Feb-YOU-ary 2013 - Take your lunch to work thread

Edwardia

Hi y'all, many thanks for the warm welcome.

Don't get me wrong, I like good food too and actually trained at college and worked as a chef years ago. I do believe good food can still be cheap if you shop around but yes it does take effort. OH does drive me nuts though because he's very picky and cos I think he's got hollow legs

As there's a kitchen, I tend to snap up offers and reasonable prices and dish them out to him on a Monday.

That's not feasible though in a workplace where people would filch stuff. Luckily the people using the kitchen already, had rules about having their own shelf in cupboards and using containers with names on in the fridge etc which they had agreed on themselves and there aren't any problems.

Also the kitchen means he has his own stuff like Branston, mustard, ketchup, piccalilli and pickled onions, Yeo Valley or Lurpak spreadable butter - all bought on offer.

Recently I got 3 x Respect Organics carrot cakes for the price of 2 at Sainsbury's, saving 1.80 and stashed them in the freezer. Also got Yeo Valley strawberry and peach & apricot 450g organic yogurts for $1 each at weekend from Ocado. Another offer I bought was 5 cans Heinz organic cream of tomato soup for $4 at Sainsbury's.

Riverford delivers in my area once a week, free delivery on minimum order 12.50 I don't order every week but I make up an order and include a few packs of 2 x organic Riverford leek and ham tarts for 2.95 which will do him two lunches with salad or beans. Cheapest organic baked beans at the moment are Sainsbury's IIRC 57p compared to Heinz at 85p :eek:

I'll be off to Lidl to get proper additive free prosciutto di Parma on Thursday for 1.99 as well as Rachel's yogurt for 99p.

I found 4 x organic wholemeal rolls for $1 at Sainsbury's and stash those in the freezer too. At 25p each that's cheaper than rolls in the local Tesco Express.

Do need ideas how to get more veg in the husband though, I've given him canned organic sweetcorn, canned organic vegetable hotpot and canned soups so far and have persuaded him to take some salad bags in summer.

Fruit isn't a prob, I get a hand of organic Fairtrade bananas for $1 at Lidl or a small fruit bag from Riverford for 3.75

FatVonD

Pasta and pesto for me yesterday, it was a bit dry and stodgy but it meant a no-spend day

Today I had a cheese toastie (with cheese from the fridge so another no-spend day!) which was much nicer.

Tomorrow I'm planning pate, lettuce and onion in a sandwich, I may need to buy crisps though.

Edwardia

That's the prob with pasta, it's the starch and unlike rice you can't pour boiling water over to rinse or it will go flabby.

Things which might help

• bit of oil in the pasta water
• adding the pesto to some oil (it will go further then) then stirring it through the warm pasta
• not using olive oil or pomace oil or pesto containing olive oil and then sticking it in the fridge cos the olive oil solidifies
• using spaghetti which you can chop finely if it clumps (cheaper than farfalle, spirale, conchiglie etc too)

Lidl has some really good red and green pesto which is cheaper than Sacla and cheap fresh growing herbs eg basil and dried herbs like Herbes de Provence. Another thing which lasts for ages in the fridge and is great diced in pasta is prosciutto di Parma. Lidl has the real deal (with the gold crown) for 1.99

ASDA often has growing herbs which need a bit of TLC reduced. If you put them in the light but not blazing hot windowsill and water a little bit every day, taking just the worst leaves off, they often recover. Basil is amazing with pasta.

Hope that helps xx

Twiggy_34

Candlewick wrote: »

have not yet bought lunch at work this year!!

I'm loving how that sounds, I haven't bought lunch at work all year either! lol :j

I've got cooked chicken in the fridge at home which I prepared lastnight & plan to make a chicken & cheese pasta bake this evening. I've not tried doing my own pasta bake before but hearing everyone saying they have leftovers for their lunch made me want to try it! For today though it's nana sandwiches again.

After today there's only one more work day for me this week, as I'm off to London Friday for a valentines/birthday weekend with my dp. Not very MSE, but gotta spoil ourselves sometimes!

kittiej

:hello: Hi everyone

Edwardia - it sounds like you have a real knack for finding those bargains, I hope your OH appreciates it

FatVonD - sometimes there's no gain without pain :rotfl:stodgy pasta - yum You mentioned pate which has reminded me that I haven't seen Quorn pate for ages, I must get some.

Well done Twiggy for the not buying lunch so far this year :T, you and CW are putting me to shame as I slipped up a couple of times and the curry at work was calling out to me 'eat me, eat me' Enjoy your romantic trip

No work for me today so having a pj day with ma boys :j

Have a good un

Candlewick

Hello all :wave:

Edwardia, I know exactly what you mean about pasta and basil. One day, I would love to have a herb garden.

I have been having a break from pasta and mushrooms as I had been eating too much of it and got bored so it was back to sandwiches, soup and cheese and crackers for me.

I had a really lovely piece of steamed haddock tonight with some green beans and was thinking I could take some to work but it was so nice I talked myself out of it so I could finish it! I am sure the smell of fish wafting around the office wouldn't have gone down too well either so feel I have justified eating it all!!

Over the weekend I am going to attempt to make paella. I haven't cooked this from scratch before so that should be interesting. If it tastes good I will have that for a change next week.

Hope everyone is well.

CW

Snagggles

Bah, had to buy lunch today due to being tired and disorganised. It was soup though and only cost £1.30, but still...

Lovely bf took me out for an early v-day meal last night (I don't like going out on the actual day because it's too busy and I'm a bit socially phobic! It was lovely, but wine, cocktails and liqueurs were not the greatest idea when I had a 6am start today. _pale_

I will do better tomorrow. I'm taking a Mugshot and a banana, and they are already in my bag so I won't forget them.

kittiej

Hi snuggles, I don't blame you for going out a couple of days before V day, I don't like lots of people either - panic, panic.

CW you must let us know how you get on with the paella it could be another idea for the recipe post!

Edwardia

Candlewick wow I'd never make paella for OH just for lunch I hope all your colleagues are suitably impressed !

My small garden has a load of herbs in it so I'll pass on what my mother failed to tell me - that it's not just mint that romps away, in the summer I now have lemon balm and chives growing up between the paving slabs

Well done everyone who's managed the whole year so far. Husband is smug about having nice food every day but he's got me to go buy it for him.

I was annoyed because when I was in Lidl tonight they had an offer on the Meadow Fresh organic Cheddar 2 for 1.50 which wasn't in the leaflet and ended tonight. Got the last two. Also found a pack of little boxes of Montedo Wholefoods additive free raisins for 99p and a bunch of organic Fairtrade bananas for $1 again. From tomorrow they've got fruit n nut mixes on offer if anyone wants to do their own Graze type box.

Edwardia

Picked up a leaflet last night and picked out a few lunch type things

Loose sweet potatoes were 1.28/kg now 64p/kg if you have a microwave at work.
OceanSea smoked trout fillets (3 varieties) were 1.99 now 1.59
Rachel's organic low fat rhubarb/vanilla bio live yogurts 350g 99p
Millbona Emmenthal cheese 400g was 2.29 now 1.89
Yoplait Petit Filous 6 pack was 1.50 now 99p
The Laughing Cow Light cheese triangles 8 pack 69p
Feel Good Kids no additive fruit juice drinks 4 x 180ml (2 varieties) 1.49
Espana chorizo Iberico 100g 1.49
Choco nussa chocolate dip with breadsticks 1.29
Robinson Fruit & Barley squashes (2 varieties) 1 LTR 79p
Nestle Nesquik 500g (2 varieties) was 2.52 now 1.59
Mr Kipling apple and blackcurrant pies/lemon slices 6 pack 99p
Heinz organic biscotti 12 pack 2 for 1.50
Plein Sud juice drink pouches (3 varieties) 10 x 200ml 1.99
Lee's teacakes 14 pack 99p
Cadbury's mini animals/mini fingers 99p
Connell Bakery wholemeal soda bread 500g 99p
Diet Pepsi/Pepsi max 2 LTR was 1.78 now 89p
Walkers variety crisps 22 x 25g 2.59
Princes juice drinks (2 varieties) 1 LTR 79p
Knights mini poppadums (4 varieties) 59p
Crusti Croc cheese balls 99p
Montedos fruit mixes, fruit and nut, seeds 89p or 99p

weekend only
Cucumber was 79p now 39p
Penguin 9 pack was 1.75 now 87p
Hula Hoops 12 pack was 2.29 now 1.14
Dulano sliced cooked meats were 1.39 now 69p

Hope that helps !