever, I need to get back to it. Thank you for this suggestion!
I was really happy with it! The blend of the beans was a pleasant little surprise to me, and the taste got better over the week, too.0 -
Steph38878 wrote: »Hummus with veggies (I have a recipe for butterbean hummus if you'd like it; I'm not a fan of the texture of garbanzo beans)
Yes, please, on the butterbean hummus (I like both garbanzos and butterbeans, and am definitely in the mood to play.
0 -
Susieq_1994 wrote: »These are really good and they freeze really well:
http://cookingwhims.com/2012/02/22/whip-it-up-wednesday-chickpea-tahini-patties/
My husband and I enjoy them so much that we've made them part of our regular meal rotation. I serve them on a hamburger bun topped with spinach and tomato slices. They're also quite nice topped with a bit of hummus!
EDIT: Oops, it seems like the website is no longer there! I use the recipe so often that I haven't tried to follow that link for a long time, and just posted it without clicking. Darn it. But here's the recipe that I got from it:
Vegetarian Chickpea Patties
Makes 6 patties
Ingredients:
• 400g can of chickpeas, drained (260 grams net)
• 80g plain breadcrumbs
• 30g tahina
• 7.5g cumin (1.5 tsp)
• 5g baking powder
• 100g onions, chopped finely
• 3 large garlic cloves, grated
• 20g parsley, chopped
• 20g coriander, chopped
• 0.5 lemon, juiced
• Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F
2. Mix the breadcrumbs, baking powder, cumin, salt, and pepper together. Set aside.
3. Combine the chopped onions, parsley, coriander, garlic, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside.
4. Add the chickpeas and breadcrumbs to a food processor. Pulse continuously until you have a coarse, crumbly texture.
5. Add the herb mixture and stir the contents of the food processor with a spoon to loosen the mix. Pour in the tahina and mix again. Run the food processor on low to medium until the ingredients are well-combined.
6. Wearing gloves, use your hands to remove the “dough” from the food processor and form it into a ball. Divide it into six parts and shape into patties, placing them on a greased or paper-lined baking sheet as you form them.
7. Bake the patties at 400°F for 15 minutes. Do not attempt to remove them from the baking sheet until they have cooled completely, or they will fall apart.
8. Freeze leftover patties for as long as three months, if needed.
This sounds very, very good.0 -
I like to bake burrito filling and make up burritos early in the week. I like these with pineapple salsa.
I added the quinoa and amaranth to soak up some of the liquid. You could possibly just leave out the water instead. If you use a glass pan you can see when all the water is cooked away.
If the burritos are soggy later in the week you can toast the outside in a nonstick skillet without any oil. Love them toasted.
Zatarain's Spanish rice, 1box
Diced tomatoes, 1 14 oz. can
Black beans, 1 can drained and rinsed
Sweet potato, 1 large, diced
Olive oil, 2 tbsp
Amaranth, 1/4 cup
Quinoa, 1/4 cup
Water, 1 tomato can full
8x8 glass pan
400 degrees Fahrenheit, 50 minutes0 -
Susieq_1994 wrote: »These are really good and they freeze really well:
http://cookingwhims.com/2012/02/22/whip-it-up-wednesday-chickpea-tahini-patties/
My husband and I enjoy them so much that we've made them part of our regular meal rotation. I serve them on a hamburger bun topped with spinach and tomato slices. They're also quite nice topped with a bit of hummus!
EDIT: Oops, it seems like the website is no longer there! I use the recipe so often that I haven't tried to follow that link for a long time, and just posted it without clicking. Darn it. But here's the recipe that I got from it:
Vegetarian Chickpea Patties
Makes 6 patties
Ingredients:
• 400g can of chickpeas, drained (260 grams net)
• 80g plain breadcrumbs
• 30g tahina
• 7.5g cumin (1.5 tsp)
• 5g baking powder
• 100g onions, chopped finely
• 3 large garlic cloves, grated
• 20g parsley, chopped
• 20g coriander, chopped
• 0.5 lemon, juiced
• Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F
2. Mix the breadcrumbs, baking powder, cumin, salt, and pepper together. Set aside.
3. Combine the chopped onions, parsley, coriander, garlic, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside.
4. Add the chickpeas and breadcrumbs to a food processor. Pulse continuously until you have a coarse, crumbly texture.
5. Add the herb mixture and stir the contents of the food processor with a spoon to loosen the mix. Pour in the tahina and mix again. Run the food processor on low to medium until the ingredients are well-combined.
6. Wearing gloves, use your hands to remove the “dough” from the food processor and form it into a ball. Divide it into six parts and shape into patties, placing them on a greased or paper-lined baking sheet as you form them.
7. Bake the patties at 400°F for 15 minutes. Do not attempt to remove them from the baking sheet until they have cooled completely, or they will fall apart.
8. Freeze leftover patties for as long as three months, if needed.
This sounds very, very good.
It is! Absolutely heavenly. I hope you try it! 0 -
Steph38878 wrote: »Hummus with veggies (I have a recipe for butterbean hummus if you'd like it; I'm not a fan of the texture of garbanzo beans)
Yes, please, on the butterbean hummus (I like both garbanzos and butterbeans, and am definitely in the mood to play.
Sure thing.
1 can of large butterbeans, drained (1 3/4 cup)
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Blend up and that's it. I've also added roasted red peppers which is great! I rarely keep tahini on hand but I usually have sesame oil so that's why I used it. I'm sure you can adjust seasonings to your liking.
0 -
I have been bringing salads lately, which I pack the night before by layering the ingredients in a quart deli container. (Similar to those "mason jar salads" you see on Pinterest, but a bit more practical, because the plastic deli containers are obviously lighter and far less likely to break!) Then at work I dump it into a big bowl and mix it up. In the following order, I typically use:
1/2 cup (113g) low-fat cottage cheese
1 oz (28g) feta
100g chickpeas (or sometimes a can of tuna but I prefer the chickpeas)
1 oz (28g) shredded carrots
50-100g of some other veggie (cucumber, red pepper, etc)
then fill to the top with a green of choice (usually arugula because it's so flavorful)
On the side I pack a fist sized tomato and cut it up at work so that the texture doesn't get ruined in the fridge.
This usually runs me about 350-380 calories, depending. I also add plenty of seasoning salt (CampMix or Jane's Krazy Salt), black pepper, and crushed red pepper.
I love cottage cheese so using it as a dressing is pretty tasty, and has the benefit of adding moisture and protein. The juice from the tomato also helps with moisture, and the feta adds some tang where the cottage cheese doesn't.
You could also add vinegar but I keep forgetting. I want to try adding dijon mustard or dill, also!
1 -
Great recipe thanks0
-
As many have said humous and veggies are great, as are salads.
With my salads i'll often make some roast butternut squash, or some baked tofu for my dinner, and save half for my salad.
Also ricecakes or crackers with low fat cottage cheese is tasty and has high protein if you eat cheese.0 -
I love salads. I usually have a salad at lunch with lots of veggies, garbanzos or cheese for protein and a low-cal vinaigrette.
I also do bring leftovers from dinner the night before.
One of my recent favorites is a homemade burrito bowl.
1/2 cup Brown rice tossed with lime juice
1/2 cup Black beans
1/2 cup bell peppers and onions (sautéed or roasted with a light spritz of olive oil from my Misto sprayer)
2 tbsp Fresh pico de gallo
2 tbsp guacamole
1 cup Shredded lettuce
1 tbsp fat free Greek yogurt (I use this in place of sour cream)
2 oz shredded 2% milk fat cheese (I like Colby jack)
2 tbsp salsa
Keep the beans, rice, and sautéed veggies in one container, microwave those then dump in a bowl with all the cold stuff (I usually layer those in another Tupperware container, lettuce and cheese on top so they don't get soggy). It might not look too pretty, but man it's delicious and filling.
0 -
I like a tempeh wrap with siracha vegan mayo (mix siracha with vegan mayo). Lightly saute tempeh (can do day before) and put in a wrap with veggies and hummus.0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.3K Health and Weight Loss
- 176K Food and Nutrition
- 47.5K Recipes
- 232.6K Fitness and Exercise
- 431 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.6K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.8K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions