Last week on Instagram I took a poll- what was more stressful: figuring out lunch or dinner each day? The majority voted for dinner, which I totally get. It’s why weekly meal planning is such a necessary thing for my sanity. Most of you said lunch was not all that stressful because it was either leftovers or you just didn’t care that much. I feel that! 

Lunches around here are pretty easy breezy. I love leftovers if we have them, but that doesn’t seem to be very often. So I’ve been relying on the following to make lunch nutritious, delicious, and, best of all- simple.

Chickpea Chicken Salad Please tell me you’ve tried this gem of a recipe?? I always forget about it over winter, then it’s like a breath of fresh air when I start making it again in the spring. It’s great on a bun; it’s great on greens; it’s great as a dip on crackers or carrots. 

Protein Smoothies I started tracking my protein on My Fitness Pal a couple weeks ago. Since the lock down began (and even before), David and I have gotten into a serious workout habit. We work out 6 days a week and I just felt like my protein intake wasn’t able to keep up with my muscle work. The thing is, to get enough protein is hard without eating meat all day long. So I’ve started incorporating a protein smoothie every day.

I order Splendid Spoon smoothies (use this link for $25 off your first order) then drink half of one as part of breakfast. At lunchtime, I add protein (I’m alternating between Oriya Organics and Amazing Grass vanilla, which are both plant-based protein powders. I add a little water, give it a good shake, and viola- a no clean up protein smoothie!

Sandwiches Who doesn’t love a sandwich? On of my favorite combos is bread (either homemade sandwich bread sourdough- this recipe– or Dave’s Killer Bread), hummus, feta, tomato, cucumber, red onion, and lettuce. Of course a basic ham, tomato, and lettuce sandwich with pickles always tastes pretty darn delicious, too.

I’ve even made a batch of “uncrustable” sandwiches to keep in the freezer to give myself an easy kid lunch option on days I’m just not feeling it.

Snack Plates/Salads I coupled these together because they usually consist of many of the same ingredients. You could even call what I make the girls some days “dippable” salads. I base their snack plate lunches around a fruit, a veggie, and a fat, then fill it in with whatever we have around. These are by far the girls’ favorite lunch and they don’t mind all the food pilled up on top of each other. However, the trick of using a muffin tin to separate the samplings is always a great idea for younger kids that aren’t wild about food touching.

Snack plate favorites include: carrots, cucumbers, baby spinach leaves, apples, berries, deviled eggs, pistachios, Nut Thins, hummus, bell peppers, mini mozzarella balls, pretzel thins, seaweed (I know this does not sound normal but my girls love the crunchy sheets that come roasted and salted), toasted cashews

Splendid Spoon Bowls While the girls devour their snack plates, I often opt for one of the bowls right from the freezer. They are basically the lunch I would make for myself each day if I had the energy to cook a complete meal for lunch and dinner. They are all plant-based, veggie-packed, and delicious.

They aren’t the prettiest, as many of them are stews or grain bowls, but they are seriously good. Use this link to check out the selections and to get for $25 off your first order.

What’s your go-to lunch lately?