The Best Make-Ahead Ideas for Cold Lunches
Lunch time is the best time of the day, it’s a little piece of heaven that comes at the right time to give us a break from the pressure of work and school. But if you don’t eat appropriately, lunchtime can actually make the rest of your day a complete nightmare. That’s why we want to share with you some of the best make-ahead ideas for cold lunches. They don’t take much time to make and they’re ready to eat so you don’t waste your precious lunch time getting them ready.
Mediterranean Chopped Salad
One of the freshest and healthiest cold lunches you can make comes in a small bowl (or large if you prefer!) To make this Mediterranean chopped salad simply mix cooked chickpeas, diced tomatoes, cucumber, avocado and throw in some lime juice, olive oil, salt and peper. Some feta cheese will be the perfect final touch for this salad that’ll leave you full yet somehow light to get back to work.
Black Bean Wraps
Tacos are just the best, but you don’t have to make a trip to a fast food chain to get your lunch. Instead, make this healthy and veggie-friendly version using only black beans, veggies, tortillas and as many seasonings as you’d like, such as paprika, cumin, cloves and oregano. Fill the tortilla with blacks beans, spices, salsa, any veggies you like (like bell pepper and cauliflower) and add some salsa and sour cream before rolling it up - and your mouth-watering lunch is ready.
Banana Bread Muffins
This is the perfect lunch for all those with a sweet-teeth who need their mid-morning sugar fix. These muffins are easily baked with flour, baking powder, sugar, butter, egg and ripe bananas. You can add chocolate chips, blueberries, dipping chocolate sauce or whatever you feel like indulging in at lunchtime.
Quick Pizza Dippers
The best make-ahead lunch not only for adults but for the kids also! If you prepare this lunch everyone at your home will thank you for it the next day. Simply take some mozzarella cheese sticks, slices of pepperoni, Greek pita flatbread, a bit of pizza sauce and some toothpicks to skewer everything together. Voila! Your pizza dippers are ready to go.
Turkey and Pesto Panini
Sometimes your hunger might be taking you on very deep thoughts, wanting to order a whole pizza or go splurge on a giant burger. But if you’re trying to stay fit you can make this delicious panini and still fill your belly but in a healthy way. Take a ciabatta roll, slather some fresh pesto on it, slice as much turkey as you want and put some provolone cheese on top. You can eat this fresh or grill it up a bit before eating it.
Granola Crunch Apple-Peanut Butter Sandwich Wraps
Who said wraps can only be salty or spicy? For this quick make ahead lunch all you need is a wheat flatbread, peanut butter, an apple sliced into thin matchsticks, golden raisins, dried cranberries, granola and a little bit of cinnamon. Fill the flatbread with all the ingredients and roll it up for a nice lunch.
With these cold lunch ideas not only will you be begging for lunch time to come, everyday you’ll be eager to prepare the next one and find your favorite, although we find it hard to believe that you can only pick one!