Dejeuner sur la…Cubicle?
Cutesy best-sellers about our more fashionable, chic, and thinner French
sisters aside, there’s something to be said for a fabulous, decadent
lunch when accompanied by a light breakfast and dinner…and dessert. Frankly,
tea is all I want in the morning; I’ve never liked the feeling of a
hearty American breakfast settling in my belly before my body rears
into the day’s motions. By lunch time, I start to crave something really sumptuous, not just a mid-day meal replacement.
Before today, setting my own schedule as a student gave me the flexibility to eat as I pleased--and that meant risottos and boulonnaise and roasted vegetables and breads and cheeses and cured meats... This afternoon, though, I found myself in an office, dreading the weeks of lackluster lunches ahead.
Does anyone have any unique suggestions for an enviable brown bag? Also, in what do you pack these lovely lunches? I find Tupperware and lunchboxes a bit cumbersome to lug on a few train transfers and back.
Best,
Life beyond the PB&J
Views: 37
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Whole Living on -
Because I sometimes ride my bike to work and have enough stuff to lug in my backpack, I also don't like bringing a bag (or lunchbox) lunch to work every day. I do end up buying my lunch more days than not, but one thing I have started doing is stopping at the grocery store on Monday mornings on the way to work (I don't ride on Mondays because of this) and stocking up on some things I can keep at my desk or in the office fridge all week -- a big thing of yogurt for breakfast and snacks, four or five apples or peaches or bananas to put in the fruit bowl at my desk, etc. Depending on how much room you have in a shared refrigerator at your office, maybe you can utilize a similar strategy to get around lugging a tupperware every day?
I'd love to hear some suggestions for more enjoyable lunches, as well. Just today I brought PB&J (no lie) and then decided to buy an exotic expensive salad instead. At least I got plenty of veggies ...
~Amanda
WL Web Editor
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Permalink Reply by olessa pindak on -
I love my lunch bag from BuiltNY.com and have seen many around the office--they're fun, functional, washable, and come in a whole range of colors and patterns. I also use a simple recycled cotton one from ecobags.com that I like—it folds up nicely, but is study and easy to toss in the laundry.
~Olessa
Deputy Ed, Health & Beauty
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Permalink Reply by Sari Lehrer on -
Hi, Amanda --
I can relate! I don't like a very big breakfast myself, and a lovely lunch makes the whole day seem so much nicer. (That being said, I really do love a peanut butter sandwich, especially when it's on good raisin-walnut bread.) While a multi-course meal can be a bit tricky at the office, I'm a big fan of "one-pot" dishes that are best served at room temperature. For instance: cold peanut noodles (we ran a great recipe in our April 2010 issue) or, speaking of our savvy French sisters, pan bagnat, which only improves with age. Last night, I made farro for dinner and put aside some extra to doctor up for lunch today. (I combined the grains with preserved lemons, olive oil, mozzarella, parmesan, and garlic scapes.) As for storage, I'm coveting the tiffin containers at Design Within Reach. Not only are they great looking, they also keep various components separate for days when you're carrying a few types of food. (Plus, they're stainless steel so you avoid BPA paranoia.) The downside is they're pricier than many other options.
I hope this is helpful and that your transition from student to office life is a happy one.
Sari
Editor-at-Large, WL
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Permalink Reply by Amanda O'Connor on -
Thanks for all the tips, everyone. When I got home from work last night and opened a nearly empty fridge, I actually had the chance to do one of my favorite things: Reinvent leftovers. In the veggie crisper, I pulled out some half-eaten zucchinis and summer squash, half of a red bell pepper, some baby portobello mushrooms from a dinner a few nights back, tomato, garlic, and thyme that was just starting to brown. (Basically, everything that's shelf life was nearing its end.) The colors on the counter spoke to me: Quinoa Salad! A light saute and Thai take-out container later, I had a wonderful lunch in the park across from my office. Keeping Olessa's suggestion for a simple cotton bag in mind, I carried my lunch in a trusty Strand tote today. I definitely like that it can double as a book bag for my trip home.
Amanda, I really love the idea of a fruit bowl. Beige is the other side of office life I hadn't anticipated. I've started to decorate with favorite poems and pictures, but nothing quite says warmth and sunshine like fresh fruit.
(And I actually do love PB&J; I'm partial to them grilled, because it's how my mom made them)
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Permalink Reply by Audrey Johnson on -
There's a great Cooking Light recipe if you're in for a sweet twist on the grilled pb and j - mix the peanut butter with a tad bit of honey, and between that and the jelly, throw on some sliced strawberries and bananas, sprinkle on a few mini chocolate chips, and grill to delicious perfection! One of my favorite treats.
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Permalink Reply by Amanda O'Connor on
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Oh my goodness, you've had me thinking about this all weekend! It sounds like a great dessert (who am I kidding, lunch!). I'll have to try this one out.
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Permalink Reply by Shayna on -
I don't know how much it would interest you, but have you ever heard of a bento box? It's a type of Japanese lunch box that is small but can be packed full of all sorts of things. Of course, it's best for Asian foods, so if you don't like Asian foods, you might not find any of this interesting. However, they are handy little boxes that tend to be smaller but easy to pack full. This website has a lot of information on them: http://www.airandangels.com/bentobox/
I know they don't seem too different from a regular lunch box, but their small size helps one to make better food choices since you have limited room.
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Permalink Reply by plexy on -
Sounds fantastic! In fact, this entire thread gave me some really great ideas! We make salads at work and many will leave much of the salad ingredients right there in the big fridge in the staff room. The salads never fail to amaze me with their color and creativity. Every few weeks we all bring a larger version of our favorite salad and we have a salad bar in the staff room where everyone shares. The salads will always contain a protein component like nuts, cheese, shredded chicken, etc. so they are nourishing and have staying power. Of course right now we are in peak salad season with all the gardens bursting with produce and the farmers markets are reflecting this bounty. I'm wondering how long we can keep this up through the colder months...more bean salads I suppose! Michelle, I think the idea of putting the salad together right on your plate instead of ahead of time works best as you found out. Hopefully you have storage space at your workplace. I really liked the suggestion of shopping for the week on a Monday so you really only have to lug the heavier stuff once a week.
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Permalink Reply by Katherine on
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I can commiserate entirely-just recently switched from cooking constantly grad student to full time worker. It's a lot harder to pull together fabulous meals, but it's entirely doable. Some suggestions I've found helpful:
* Cook ahead! Every sunday I cook together some ingredients that I can utilize (for lunch or dinner)-sometimes a pot of beans, roasted vegetables, or if you're a meat eater, perhaps braise some beef or roast a chicken to tuck into tacos or mix in salads. That way when you go to plan it's not so overwhelming.
* I second the room temp comment-soba noodles are my favorite and most versatile. Something I pack constantly is soba noodles, red bell pepper, red cabbage, cucumber and avocado if I have it. I toss it with a little sesame oil, canola oil, lime juice, soy sauce and sriracha (these are all in my pantry and last for a long time).
Good luck:)
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