Wednesday 2 February 2011

What, no microwave?

These were the words that literally flew out of my mouth upon starting my new job and discovering that there are no microwaves. To put this into perspective, I am generally the type of person who is happy to go with the flow. I'm not bound by the laws of habitude, or plagued by the necessity of routine. However there is one exception, and that is my over reliance on the work microwave. I love a hot lunch, and in a bid not to give fifty percent of my salary to Marks and Spencer, I regularly make huge pots of soup to suppress my hunger, whilst saving me a few pounds in the process. So the news that this lunch time habit would be no longer, has had me re-evaluating my current tried and tested regime.

To further complicate matters, I'm not a huge fan of the classic sandwich. This dislike isn't rooted in childhood memories of boring ham sandwiches, but rather the opposite. Being brought up on an Italian diet, my lunchbox as a child was filled with cheese, parma ham and olives. These treats now go hand in hand with a glass of wine, which I'm pretty sure will be frowned upon in the staff room.

I have therefore been looking for creative ways to make cold lunches interesting. Now I'm sure that many a foodie will frown upon my lack of initial inspiration on this front, but as an advocate of the hot lunch, it was definitely something that needed thinking about. So as far as getting over the lack of facilities, I'm still working on that, but in terms of embracing a new way of midday dining, my mouth seems to be permanently watering. So far this week, I have indulged in a grilled aubergine and quinoa salad, bulgar wheat with coriander, chilli and beef and a slightly less inventive tuna salad.

If you have any suggestions for how to make my cold lunches more interesting, I'd love to hear them. And who knows, with your inspiration I may forever become a cold lunch convert.

8 comments:

  1. I'm similar---I'll eat sandwiches, but if I don't have something hot it doesn't feel like I've eaten. Time to invest in a thermos, perhaps?

    Maybe worth considering Graze boxes (www.graze.com) for some snacky ideas.

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  2. How annoying for you, it's so nice to be able to quickly warm up soup or leftovers at work! If I have time I quite like to make avocado, quinoa and sprouts salad. Or for something more Italian, perhaps some arancini (if you can bear the lack of wine!). I've usually had them from a deli, not chilled or hot but I'm not sure on the proper way to serve them. I work just off Lothian Rd so I'm quite lucky there's lots of places that offer a bit more than the usual boring sarnie.

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  3. Buy a food flask from morrisons and take your soup with you. They last around 6 hours of warmth.

    I would suggest just eat cake, but that's silly ;)

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  4. I love the idea of eating just cake, but not sure how my dentist would feel about that! Thanks for the ideas folks, Katey the avocado and quinoa and sprouts salad sounds wonderful! And graze boxes looks fantastic too, thanks gominokouhai!

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  5. I have loads of recipes for very filling salads...a pepper and wheatberry one is a favourite, you can make in bulk and its really cheap too! Just let me know and I'll type it up for you :D

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  6. I am totally with you on the sandwich front - I'd happily never eat a sandwich again! My dad makes an awesome rice salad with apple, sultanas and cashews - you just add a touch of mayo to bind it all, and it's tasty. I agree with comments above though - get a cute wee flask!

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  7. Wonderfullyflo - I'd really love that recipe, thanks!

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  8. We don't have a microwave either... gazpacho is the answer to your soup problem. And tupperware boxes full of noodle, pasta and rice salads...

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