3 Healthy & Cheap Lunch Recipes You Can Bring to Work
Jun 03, 2017 06:31AM ● By Melanie Heisinger
Cherry-Almond Farro Salad. From EatingWell.com.
It can be difficult to balance eating healthy and keeping a good budget. It's even more difficult to find a healthy meal to bring to work that is easy to put together.
Luckily, we consulted EatingWell.com for a few ideas and put together 3 of our favorites. Read on and find your next favorite healthy lunch.
All content courtesy of EatingWell.com.
Luckily, we consulted EatingWell.com for a few ideas and put together 3 of our favorites. Read on and find your next favorite healthy lunch.
BLATs (Bacon-Lettuce-Avocado-Tomato Sandwiches)
Ingredients
- 8 slices center-cut bacon, halved
- 1 ripe medium avocado
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- ½ teaspoon finely grated or minced garlic
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
- 8 slices sprouted-wheat bread
- 1 medium tomato, cut into 8 slices
- 4 romaine leaves
- 1 cup alfalfa sprouts
Preparation
- Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Meanwhile, mash avocado in a medium bowl. Stir in basil, mayonnaise, garlic, salt and pepper. Toast bread.
- Spread about 2 tablespoons of the avocado mixture on 4 slices of toast. Top each with 4 pieces of bacon, 2 tomato slices, 1 lettuce leaf, ¼ cup sprouts and the remaining toast.
Cherry-Almond Farro Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup farro, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- ½ teaspoon salt, divided
- ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 cups sweet cherries, pitted and halved
- ½ cup diced ricotta salata or feta cheese
- ¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted
- 3 tablespoons finely diced red onion
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
Preparation
- Combine farro, water and ¼ teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer, cover and cook until the farro is tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain any remaining liquid and fluff with a fork. Spread the farro out on a large rimmed baking sheet to cool for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk vinegar, oil, pepper and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Add cherries, ricotta salata (or feta), almonds, onion, mint and the farro. Gently stir to combine.
Mediterranean Wrap
Ingredients
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup couscous, preferably whole-wheat
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
- ½ cup chopped fresh mint
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- ¼ teaspoon salt, divided
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 pound chicken tenders
- 1 medium tomato, chopped
- 1 cup chopped cucumber
- 4 10-inch spinach or sun-dried tomato wraps or tortillas
Preparation
- Bring water to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in couscous and remove from the heat. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, combine parsley, mint, lemon juice, oil, garlic, ⅛ teaspoon salt and pepper in a small bowl.
- Toss chicken tenders in a medium bowl with 1 tablespoon of the parsley mixture and the remaining ⅛ teaspoon salt. Place the tenders in a large nonstick skillet and cook over medium heat until cooked though, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a clean cutting board. Cut into bite-size pieces when cool enough to handle.
- Stir the remaining parsley mixture into the couscous along with tomato and cucumber.
- To assemble wraps, spread about ¾ cup of the couscous mixture onto each wrap. Divide the chicken among the wraps. Roll the wraps up like a burrito, tucking in the sides to hold the ingredients in. Serve cut in half.
All content courtesy of EatingWell.com.