Lunch on April 29 - Go with what you know

Tomorrow's lunch was pulled together in the three minutes I had tonight to get it done.  I actually used one minute to make the lunch and am using the remaining two right now to blog it.  I have been doing a ton of cooking for an event tomorrow night and I haven't really had much time (or room in the fridge) to devote to lunchmaking.

All that combined with the fact that today's ravioli triangles were rejected (well, I think one was eaten but as I suspected, they were mostly pushed to the side in search of mushrooms) made me put together a very uninspired lunch of old favorites.

Cantaloupe and grapes are joined by TJ's Greek honey yogurt with pomegranate seeds, half an avocado, and the rest of the mushroom and leek saute from yesterday.  There are some edamame pods in the ReSnackIt bag (which I have grown to love a lot) and two more SnackTaxi sacks filled with other familiar snacks (English peas and pita chips) not shown.  Yes I realize that this lunch is almost identical to today's lunch and yes I realize most of you only read this space for cute lunch accessories etc.  I guess I'm in a lunch rut since I have no time.  Here's hoping I get a second wind next week and start getting creative again!

Lunch on April 28 - Trying triangles today

For tomorrow's lunch we are trying something new.  Whenever I try something new I also offer extra stand-by foods in case the newcomer is rejected.

The new items are these triangle ravioli stuffed with butternut squash and a hint of brown sugar.  I find them absolutely delicious and hope Juju does too (I got them in the fresh pasta section at Trader Joe's).  I sauteed leeks and mushrooms in a small amount of butter and oil and layered them with the 5 ravioli (I just boiled them in water).  I also threw in some steamed broccoli and sprinkled a little parmesan cheese on top.  My guess is Juju will pick around the ravioli and only eat the veggies but maybe she'll figure out ravioli is really just dressed up pasta and she'll gobble them up (she never has any trouble eating pasta).  I am also including grapes and cantaloupe plus a small bowl of Greek honey yogurt with pomegranate seeds in case she doesn't dig the ravioli triangles.  And, my ReSnackIt bags came in the mail today (finally!) so I stuffed a few edamame pods inside.  The ReSnackIt bags are different from the SnackTaxis in that they feel more laminated and ready for food (like I am not worried about getting them wet) but there is still something slightly "homemade" about them.  I can't make a final ruling on which one I like better until Juju has had some more time with these.

This lunch is pretty healthy but lest you think I am a super-organic-no-pesticides-no-spray-health-food-only mom, let me clue you in to lunch today.  We ate at Johnny Rockets and Juju's lunch consisted of a mini hamburger bun dipped in ketchup, half of a mini hamburger patty (also used for lots of dipping in ketchup), 3 french fries, 2 pickles, and about 6 ounces of her first ever (I think) chocolate shake.  Sorry, no photo.  I'm definitely not winning mom of the year in the food category but I do think it's fun to shake things up a little bit (no pun intended).  She can't eat mushrooms for every meal. . .

Lunch on April 22 - Passover Provisions and a Pink Puppy

As I mentioned it's Spring Break so I only had to pack a lunch one day this week but in addition to Juju's lunch, I had to pack food for three adults as well.  And it's Passover so I had some extra limitations.  But, I think I made out pretty well.

I mentioned my friend Annie H. gave me a great baby frittata recipe perfect for kiddos.  I didn't follow her recipe exactly, I mostly used my own (this one features leeks, mushrooms, and spinach), but I did use her idea of baking in mini muffin tins.  I also baked some of the frittata in large muffin tins for the adults. 

I wanted to find a nice complement to the eggs, something that could easily take the place of bread.  I settled on a new Passover favorite: quinoa.  I realize some very observant people don't consider quinoa kosher for Passover but I am not one of those people; abstaining from bread and grains and a whole bunch of legumes and peanuts is plenty deprivation for me.

I haven't had time to shop for groceries for a few days since we've eaten out the last three nights so I made up a quinoa recipe with things I had around the house.  I'd give it a B, maybe a B+.  I was trying to replicate a sweeter quinoa salad that was served at my second seder but fell short.  This is good, just not exactly what I was going for.

Here's how I made it: I toasted 1 cup quinoa with 1 tablespoon of oil in a small pot on the stove. When the quinoa was toasted (but not burnt!) I added 2 cups of water, let it come to a boil, then simmered it  covered for about 15 minutes.  I usually cook quinoa with a clove of chopped garlic but since I was going for a sweeter taste, I left it out (but I did add some salt).  Once the quinoa was cooked and cooled, I threw it into a bowl and started mixing things into it.  I cut up some scallions and threw in a pack of dried raisins and cherries my friend Marla brought me from Seattle.  I also threw in some chopped walnuts since I wanted more of a crunch.  For the wet stuff I added some oil and vinegar.  With quinoa you can really add any oil: vegetable, sesame, olive, etc.  Then I squeezed the juice of a lemon Juju picked at a friend's house the other day and voila, quinoa salad!  I am hoping the flavors blend a bit more tonight so the salad is even more flavorful tomorrow.

Here is how the adults' lunches came out - everyone got two regular size muffin tin frittatas and the quinoa salad.  I like presenting things on lettuce for the color and it helps to keep the two dishes separate which I think makes them more appealing.  Since these lunches are for adults I packed them in glass, my favorite way to store food (but sadly not very kid friendly).  These are Snapware Glasslock containers that used to be really hard to find but are now everywhere like at Target and Bed Bath and Beyond.  I think the best prices for them are still at Costco which used to be the only place I could find them.

 

I gave Juju a small cup of the quinoa salad (not shown), four baby frittatas, mango, cantaloupe, and clementine segments, and three Passover macaroons.  The pink puppy is yet another Japanese style lunch "fascinator."

 

Only 4 more days of this holiday to go.  Then I'll focus on another eating challenge: we are considering going vegan for a week sometime in the near future.  Can you believe it?  I can not.  More on that later as I work up the courage to plan it out. . .

Spring break

Just a note to let you know that I have not given up on this blog.  I'ts just that we're on Spring Break this week so I'm not packing any lunches.

I am however cooking and eating a lot of eggs because as my husband likes to say, Passover is the holiday of eggs.

My friend Annie H. gave me a great recipe for mini egg frittatas, perfect for a school lunch.  I've made them at home but never packed them before.  I should give it a try.  Here is her recipe.  I generally add in leeks and mushrooms and broccoli to my frittatas but if you are using this recipe, make sure you chop up your veggies very very small because the "batter" has to fit in the small holes of a mini muffin tin.

I'll post more fun photos of food soon.  I realize they are way more fun to look at than words!

Baby Frittatas 

(Makes 12 Baby Frittatas)

4 Large Egg Whites

2 Large Eggs (whole)
2 Tbsp Milk
1/2 cup shredded Mexican Four-Cheese blend
1/4 Cup onion, diced

1/4 cup baby spinach, diced
Salt, pepper and garlic powder (to taste)

1. Preheat the oven 375 degrees.
2. Spray or grease mini muffin tins with oil or butter.
3. Whisk the eggs and milk together. Add the cheese, onions and spinach, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Stir to mix ingredients together.
4. Add a heaping tablespoon of egg/vegetable mixture to each muffin cup.
5. Bake for 14-17 minutes.
6. Cool and serve.