[aaneri]

Ok, so I am not much of a cook and I am on a very tight budget and I am a picky eater...however, I know I can do better then peanut butter and jelly...

I have been on my journey for 2 weeks and have been eating P&J for lunch EVERYDAY...its easy and cheap...does anyone have any other suggestions?

[harrismm]

oh my.[I] would google basic recipes.They are really easy.I know you can do it.And I would guess you might learn to enjoy cooking.Its very therapeutic for me.Good luck.

[nelie]

Lentil soup

Bulk beans and whole grains are cheap.

[Glory87]

Too hard to give advice - just how picky? What DO you like?

I pretty much eat the same thing for lunch every day, the repetition doesn't bother me. I almost always bring a salad, but I vary the type of salads. I make lunches on Sunday night, so I make all lunch for all the workdays at one time and put them in tupperware (everyone always asks if stuff gets wilty, but it's never been a problem, even on Fridays). I do love my chicken warm, so I hold off on the protein and the dressing which I add right before I eat the salads. I also don't add any nuts or crunchy toppings until the last minute.

Favorite salads:

BBQ chicken - crisp romaine, grape tomatoes, a little corn, a sprinkle of black beans, red cabbage, red onions, warm grilled chicken, a tbs of bbq sauce, a tbs of low fat ranch, topped with a few crunchy tortilla strips for crunch.

Asian salad - green leaf lettuce, split a can of sliced water chestnuts over 5 servings, split a can of mandarin oranges over 5 servings, a measured serving of cashew pieces, shredded carrot, edamame, warm grilled chicken, Trader Joe's spicy Asian Peanut dressing, a few crunchy wontons

Beet/feta salad - green leaf lettuce, chopped ready-to-eat beets (I get them at Trader Joe's), a sprinkle of fat free feta (I add at the last minute), red onions, shredded carrots, Trader Joe's Balsalmic Vinaigrette, chicken

CAndied Walnut salad - green leaf lettuce, measured portion of crushed candied walnuts, shredded carrots, measured portion of orange flavored dried cranberries, Trader JOe's Cranberry Walnut & Gorgonzola dressing, crunchy fried onions

Mediterranean salad - crisp romaine, sliced kalamata olives, 1 spicy veggie burger heated/crumbled, pepperocini, red onion, sliced roma tomato, Trader Joe's Tzicki sauce (there's enough in one package for 4 servings, which is perfect since veggie burgers also come 4 to a package - this is a good lunch for work when I know I have something planned for lunch during the week)

Calorie counting is really easy for me, all of my salads have between 400-500 calories, so in my head I know what lunch is every day!

[derrydaughter]

Wow, I'd lose my mind with PB + J every day. Once or twice a year is enough.
I make my own WW version of a grilled cheese that works for me. I use butter spray on two slices of lite bread and grille it in a pan with one slice of fat free American Cheese. Sometimes I get brave and add a bit of tomato and some bacon bits.
I save leftover vegetables in a big zip lock bag in my freezer and when it's got enough in it, I made homemade vegetable soup and it's pretty good and low in calories. It's good for me as well.
Do you like cream cheese and olives? I make those with lite bread and use the whipped cream cheese and sliced green olives.
I know salad ingredients are expensive, but I like to make salads as well.
I hope my thoughts were helpful?
Good luck and I hope things straighten out a bit for you.