Ask the Readers: Grab-N-Go Meal Ideas

I second the quesadilla post. We make our own tortillas on one day and then the next day I cook chicken with a can of rotel and shred it in the skillet. in another skillet add some butter and a tortilla, put some cheese and then some of the chicken mixture and then some more cheese (mozz or any kind of orange cheese works), cook a minute, flip, done! So easy. I make a ton and freeze. They taste like restaurant and very filling! Add some homemade salsa.
My kids love this: homemade hamburger buns (bread machine/yeast recipe). The bread is heavenly and freezes well. Cut in half and add mayo and sandwich meat and cheese. Put in sandwich bag and freeze. Throw in lunch box and by lunchtime they are thawed and taste great!

I love calzones for this purpose. They reheat really well. Here is how I make them,

http://buyonsaleandsavethedifference.blogspot.com/2010/10/easy-calzones.html

We are a very busy family of 5 with two parents who work out of the home. I have lots of fast meal ideas if you look around!

I make lasagna, eggplant and alot of pasta casserole recipes and cut into individual servings and freeze for myself. Check out Cooking Light magazine (they’re online also). They offer lightened recipes for all this without compromising on taste! And I really enjoy their variety of recipes.

My husband and I sometimes will cut a cantalope in half, take the seeds out and fill it with cottage cheese and whatever else to mix in it. The we will wrap it in saran wrap and take it to work for a quick healthy lunch.

I was just thinking about this the other day and had a hard time coming up with ideas especially since hubby does services from his truck and usually can’t reheat anything. I really appreciate this post and all the great suggestions!

Bean burritos – heat 1 tbspn oil in skillet and add 1 chopped onion. Saute until onion is translucent. Add one large can of refried beans and stir until warm. Add 1-2 cups shredded cheese and stir. Spoon into tortillas and roll up burrito style (all ends closed in). Freeze individually in baggies, and place all in a freezer container/ziploc bag. Pull out as needed and warm in microwave (cover with a moist paper towel to keep texture of tortilla nice). Serve with fave salsa.

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches – Cook and shred chicken. Mix with fave bbq sauce. Freeze in individual sandwich portions. Thaw in microwave and put on hamburger bun. Top with pickles/onions/extra bbq sauce.

Pesto/Tomato/Provolone Ciabatta Sandwiches – For pesto, in food processor or blender mix together 1 cup olive oil, 1 cup parmesan, 2 tbpsn pine nut, 2 cup basil leaves washed and dried, salt and pepper to taste. Blend until fairly smooth (will retain a grainy texture). Slice individual ciabatta bread loaves. Spoon pesto onto loaves. Pile with provolone or mozzerella slices and sliced tomatoes. Wrap in foil. Can be served cold or put under broiler until cheese melts to serve hot.

Muffelettas – If you live in the deep south near New Orleans, you might be able to find the right bread – round sourdough loaves. Otherwise, you might have to settle for ciabatta or french bread. Slice bread. Brush loaves with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Pile on ham, pepperoni and/or salami, mozzerella or provolone cheese and tomato slices. You can buy olive tapenade or make it by mixing together chopped green and black olives, a spoonful of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkling of italian seasoning. Spoon olive tapenade onto sandwich. A little goes a long way. Top and serve.

I know you said he’s sick of sandwiches, but maybe these are a little more exciting than the average PBJ or turkey on wheat.

Speaking of turkey on wheat – you can dress it up by mixing together a couple spoonfuls of canned whole cranberry sauce (or use your own homemade sauce if you make it) and mayo for a Thanksgiving feel. Yummy with sweet potato chips as a side!

Also, if you don’t have a good hot thermos, get one. Fill it with your favorite soups, meatballs and sauce, etc. If you need ideas for that, reply here and let me know.

Some of my favorites are homemade beans, chicken lime soup, tomatillo soup, and french onion soup. All of these freeze well in individual portions. You can pull them out hours ahead of time and put them in your crockpot on low to thaw and warm. Ladle them into the thermos and send him on his way!

Good luck!

In the winter, I sometimes make French Canadian meat pies that reheat in the microwave like a dream. Pork pie is the holiday version… tourtiere they call it sometimes. I make my “real” holiday ones the hard way, but it’s easy breezy for dinner if you use store-bought pie crust and pre-ground pork. These are not pot pies… the slices are dense and stand up on their own. My husband’s favorite version is salmon pie He asked me to and I’ve made two pies at once and brought a whole one to his work for him to share with his shift. It’s hearty stuff and a little stinky, truth be told, but men and even my little boys seem to love it. I serve the meat pies with cranberry relish or piccalilli type things and the salmon pie with peas if I don’t put them in the filling. The salmon is $5/can… a really affordable, filling way to get Omega-3′s. It’s also a handy thing to have up your sleeve for Lenten Fridays. I would not even think about it in the warm weather, though. My husband gets cucumber and tomato slices and leftover barbeque this time of year!

{{{{{DIRECTIONS: simmer sliced potatoes (I often substitute sweet potatoes) and onion in a frying pan with juice from a can of wild Alaskan red salmon and water to cover. The juice will pretty much disappear as the vegetables get tender. Take the round bones out of salmon (the ribs just melt away), add to the pan to heat and mix/mash it all up. You can add a bag of frozen peas at the end if you want. Salt, pepper to taste. Put it in the pie crust, dot with a little butter, cover with another crust, and bake per the pie crust instructions. I make a simple “white sauce” to put on top when I serve it, which is butter and flour or cornstarch to make a roux (I add a little lemon juice here… if you do it later it will curdle), then stir in milk and bring to simmer to thicken. Add dill or whatever you want. }}}}}}}}}}

My husband also loves different pasta salads. His favorite is made with spiral noodles, roasted red pepper italian dressing (kraft makes this) and crumbled feta cheese. It’s super easy and makes a big batch for super cheap. I also make him up a big batch of homemade burritos with beans, cheese, rice and pico and freeze them for him. All you have to do is wrap the frozen burritos in a wet paper towel, microwave for 90 seconds and they are good to go.

One of my favorite bloggers has a recipe for freezer breakfast burritos:
http://www.simpleorganizedliving.com/2011/06/08/breakfast-burritos-from-the-freezer/

and one for regular burritos:
http://www.simpleorganizedliving.com/2011/06/08/breakfast-burritos-from-the-freezer/

If you scroll to the bottom of the second link, you’ll see a link to a recipe for enchiladas too. She also has articles with freezer tips too that are really useful!

If he’s stuck at his desk, try trail mix. No heating necessary, and it’s great to munch while you’re driving along. I dry some of our own fruits to throw in (the assortments are endless), some nuts for protein, a mixture of whatever granola or cereal is on hand, and something for the sweet tooth (choc. chips if it’s going to stay air conditioned, M&M’s if not). You can also make a savory one with mini pretzels, jerky, and unsalted oyster crackers, popcorn, or wheat Chex. (Adding a bit of spicy mustard or taco seasoning to canola oil, you can flavor the crackers or popcorn by shaking them in a bag.) You can make it in a gallon-size freezer bag, and it will last for several days, so he can have it on hand whenever he’s hungry.

You can make your own burritos (even egg breakfast burritos!) and freeze them ahead of time. You could also make calzones and fill them with his savorite toppings and even slip in some pureed veggies if you think it would boost it! Make sure you’re loading him up with good fats- butter, lard, coconut oil, etc. It will really help to keep him satisfied until the next meal. Good luck!

Sometimes not having a heating element also equates to no fridge. I run into that some days. But atleast some ideas can be left in a lunch box cooler/sack
I like the “reinvent the sandwich”!
You could also reinvent the salad. Beyond the pasta/bean/ect posted above, there’s the “new” trend on the tomatoe salad, or salad that looks like bruschetta.
As for leafy salads, vary the leaves: head lettuce, romaine, spinach, cabbage. the extras: shredded cheese, cube cheese, shreds of sliced lunch cheese. mandarin slices, apple chunks, dried cranberries, grapes. tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, crunchy noodles. vary the nuts: pine nuts, sunflower seeds, chopped walnuts, pecans. meats like shredding whatever lunch meat is in the fridge like roast beef, ham, turkey, salami, pepperoni; don’t forget the cubed ham, sausage, chop up a left over bratwurst, left over chicken (chicken can add variety to a salad by varying the chicken. roast chicken, marinated chicken, taco chicken), steak. Instead of giving that uneaten last bit to the dog, chop it for tomorrow’s salad.
I often take inspiration from salads at restaurants. Plus, when I grab a wendy’s salad, I don’t always add the nuts, and add them to another salad.

Another standby loved at this house is taco meat. Always good for lunch, dinner, or snack; nachos or tacos.

I’ve done lasagna rolls. You just cook the lasagna noodles, spread filling/sauce/meat on each one, then roll it up and freeze. Besides tomato sauce/ground beef/cheese, you could do chicken/Alfredo, or anything else.