Lunch is so hard!
 

I have a really hard time coming up with healthy lunches. I don't eat much meat aside from chicken, and I save that for dinner. So, I need meat-less lunches that don't take too much time to make. I do flat out wrap pizzas often, but I don't have a lot of ideas beyond that. I need to start doing some wraps with turkey breast and veggies. I do salads also, But what ELSE is there? I need to find some yummy, filling lunches. I am hungry, but just can't decide what to eat. Ack!

Need a little more info - are you at home for lunch? Are you at work? Is there a frig, microwave, oven?

My favorite lunches:

Veggie tacos - 2 whole wheat tortillas (La Tortilla Factory, 50 calories each), 2 veggie burgers, tons of spinach leaves, pico de gallo, a little low fat cheese. I nuke the burgers for 2 minutes, then dice. I put the tortillas on a plate, divide the burger bits evenly, top with the cheese, nuke for 1.5 minutes. Then, I add spinach, pico, salsa - delish!

Salmon salad - you said you don't eat much meat, but canned wild caught salmon has a TON of health benefits! I mix one can with a dollop of low fat mayo, chopped dill pickles and onions. I cut a whole wheat pita in half and warm it up, then scoop in salad, add sliced heirloom tomatoes and spinach leaves. 1 whole pita or 1/2 pita and a bowl of tomato soup!

Salad - my favorite salad is spinach leaves, grilled chicken, grape tomatoes, 1/4 cup dried cranberries, 1/4 cup nuts, red onions and fat free balsalmic vinaigrette

I love to roast a huge pan of vegetables, they are so versatile. I usually dice up sweet potatoes, green beans (or chickpeas), carrots, onions, garlic, tomato, zucchini, pepper, 1 tbs olive oil (spray the pan with PAM) and roast for about an hour at 400 (stirring a few times). I can serve it over whole wheat couscous with a little spicy stir fry sauce, toss it with whole wheat pasta and a little pesto, put it into wraps with salsa, use it as quesadilla filling or omelet filling. I can make a huge pan (enough for 4 days) and eat it differently every day.

LEFTOVERS from dinner the night before!

When I am in school I eat normally the same thing every day for lunch:
1. Chicken Salad Sandwich and veggies (sometimes a piece of string cheese or yorgut.
2. Chicken or ham luncheon meat (90something fat free) sandwich with cheese, cucumbers, lettuce, and mustard, veggies or light potato chips.
3. Salad with corn, blackbeans and maybe chicken, with salsa as a dressing.

If you aren't eating meat at lunch you might want to look into other sources or protein to help you stay full. Some suggestions are fake lunch meat (soy based), beans in your salad like chickpeas or blackbeans, or dairy such as a bowl of cereal with skim milk, cheese or yorgut.

I'm at home, but I work from home and have a high-energy toddler- so I need fast ideas, haha.

I have looked everywhere, but can't find La Tortilla Factory tortillas here, so I usually use flat out wraps (10 g of carbs). I am not a fan of veggie burgers, unfortunately. And I am not really a fan of salmon.. and I don't like beans.. haha. I guess I'm picky! I love your other ideas though!! I will definitely try roasting veggies. Do you season them or use any kind of spray/oil?

I eat salads with fish or chicken most days, but several days a week I wind up making a zucchini and mushroom frittata. It's delicious and really filling--probably my favourite lunch. If I've just come from the gym, I'll have a piece of whole wheat toast as well.

I make it with one small zucchini, some minced onion and 3 mushrooms, all of which I saute with a teensy bit of cooking spray beforehand. Then I use 1 whole egg and 1/2 cup of egg whites along with 1/2 ounce of cheddar. That comes in at 215 for me, and it's really yummy!

Frittatas are a really nice lunch idea if you're at home. You can add whatever veggies you like and you get a filling, tasty, protein-alicious lunch.

(I also like a "greek" frittata, with spinach, feta, diced tomatoes and a few kalamata olives. It's a bit higher in calories, because of the olives (15 cal each!), but still very reasonable and very tasty.)

That sounds yummy, baffled! What do you think would be a good substitute for mushrooms? Do you slice/dice/peel...?

Lentil soup is what keeps me going all afternoon. If I have the time I'll make a big pot of it and freeze it for the week, but if I don't then I have Progresso's.

Beans, lentils, and rice....those are my lunch staples.

Originally Posted by MAMA2CHUNKEYMONKEY:
I'm at home, but I work from home and have a high-energy toddler- so I need fast ideas, haha.

I have looked everywhere, but can't find La Tortilla Factory tortillas here, so I usually use flat out wraps (10 g of carbs). I am not a fan of veggie burgers, unfortunately. And I am not really a fan of salmon.. and I don't like beans.. haha. I guess I'm picky! I love your other ideas though!! I will definitely try roasting veggies. Do you season them or use any kind of spray/oil?

You can order La Tortilla factory tortillas online, if you want:

http://low-carb.com/latofato.html

For the veggies, I normally just roast with a little olive oil, onion and garlic and then season them differently based on how I'm using them. Salsa with quesadillas, stir fry sauce over brown rice/couscous, pesto with whole wheat pasta, etc etc.

If you don't like veggie tacos with veggie burgers, Morning Star farms makes some other interesting products, I love their "steak" and "chicken" meal starters. The steak strips are delicious for fajita style soft tacos.

http://www.seeveggiesdifferently.com...=23&family=366

Another thing I like is the breaded "chicken" patty on a whole wheat hambuger bun with lettuce, tomato and a side of sweet potato french fries.

I definitely agree with the soup recommendation. I love making a big pot of tomato, spinach, zucchini, leek, chickpea soup. It is delicious, low cal and filling.

Any veggie would work, really. Diced red and green peppers would be nice and colorful. I leave the skin on the zucchini and grate it coarsely with my cheese grater. You could do zucchini and peppers, zucchini and garlic, zucchini and low-fat turkey breakfast sausage. Asparagus. Tomatoes. Olives. Whatever you like. The trick is to cram the thing so full of veggies that you wind up completely stuffed. The world is your oyster :)

If you haven't made frittata before, the basic method is to 1. saute your veggies; 2. mix your eggs and whites together and then stir in cheese, salt, pepper and finally the veggies, once they've cooled a bit. 3. Heat a small frypan over a med-low heat and spray with cooking spray. 4. Pour in the egg mixture and leave it over the low heat until the middle is almost set. It takes about 10 minutes and you want to do it slowly so that you don't burn the bottom. (I usually take this time to jump in the shower to wash away the gym sweat :) )Then you stick the pan under the broiler for a few minutes until it becomes browned and puffy. Tada. Delicious lunch. I think you can also do the whole thing in the oven, but I always do the stove top/broiler combo.

The nice thing about frittatae is that they can be eaten at room temperature, sorta like a crustless quiche, if you like. This means that you could make it ahead of time and then eat it when you're ready. My preference is for straight from the broiler though. With tapatio hot sauce.

Mmmmm. I think I know what I'm having for lunch today :)

I cook four portions of whatever I cook for dinner. The next day, my partner and I both have an on-plan lunch that can be quickly reheated in the microwave whenever we want. It also helps to balance my days better so I don't eat like a bird all day and then overeat at dinner time.

Im actually really digging the frittata suggestions, I have 6 eggs in the frig, sounds like what I'm having for dinner on the weekends! Mine will be: a little low fat feta, mushrooms, a few kalamata olives, sun dried tomato, and spinach!

Wow, thanks everyone! Lots of great suggestions!

What about good old fashioned peanut butter? or
Hummus with a pita
egg salad
tunafish salad

But my pick of the week would have to be: (drum roll please)

Tbl avocado mixed/smushed with tbl of sour cream, shredded turkey breast, lettuce, onion, tomato (all mixed together) in half a whole wheat pita with some soy chips on the side for crunch. Double yum, i had this twice this week so far.

I love peanut butter, and have found that simply jif tastes like the real thing- but it's still 190 calories for 2 tbsp, which seems like a lot.. especially if it's also on bread. I can't get into the taste of 'natural' peanut butter. Your wrap sounds yummy though! I may do wraps for the rest of this week, those are always a winner.

Tuna salad was one of my favorites.

Get some canned tuna in water, and add in some chopped onions, tomatoes, pepper, and a hint of lemon juice. Then I would eat it with some ww crackers, or use low fat cheese and ww bread to make a tuna melt. Filled me up every time.

Egg white ommelettes are also a great for lunch. Add in a good carb and you´re set to go. I don´t use cheese for my ommelettes, but if you do, keep it to one portion and fat free or reduced calorie.

Great suggestions everyone!

Originally Posted by MAMA2CHUNKEYMONKEY:
I love peanut butter, and have found that simply jif tastes like the real thing- but it's still 190 calories for 2 tbsp, which seems like a lot.. especially if it's also on bread. I can't get into the taste of 'natural' peanut butter. Your wrap sounds yummy though! I may do wraps for the rest of this week, those are always a winner.

I can't stand "regular" peanut butter anymore, it tastes...waxy! A fun thing to do with peanut butter that is lower calorie (and maybe your toddler might like it too??) - peanut butter quesadillas! I smear a tablespoon of peanut butter on a 50 calorie tortilla, add any other filling that sounds good (especially sliced banana, but I also like thinly sliced granny smith or cranberry spread, I sometimes add a sprinkle of cinnamon) and then top with another tortilla smeared with peanut butter and grill in a big pan until both sides are golden brown (spray PAM on pan!). Cut into quarters. I heard kids love to dip things, maybe dipping it into warmed apple butter or a little honey or even a smidge of chocolate syrup would be fun?

It may sound kinda weird, but I have a self-rule to TRY to have only ONE meat per day, and it is usually fish or turkey. I prefer to have my meat at dinner time, so I usually don't have any meat at lunch. Mostly I TRY to stick to veggies & fruit for lunch, so I can save my "one meat" for dinner, and I rarely have any meat at all for breakfast (occasionally I'll have bacon... that's usually just a few times a year, tho!)

However, one of my favorite lunches is a few slices of turkey, some cut up carrots, yellow peppers, and cucumbers, with an apple or some grapes for a "dessert". YUM! But like - today, for instance - I had steamed shrimp & veggies. It was GREAT, and pretty doggone healthy. Tonight, I will either have soup or a salad for dinner - no meat of any kind, since I had shrimp at lunch. And whenever I have a small breakfast, I'll have a fairly big lunch, and a much smaller dinner.

Other lunches I enjoy:
South Beach Diet frozen or refrigerated meals
Cup of mixed fruit and a salad of lettuce, tomato & cucumber
A tomato sandwich (I always use whole-grain oat bread)
A peanut butter & banana sandwich
A turkey, cheese & pickle sandwich with mustard (sounds gross but I love it!)
Soup (or soup & salad)
A Subway veggie delight

And don't be shy about eating "breakfast foods" at lunch! - that's perfectly OK! I eat cereal (usually Kashi Go-Lean Crunch) for lunch or dinner quite often!

I also work from my home, so I get to cook lunchtime.

My 2 favorite lunches:

1 Morning Star Chick Pattie with 3 cups of cooked cauliflower. Really filling.

I make a stir fry with tons of veggies - broccoli, peppers, mushrooms, zuchinni, onions, green beans. I eat it with either a 2 or 3 egg white omlette. Really healthy, low cal and SATISFYING.

On occasion I will eat a big salad with a 3 oz can of tuna in water. Lots of romaine, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and peppers. I squeeze on some fresh lemon juice.

I know the OP doesn't like salmon, but I made a delicious lunch wrap yesterday that might appeal to others: whole wheat tortilla, grilled salmon, 20 grams of avocado mixed with 1 tsp fat free sour cream and a dash of lemon juice, and a big pile of pico de gallo that I made in the morning. It was really, really delicious. I had to have a salad with it, because a wrap alone never really fills me up, but the salmon-avocado-pico combo was surprisingly fantastic. 304 calories by my reckoning (but I don't have access to the super-low-cal tortillas).

Thanks guys, LOTS of great ideas!!

My favorite site for lunchtime inspiration: http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/

The archives have hundres of ideas!

If you're home, lunch can be anything you want it to be. You can cook and freeze and pop stuff in the microwave. So you're not relegated to just sandwiches or frozen dinners from the store. You can create your own meals and freeze them yourself.

But, if you simply don't have the time for a lot of cooking and just prefer something that takes little time, most of what I do for lunch are either healthy frozen dinners. Lean Cuisine, Amy's...whatever. I just check the ingredients and nutrition labels. I also do a lot of wraps. I like cream cheese on my wraps with either turkey or ham or just stuffed with veggies. Today I had a ham and veggie cream cheese wrap with red bell peppers dipped in hummus on the side. Soup is also quick and easy for lunch. I have a delicious barley veggie soup we get from the Amish around here. It takes 45 minutes, but makes enough for days. I also love PB. Yeah, its got a lot of calories, but it doesn't take much on a sandwich AND it has healthy fats, its good for you. Just eat it in moderation. Sometimes I just toss together a salad, using some sesame seeds, or pre-grilled chicken, some ham or cold boiled frozen shrimp that I thaw out, as a protein to add in. Often, I just heat leftovers from last night's dinner. If I have leftover grilled chicken or turkey, I may put that on wheat bread or in a wrap for a sandwich the next day.

Lately, I've been having a light flat out wrap with a couple slices of turkey, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, pineapple (gotta love that extra flavor), and cranberry honey mustard. I usually have a pear with it.

Today I had one of my oldtime lunches: soup and a microwaved sweet potato.

In the past, I've had the sweet and spicy starkist marinated tuna packet with carrots and pretzels on the side.