New Cookbook Leads to Lunch-Time Lamentations

Posted by Jill Harris Oct 2, 2008

My parents stopped making my lunch for me almost as soon as they began. I was a picky eater, and we were a busy family.

Tricks or Treats?

For a brief period that my dad fixed the lunches, he would occasionally sneak in a "special" treat. I never got funny notes – but I did get raw asparagus, entire carrots with their tops, and yes – even dog biscuits – in my lunch box. I would have loved to see my own face when I pulled out those “treats”.

After those sometimes horrifying experiences, I decided to stick to the basics: canned pasta and peanut butter and jam. There were no microwaves, and Thermos containers were not cool. Nowadays, kids have it much better (and I didn’t think it had been that long since I was a tyke!). Some schools let kids reheat their lunches, and cold packs actually stay cold for most of the day. There are also healthier plastic alternatives – metal beverage containers and Bisphenol-A free plastics too.

School Lunches to Work Lunches

Now that I go to work every morning instead of school, I’m gone for more hours of the day and have a bigger stomach to fill. I prefer a soft-sided tote bag that allows me to squish everything into the fridge in the office lunch room, while still cramming in as much food as possible.

Vegan Lunch Box Cookbook

I strongly suggest getting your hands on a copy of Jennifer McCann’s Vegan Lunch Box cookbook. It re-ignited my excitement about lunch, after being stuck in a rut. Leftover Cheesy Roasted Chickpeas make a fabulous late afternoon snack. The list of sandwich ideas is three pages long (!) putting my Top 5 Vegetarian Sandwich picks to shame (though mine are good too, I swear).

While it’s not exactly practical to make sushi just for my lunch, Vegan Lunch Box is a great excuse to cut my teeth on something new – and most of the recipes make just as good leftovers.

Happy Lunchmaking!