Healthy Convenience Foods

[machelle]

I know Reinhard suggests a great convenience food of oatmeal. I will get some, but I'm not a huge fan of oatmeal. I may try his idea and put some nuts and dried fruit in it to liven it up a bit though. But what are some other good convenience foods that you reach for when you're in a hurry and simply cannot take the time to fix a meal? Normally for lunch I will have some leftover chicken or have a sandwich, but I need more suggestions so I don't get bored with eating the same things over and over.

Thanks!

[thtrchic]

I'm a fan of yogurt as a base or supplement to meals. A quick go to for me is yogurt (ideally greek because it has more protein) with banana and grape nuts mixed in. I do like oatmeal so use it as well, but also things like cream of wheat with mixed in nuts. Do you like that any better? Its not as healthy as oatmeal, but not bad and easy to have around as well.

I always have cut up fruit with lunch and sometimes cut up veggies with different kinds of sandwiches, or pasta, or miscellaneous leftovers from the night before. I keep that from getting too boring by looking for and making different dinners each week.

Julie

[Spudd]

I like soups as a lunch food. Just pop them in the microwave and you're good to go. I make big pots of soup in my crockpot and then freeze them in individual serving sizes, but you can also buy pre-made soup at the store if you're not into making your own.

[wosnes]

I like soups as a lunch food. Just pop them in the microwave and you're good to go. I make big pots of soup in my crockpot and then freeze them in individual serving sizes, but you can also buy pre-made soup at the store if you're not into making your own.

I agree! Soup is my default lunch at least 90% of the time. I also make soup in my crockpot, but I don't freeze individual servings. I just make small batches.

Here's the general formula I use. It's from cookbook author Pam Anderson:

THE QUICK SOUP FORMULA

Serves 4
Oil: 2 Tbs. vegetable or olive oil
Onion: 1 medium, chopped
Vegetables: 1 pound, cut in bite-size pieces. I usually select 2 vegetables to equal the pound, but more variety is fine. Good choices are celery, carrots, cabbage, corn, cauliflower, zucchini, yellow squash, peppers, green beans, mushrooms, leeks, kale, spinach, peas and lima beans.
Protein: 1 pound. Your choice of boneless, skinless chicken thighs; Italian sausage in the casing; kielbasa; ham; pork tenderloin; firm-fleshed fish; medium shrimp, peeled; or scallops.
Starch:* Your choice of 1 pound potatoes, cubed; 2 cans (16 ounces each) black beans, white beans, chickpeas or hominy; 4 ounces wide or extra-wide egg noodles, uncooked; or 1/3 cup long-grain rice or orzo, uncooked
Tomatoes:** 1 cup, canned or fresh
Chicken broth:*** 32 ounces low-sodium chicken broth, canned or in a carton
Herb or spice: Your choice
Salt and pepper

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or soup kettle. Add onions; sauté to soften slightly, about 2 minutes.
Add remaining vegetables, protein, starch, tomatoes, broth and herb or spice. (If using pork tenderloin, shrimp or scallops, add in the last 5 minutes of cooking.)
Partially cover and simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors have blended, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste.
Serve with a salad and good bread.

*I usually use beans as the protein and another starch
**Can be omitted
***I substitute water or vegetable broth sometimes. Since I tend to cook this in a crockpot, the long, slow cooking makes a great tasting broth.

Here's Pam's chicken soup formula:
http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Soup-Up-You ... etail.aspx

And a cream soup formula from her:
http://allrecipes.com//HowTo/one-formul ... etail.aspx

And another variation of the vegetable soup:
http://www.finecooking.com/cyor/summer- ... -soup.aspx

And another cream soup (not Pam's):
http://www.finecooking.com/articles/cyo ... soups.aspx

Along with the soups I usually have bread and fruit and sometimes more vegetables or a small salad.

[machelle]

Thanks everyone for the great suggestions. I actually love Greek yogurt and went out and bought some this evening. Mixed in some bananas and granola....delicious and very filling! The soup is a good idea too (thanks for the recipe, wosnes!). I have a few more ideas now. As far as oatmeal goes, I am going to have to find a good one to fix up quick. I don't like the Quaker instant oatmeal, so I will look harder for something else when I get some time. We have a Wegman's in the area, and I'm pretty sure they would carry something tasty. I would order the stuff that Reinhard suggests, but it is expensive, so hopefully I can find something similar where I live.

[oolala53]

BTW, there is a thread near the top called Intelligent Dietary Defaults, which is exactly about this topic-easy go-to foods. Check it out!