What's for lunch?

IMG_1982.JPG

What’s for lunch?

Learn how to build healthy and easy lunches. When planning a healthy lunch, it can be helpful to build it around a balance of whole grains, proteins, and veggies/salad.

1. Choose a carb/wholegrain:

Wholegrain wrap

Pita pockets

Wholegrain bread

Brown rice

Quinoa

Pasta

Cold leftover roast vege e.g. pumpkin, kumara, potato

 

2. Choose a protein:

Shredded chicken

Leftover cold meat

Boiled eggs

Hummus

Low fat cheese e.g. edam

Falafel patties

Tinned tuna

Tinned or smoked salmon

 

3. Choose plenty of veggies/salad:

Spinach

Grated carrot

Grated beetroot

Chopped capsicum

Cucumber

Lettuce

Tomato

Avocado

Coleslaw

Examples of balanced lunch ideas

  • Wrap filled with shredded chicken, hummus, grated carrot and beetroot, spinach.

  • Pita pocket filled with falafel patty, spinach, chopped capsicum, red onion, hummus or a mint yoghurt dressing.

  • Wholegrain sandwich with sliced cheese, spinach, grated carrot, red onion, tomato, and hummus.

  • Brown rice or quinoa pots you can put in the microwave with a tin of tuna in olive oil, spinach, cherry tomatoes, chopped capsicum, cucumber. Can use a squeeze of lemon for extra flavour

  • Roasted chickpeas with roast veggies, feta, chopped capsicum, and spinach. Use a olive oil/balsamic dressing, or hummus.

  • Quiche (pre-made and frozen)

  • Fried brown rice with scrambled egg, spring onion, carrot, broccoli, beans. Add a little soy sauce for flavour. Great way to use up leftover rice from the night before.

  • Avocado and tomato on toast

  • Make a big batch of soup and freeze into portions or keep in fridge. Have with 2 x slices of wholegrain toast topped with hummus.

  • Platter type meal: cut carrot, cucumber, or capsicum sticks and serve with hummus, slices of cheese, wholegrain crackers, cherry tomatoes, cut pita pockets, gherkins- anything you have in the house really!

 

Tips:

  • Utilise a day off, or when you have more time to prepare some food in advance. Such as roasting some pumpkin and kumara, cooking some quinoa to use as a base for salads, or cooking some protein such as chicken or boiled eggs.

  • Cooking meals that freeze well to pull out when you have nothing prepared such as soups, lasagne, curry.

  • Plan your lunch meals in your weekly shop- choose one or two options above and have them on alternative days. 

 

 

 

Kate Christison