The Word on Weightloss

When I first started working I started buying my lunch everyday from local restaurants near the office. Aside from noticing a quickly growing hole in my wallet, I found that I’d also gained a few extra unwanted pounds. Once I realized that my restaurant lunches were larger meals and not controlling how they were prepared probably gave me more calories than I expected, I decided to start bringing my lunch.

Each night, I packed a sandwich and a side to bring for lunch the next day. Well, I'm like most people and the same thing day in and day out got old really quickly! I also found I didn’t have time to make my lunch on a daily basis, and half the time, I would forget to bring my lunch in the mornings! 

I discovered that if I just brought all of my lunch ingredients to work and kept them in the refrigerator there - forgetting my prepped lunch at home was a thing of the past. I brought a loaf of whole grain bread, enough meat and low fat cheese for the week and dressed the sandwich up with a couple of delicious mustards. If you make sure to bring just what you need for the week, you can fit all of these items into a little shopping bag and you don’t have to worry about taking up too much room in your company’s fridge. 

Buying the ingredients in bulk helps too. Purchasing a large package of sliced Jarlesberg light cheese and Hillshire Farm thin sliced deli select chicken or turkey at Costco supplied me with two weeks of lunches.  The cheese can be separated and frozen; the meat already comes in two convenient packages. Separate out enough food to bring to work for one week and freeze the rest.

Jarlesberg cheese has a ton of flavor, but is low on fat and calories. As always choose whole grain breads if you have a choice; the Oroweat Light whole wheat bread has great flavor and is slightly smaller than a normal piece of bread. The bonus here is that two slices of this bread has about the same fat, calories and protein as one slice of normal whole wheat bread.  

Add variety to your lunches by choosing different low fat meats (turkey or chicken or very lean beef), the vegetables you put into your sandwiches and flavorings like mustard.

Keep your sides nutritious as well for a well-rounded and tasty lunch:

• seasonal fruit has lots of fiber and fills me up;
• if you're grilling, toss some extra veggies on the grill and bring those in the next day;
• the usual veggie sticks take on a whole new flavor with hummus or other type of low fat dip.

Try this delicious low fat bean dip - not only is it healthy, it adds fiber and protein to your lunch!

Creamy White Bean Dip

Makes about 1 1/4 cups

1 15-ounce can cannellini (white kidney beans), drained
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large garlic clove, peeled
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

1. Puree first 5 ingredients in processor until almost smooth.
2. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Transfer dip to small bowl. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
4. Mix mint, dill, and lemon peel in small dish; sprinkle over dip and serve.

Per tablespoon: calories, 23; total fat, 1 g; saturated fat, 0; cholesterol, 0

Recipe courtesy: Bon Appétit | July 2003