Day 126 - Baked Turkey Meatballs



Turkey Meatballs, Tallegio cheese, What Thins, Blueberries, Apples


Remember the turkey burger that I had yesterday?  Well, I had some leftover turkey, so I made meatballs!  And woah, were they better than I thought!  I threw them in the lunch box with some leftover tallegio cheese, wheat thins, blueberries, and apples!  Not a whole lot different from yesterday's lunch, actually, but very good.

I made fewer meatballs than the recipe below, but I thought I'd give you an idea of what to buy at the store.  I suspect the recipe below would give you a couple dozen meatballs.  They tasted great alone, and would also be good in a variety of sauces.  Feel free to experiment!

Cheesy Turkey Meatballs

1 lb ground turkey
1 package Kraft Fresh Takes, any flavor (I used Four Cheese this time)
1 egg
Dried parsley, optional

In a large bowl, crack and whisk egg well.  Add in turkey and contents of Fresh Takes package.  Blend ingredients well with your hands, making sure that the egg, cheese, and breadcrumbs are evenly distributed.  Roll into golfball sized balls and place on a parchment lined sheet.  Bake at 400F for 20 minutes.  Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving. Pin It Now!

Day 125 - Turkey Burger

Turkey Burger on Wheat Bun, Apples, Blueberries.

Made some turkey burgers for dinner last night, made an extra one to take to lunch today.  I had a turkey burger on a wheat bun wtih lettuce, white cheddar cheese, and dijon mustard, accompanied by blueberries and apples.  Not too unhealthy, right? 

The trick is, I assembled this lunch and took a picture of it..and then just disassembled it for packing.  I know, I know, deception!  But, I didn't want to eat a cold burger, and I didn't want to heat up the whole dish.  So, I actually packed the fruit as you see it now.  I then packed the hamburger bun with the cheese and letuce in the middle.  I had a pack of mustard that I tucked in the side, and then I put the actual turkey burger in a small sandwich bag.  That way, all I had to do at work was nuke the bagged burger in the microwave for about a minute, slide it between the lettuce and the cheese, wrap it in a nice fluffy bun drizzled in mustard, and enjoy! Pin It Now!

Day 124 - The Lunch I Forgot to Plan

Muller Greek Corner with Berries, Lara Bar, Carrots, Nut Thins

 Some weeks, you just can't plan out every meal.  And so you come to Friday morning and you just throw things in your lunch box.  This morning, I found a Muller Greek Corner, Lara Bar, carrots, and almond Nut Thins crackers.  Pretty healthy for a lunch on the fly, if I do say so myself.

Have you tried Muller Corners?  Muller is a European brand that Quaker has brought to the US, and it's to die for!  Unfortunately, the Muller Rice pudding snacks haven't made the transatlantic journey, but someday, I hope...

Strawberry Muller Corner

Anyway, as they appear now they come in Greek and traditional yogurt varieties, and the corners have delicious little additions, like fruit preserves or chocolate or granola.  You should try them if you haven't!  They fit great in your Easy Lunch Boxes, too! Pin It Now!

Day 123 - Valentine's Day Salad

Spinach Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette, Orzo Pasta Salad, Oven Fried Shrimp.

Today, we're featuring a Valentine's lunch!  How in the world is a spinach salad related to Valentine's, you ask?  Because it's a pretty light lunch.  Let's be honest, almost everyone has a heavy evening meal on Valentine's.  You're either going out to eat, cooking something elaborate for the people you love, or emotionally eating because Hallmark and society tell you that your single status is sad. 

You are not sad, for the record.  You are wonderful just as you are, whether you are single, happily married, unhappily married, or somewhere between any of those.  That said, there's nothing wrong with indulging your awesomeness with a little extra chocolate tonight!

And, so, enters the healthy lunch.  I've got frozen pizza and wine on the menu at home tonight (heck yeah, I know I'm fancy!  That was sarcasm...), so for lunch today I've got a spinach salad with feta and Dijon vinaigrette, orzo salad, and oven fried shrimp.  No recipes today, nothing fancy, just a good cold lunch.

Happy Valentine's Day. Hug someone you love and have an extra treat for me!   Pin It Now!

Days 121 & 122 - Two Meals, One List - Italian Style!

Two delicious Italian and Mediterranean Style lunches!

 
I never planned on this being a thing, but I guess it is now!  Here's another two days of lunches from one main set of ingredients.  Common ingredients for these two days include:  salami, tallegio cheese, bean sprouts, mini bell peppers, and a baguette.  I already had the baguette, peppers, and cheese at home, so I brainstormed and picked up the salami and bean sprouts to round it out.  

The first lunch was a salami and tallegio sandwich on a baguette with sprouts, peppers on the side, rice crackers, and mixed berries.

The second lunch was a bed of sprouts with a wedge of tallegio, a few parmesan cubes, salami  slices, olive skewers, bell peppers, and baguette slices.

These were great to make ahead of time because they kept cold so well.  And all of the ingredients could be served at room temperature, so I could refrigerate it overnight and then just leave it on my desk for work.  If you're packing lunch for kids, this would be great for any adventurous eaters.  Pin It Now!

Day 120 - Crunchy Shrimp Pasta

Crunchy Shrimp Pasta

I packed leftovers from last night for lunch today.  I knew I'd be doing it in a hurry this morning, too, so I just snapped a picture of dinner last night.

So, for my readers who love whole foods and clean eating, this is not for you.  For my readers that don't mind using a little processed food for a quick and tasty meal, this is totally for you.

Remember the spaghetti from last night?  Well, I used up the rest of the sauce and pasta, and this time topped it with some shrimp tossed in Italian Parmesan Fresh Takes and baked.  It.  Was.  SO.  Good.  I may be making shrimp like this all the time now.  Couldn't have been easier, and it was so delicious!

I'm going to write the recipe assuming you're starting fresh and didn't have leftovers like I did.  I made enough for 3 servings last night, and the below recipe will make 4-6 servings.  Enjoy!

Crunchy Shrimp Pasta

1.5 lbs shrimp, peeled with the tail off
1 package Italian Parmesan Fresh Takes
1 egg
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup white wine
1 T minced garlic
1 T olive oil
1 pound angel hair pasta

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and onion, cooking until soft.  Add in tomatoes and wine, bringing to a simmer.  Pour in spaghetti sauce and bring to a simmer again.  Reduce to low heat and keep on back burner while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Put on water to boil for pasta.  In a separate bowl, whisk egg until well blended.  Dip shrimp in egg and place into opened bag of fresh takes.  When all shrimp is in the bag, seal and bag and shake until coated.  If your shrimp are large, you may need to do this in two batches.  Remove coated shrimp and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Sprinkle over any remaining cheese and bread crumbs as desired.  Bake at 425F for 10 minutes and remove promptly.  While shrimp is baking, you should have plenty of time to cook and drain pasta.  Toss pasta with sauce and keep warm.  Transfer to individual bowls and top with shrimp.  Serve hot.   

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Day 119 - Not-Really-Homemade Spaghetti

Spaghetti, roasted chicken, sugar snap peas.

I love homemade spaghetti sauce from scratch.  Love it.  I love all the chopping, the simmering all day, the rewarding slurping at the end of the night.  Buuuuut, some days you get home late from work, have bills to pay, emails to answer, clothes to launder, groceries to buy...and all you really want to do is catch up on TV.  That, my friends, is time for spaghetti sauce from a jar.

Jarred sauce is always on sale, there's always a coupon, and you can heat it up faster than pasta.  You can jazz it up, too...I usually add a can of diced tomatoes, a little minced garlic, and some chopped onion or mushrooms if I've got them.  And the good news is, if there are leftovers, I just pour them back in the jar and use them over the next couple of weeks.  Opened, a jar of sauce usually stays good for a week or two.

So, leftover pasta with jarred sauce starred at lunch today, with some leftover roasted chicken and sugar snap peas.  I added just a teaspoon or so of water to the peas so that they steamed when I microwaved this for lunch.  Very tasty! Pin It Now!