Creative Lunch Ideas

Are you caught in a peanut butter and jelly rut? It is remarkable how that sandwich of yummy goo can stunt lunch-time creativity! Today I hope to inspire some creativity and help you reclaim your lunch time menu.

French Bread

This seemingly plain loaf of bread makes some delicious creations that are exquisite for lunches. Slice in half to make:

French Bread Pizza- spaghetti sauce, pepperoni and cheddar or mozzarella cheese.

Olive Bread- This is can be a side for spaghetti. I wouldn't advise eating by itself as you need more protein that just the small amounts of cheese on it.

Instead of Fast Food:

A favorite meal we have stemmed from when we lived in Germany. Eating out was very high-priced and we tried to reserve it for fun, planned days or events. Sometimes, we would be out to late to get dinner going, but I did not want to take the house to eat out. I would stop by the E-Mart and bought Brotchen (hard rolls), freshly sliced salami, Gouda cheese slices, onions, lettuce, tomatoes and seasoned cream cheese. We also would get chocolate milk as a extra treat.

This yummy dinner cost me a fraction of the cost of eating out at a restaurant. We took this home and sliced the vegetables and put the sandwiches together in less than five minutes.

Since then, I do the same thing instead of eating out for dinner. I find German bakeries here in the States if I can, and if not, I just get rolls. Sometimes we'll grab a bag of lettuce for a side salad.

Boboli Pizza Crusts

Mexican pizza- ground beef, jar salsa, top with cheddar cheese

Regular pizza

Soups & Salads

Soups and salads include digestive enzymes that help our bodies break down the heavier meals better. This is a suspect why restaurants serve these first. It's something to remember the next time you dine out and help your body a itsybitsy more by eating a soup or salad before the main course.

My house and I are on a gluten free diet and I am on a very accurate diet that restricts a lot of separate foods. Some of these salads are our tried and true favorites.

Chicken Doritos Salad

My favorite salad: canned chicken, goat cheese, lemon juice, olive oil and oregano sprinkles.

Southwest Salad

Soups:

Brunswick Stew (See the method in the free sample eBook on our website.)

Chicken noodle with grilled cheese

Taco soup

Spicy Chicken

Ham and Potato Soup

Tortillas:

Slice of American cheese and heat in the microwave

Peanut butter and honey

Fry them up and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar or honey (eat with protein!)

Make a "wrap"- chicken nuggets, coleslaw or lettuce, mayo...serve with fries!

Make a "Big city Burrito"- Large wraps (spinach or tomato) beans, rice, shredded chicken (crock-pot), white American cheese, salsa verde (green)

Tortilla Roll-ups: cream cheese, 1 sm can green chilis, chopped, ½ small can chopped jalapenos, 1 can chicken breast, roll em up!

English Muffins

Pizza (again)

Egg McMuffin- butter on both sides...large packages of Canadian bacon at Sam's Club, fried egg, all American cheese

Bagels

1 whole wheat bagel

cream cheese

2 slices ham or favorite lunch meat

lettuce

Tomato

alfalfa sprouts

In Germany, these were part of McDonald's breakfasts and were my Favorites!

Double Duty Meals:

Just like Rachel Ray has duplicate duty meals in her cookbook, I like to do these once a week too. Some ideas she had were to make this Mexican bean and rice dish for dinner. The next meal you use the leftover mixture to fill green or chili peppers. She has many other ideas as well. Here are some of mine:

Put a whole chicken the crock-pot the night before and eat the chicken for lunch, leaving the bones and extras to close cooking in water during the rest of the day. Take the bones out and use the chicken broth for cooking rice or a soup for dinner.

Bake potatoes for lunch...potato salad for dinner!

Thinking face of the "Box"- Or Inside Rather

We love new and creative ways to eat mac and cheese! Here are some that we have tried or heard of:

Tuna- add a can of drained tuna fish.

Peas- Cook the peas in the extra water macaroni water and then add to the pasta when cooked.

Ketchup- sometimes I add some ketchup in my bowl of mac and cheese- mmm!

Chicken and salsa- add a can of drained chicken breast and 1 cup of salsa--ole!

Chili Mac- mix a can of chili in with the complete mac and cheese

Topping: Top with crushed Ritz crackers

Serve With:

Deep fried tator tots! Dip them in Bbq sauce.

Salad

Salmon or chicken

Or Octopus (boiled hot dogs with sliced "legs")

Other Ideas:

Rice and refried beans (rice cooker- best invention ever!)

Spaghetti- are you getting tired of the same old thing? Make it green olives instead of mushrooms- Superb! Salt and tastes good than mushrooms

Cold Chicken Salad with crescent rolls

Sides:

I all the time have a large package of bungalow cheese

Cottage cheese is great with:

Peaches

Pie filling

Mandarin oranges

Sunflower seeds

Others:

Raw vegetables

Olives

Dessert

Graham crackers with icing (strawberry)

Homemade popsicles

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Spread

And finally, if you are having a bad day and your cupboards are getting bare, go to the web- type in ingredients and see some ideas of meals to make.

Keep a list of lunch menu ideas (30 days worth) printed on paper and put inside a sheet protector and tape it to the inside of your cupboard, just in case.

how you can help Creative Lunch Ideas how you can help