Lunch Ideas for those of us who pack!

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Do you have a good turkey chili recipe? I haven't tried it before because I haven't found a good recipe!

This is my recipe, guaranteed to please!

Homemade 3 Bean Turkey Chili

16 oz. ground turkey
1 can dark red kidney bean, undrained
1 can garbanzos, undrained
1 can black beans, undrained
1 small can tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes in juice, undrained
1 medium onion, diced
3 TBSP chili powder

Brown the meat. Toss everything else in. Cook on the stove on low for 30 minutes or 5 hours, your choice - the longer, the better!

Edited to add: it makes 12 servings (1-1/4 cup) at 193 calories each.

I'm posting in here so I can snacg some of these ideas because a Roast beef sandwhich every single day for lunch is starting to drive me nuts

I'm a single gal that LOVES to cook, so I bring a lot of leftovers to work. To change it up sometimes, I'll grab something from My Fit Foods (a healthy pre-made meal business in Texas). I save the MFF containers and they are PERFECT for portioning out whatever I make on the weekend.

My conundrum always came when I wanted to make something that serves 6-8. I don't want to eat the same thing every day, so I will usually eat a portion when I make it, and then portion out a couple more for the week, and the last portions get frozen individually. Problem solved! I always have a good variety of leftovers in rotation in the freezer, and I don't have to worry about food going bad, or getting sick of eating the same thing over and over. It took me a little while to get the timing down, but it's perfect for me. I just pull out tomorrow's lunch the night before and put it in the fridge. Even if it's not fully thawed by lunchtime, it's easy enough to heat up in the microwave.

I like to bring a veggie "side" with lunch as well, and for that I steam a bag of frozen vegetables (lately it's been cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots) in a bit of chicken stock with some herbs. That gets portioned out into containers to throw in my lunch bag with whatever other leftovers I'll be having.

I cook a lot of things from skinnytaste.com or emilybites.com. They both have all of the nutrition info posted for each recipe, and a ton of them are already in the MFP database so they're easy to log.

I'm also not a big fan of frozen dinners, but I do occasionally have the ones from Trader Joe's or the ones made by Amy's Organic Kitchen.

sandwiches with all sorts
wraps with all sorts
pittas with falafel, bell peppers, whatever I can find with houmous.

salads:

spinach, brie, strawberry salad with poppy seed dressing
pasta salad with penne, gorgonzola, rocket and cucumber
pasta with spinach, pesto and parmesan
salad with lettuce, bell pepper, chicken/quorn strips and salsa
slow roasted tomato, basil and pasta salad with roasted pepper and tomato dressing



in my thermal food flask (life saver):

noodles with spinach and sesame seeds
mushroom ragout with pasta
lentil curry with rice
pasta with tomato-basil sauce
chili with rice
egg fried rice with satay sauce
leftover lasagna
risotto
any other one pan dish


soups in the flask with some tasty bread:

tomato-basil soup
carrot coriander soup
minestrone soup
vegetable soup (clear stock with small pieces of vegetables)
other vegetable soup
spinach soup
roasted bell pepper and tomato soup
chicken soup
lentil soup
butternut squash soup
mushroom soup

I love me some tasty homemade soup with really good fresh bread from the German market stall .

I have the 4cup pyrex dishes with the leak proof lids. I use those for salads with a little grilled chicken. I make my own dressing - 1.5t dijon mustard, 1.5t olive oil, 6T seasoned rice vinegar, 1/2c chopped shallots. Shake it up and add some to your salad at least an hour before you eat so it can soak in.

Leftovers are easy - I often just do a protein and veggies because I get a ton of carbs throughout the day.

Wraps - my favorite is garlic hummus, tomato, cucumber, red onion, grilled chicken.

On a lazy day with no groceries - tuna salad and saltines

Random assortment - a bunch of snacks, all at the same time (cut up fruit, hard boiled egg, veggies, hummus, etc)

I try to pack a 2cup pyrex of veggies each day. I usually make a big batch of roasted veggies and use it throughout the week. I do broccoli, brussels sprouts and cauliflower most of the time (little salt and pepper, olive oil, bake at 400 until it starts to get crispy). Sometimes I eat this with lunch, sometimes as an afternoon snack. Other easy to roast veggies are asparagus, green beans, sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, beets.

Bean and cheese burritos - I make flour tortillas on the stove and refried beans in the crockpot, then combine with some shredded cheese, wrap, freeze. I let it defrost in my lunch bag from morning til lunch time. Message me if you want either recipe.

My diary is open and I log Mon-Fri - feel free to check it out.

chicken salad, sometimes I make my own lunchables with a few crackers, lunchmeat, and low-cal laughing cow spread, sugar free pudding, salad with my homegrown veggies. I like popcorn instead of chips most of the time. Fresh fruit. Sometimes something as simple as a bowl of cereal or a ham and cheese omelet (I have a dish that I can make one in the microwave).

*edited becasue I apparently cannot talk on the phone and spell at the same time.*

Two lunches:

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$1.99 for a pack of 6 whole wheat pita bread (90cal/slice)
$2.50 a container of hummus (pick your flavor)
$4.00 a container of tabouleh (where available)
$1.00 yogurt
$1.99 for fresh strawberries (in season now, pretty cheap)