March-ing and Munching 2013 - Take your lunch to work thread.

kittiej

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[/FONT]Hello everyone :j

Here's the thread for February where the theme this month is "it's all about you" by that I mean you can take your LTW and you can save some money to put to better uses than wasting it on bought lunches (and breakfasts).

So including the list from last month as compiled by Shortie :A
here we go into Feb 2013.

Everyone is welcome even if you only work 1 day a week or stay at home but would like to join. So, the doors are now open......

Recipe ideas for sandwich fillings and lunches

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...d.php?t=159329

http://pinterest.com/lbnblbnb/food-lunch-ideas/

Now everyone say a big thank you to Shortie for compiling this list of ideas for us.

:AThanks Shortie :A

*Cold foods*
Sandwich combos:
Stuffing
Tuna mayo/salad cream
Tuna and sweetcorn
Tuna and onion
Tuna and cucumber
Beetroot
Cheese & carmelised onion chutney
Cheese and chilli jam
grated cheese, mushed up egg, diced onion and mixed in with mayo
Peanut butter & marmite
Greek salad - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...3&postcount=38
Russian salad sandwich - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...3&postcount=38
Curry!
Bacon & banana
Cheese & pickle
Corned beef & lettuce
Ham & apple sauce
Coronation chicken
Fried egg baguette
Sausage & mustard / ketchup / mayo / pickle / onion relish
Scrambled egg (cooked in the microwave)
Chhese & piccalilli
Brie & grape
Cheese & tomato
Ham and coleslaw
Onion Baji & coleslaw wrap
Chicken and cranberry sauce
Chicken & bacon
Haslet and coleslaw
Peanutbutter, cream cheese & banana
Turkey/chicken & stuffing
Crisp butti
Chicken with pesto and mayo
Brie, crushed walnuts, feta &rocket wrap
Chorizo & goats cheese
Vegetarian pate http://fatfreevegan.com/blog/2010/02...d-lentil-pate/
sliced turkey, mayo, pineapple and a bit of tinned sweetcorn sprinkled

Adding the following to salads:
Hard boiled egg in salad
Carrot salad: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...&postcount=110
Cold duck and spinnach, raddish, pepper & carrot
Cheese, ham & whatever salad is in the fridge
Chicken and cold bacon bits
Spice sensation cous cous with raisins, pumpkin seeds. little cubes of cheese (feta or cheddar) cheery toms halved,cuc, spring onions and a couple of dried apricots chopped up
Bulk making salads: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...&postcount=358

Rice cakes & hummus
Crackers / carrot sticks / pitta bread & taramaslata (or dip of choice)
Crustless quiche (good for GF diets) - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...3&postcount=38
Spanish potato fritata
Cous cous

*Warm foods*
Soups (with some bread?):
Jamie Oliver's Parsnip and Ginger Soup
Jamie Oliver's carrot soup: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...5&postcount=50
Mushroom risotto soup: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...1&postcount=64
Liquidised curry
Pasta
Macaroni cheese
Leftovers... pasta bakes, curry, spag bol, chilli..
Falafel
Onion bhajis
Samosas
Jacket potatoes
Cous cous (take dried and rehydrate from a kettle at work, add some fillings - meat, vegs, cheese, etc - once warm and hydrated)
Mash, veg, gravy and meat in a tuppawear box
Spaghetti/beans on toast or with butter bread
Falafel & chilli dip
Paella a la Candlewick http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=59729581&postcount=39

*Snacks*
Cake
Fruit
Crisps (multibags can be better value)
Hot choc
Sausage rolls
Juice cartons
Cereal bars
Fruit salads (mix with a spoon or two of juice from tinned fruit to keep it from turning brown)
Biscuits
Mince Pies (especially for Betty Crumble)

*Emergency stocks for a drawer*
Cereal
Porridge oats
Tinned macaroni cheese
Mug Shot pasta packs
Cup-a-Soup

*Other suggestions*
Thermos flash of tea or coffee
freeze sandwiches for the week or buy/make pasties, sausage rolls, and take them out in the morning.
Hard boiled eggs keep for a week in the fridge with the shells on
Wraps instead of sliced bread


*.... and sneaking in here.... Breakfasts!*
Greek yoghurt and granola on top of fruit salad
Toast wrapped in foil asap after cooking - should keep warm for a 10 min journey to the train station etc!)
Scrambled egg (cooked in the microwave) and toast

Woo-hoo - good luck everybody :T

kittiej

Hello, here's the new thread for March - I can't believe I'm typing the word March. Where have the first weeks of the year gone already?

Candlewick

Evening Kittiej - thanks for starting us all off again this month.

I have worked out that due to the Easter break there are 28 work days for me in March but I have two lunches that I have been invited to so that will make my target 26 for March. That said, I may drop one of them because between you and me (lol) one is a leaving lunch and to be honest I am glad she's going. Hopefully she will be replaced with some who actually does some work!

CW

kittiej

oooo Cw, we should nick-name you 'catwick' miaoww :rotfl:however it would be very MSE to drop out of this lunch date :money:

I know what it's like though if you have to 'carry' others :mad:

FatVonD

I'm with you, Candlewick, on crying off lunches you don't want to go to. We have a whole office lunch date in the pub tomorrow which I won't go to as it'll be murder what with being Friday AND the end of the month. I have however organised a pub lunch for my own department now we have all our new people on Wednesday. Much more my thing, I prefer to be in a small group of people I actually *like* than making small talk with people I couldn't give two hoots about! Take that as a compliment fellow lunchees

I'm off to a good start, we had a Tesco delivery tonight and I have 3 bags of value cashew nuts to satisfy my nut cravings and 2 bars of value chocolate to satisfy my chocolate cravings. The emptying of my last bottle of squash has miraculously (for once) coincided with my Tesco delivery so I have a bottle of value squash too so I won't be forced to cough up a quid for a posh one this month.

skinny_jeans

Hi, could I also join this challenge please? :-)

MrsPorridge

I think I would like to join you this month. I absolutely hate making packed lunches. I make for DS, DH and then end up with rubbish for myself. For instance tomorrow DS has tuna sandwich, muffin and banana - DH is buying a pastie (a rare treat) he usually has reduced price ready meals. I end up using whatever I can find - not really keen on sandwiches. No sandwich filling left which is why DS has the last in of tuna - I have got 2 hot cross buns and a banana - I will also take one wheetabix in as we have milk provided and it saves rushing it at home. I am one of those who gets up at the last minute.

I will take some time to look through Shortie's list. Was payday today so will do my big Lidls monthly shop tomorrow.

kittiej

Hi FatVonD - we're honoured to have your company

Welcomes to skinny-jeans and MrsPorridge :j:hello: yes do look through the first post to get some inspiration.

Candlewick

kittiej wrote: »

oooo Cw, we should nick-name you 'catwick' miaoww :rotfl:however it would be very MSE to drop out of this lunch date :money:

I know what it's like though if you have to 'carry' others :mad:

Sorry, Kittiej, I am not usually like that but it does get you down after a while. We are already short staffed at the moment and I have had a few very stressful weeks and it annoys me to see her swanning around the office doing so very little and it's been allowed to continue for months.

FatVonD, that would be my idea of hell so I can understand your reasons for not going.

Anyway, on a much lighter note, I will be having my favourite sandwich tomorrow, tuna on brown and will take the rest of the cherry toms left over from earlier in the week.

Has anyone tried making a tuna melt? We only have a microwave at work so not sure how it will turn out.

Hello :wave:and welcome, skinny_jeans & MrsPorridge - please excuse my ramblings. We are a very friendly bunch on here and have saved lots of money on not buying lunch at work.

CW

krustylouise

Please can I join too? I am usually pretty good at taking lunch to work, but now and again I fall off the wagon and spend £5 at a local food hall :-S I have 20 work days this month (thanks to Good Friday) so hoping to save 20days of lunch money

kittiej

It's OK CW, there's no need to apologise, there's a person like that in most offices I have found. It does add to any work pressure I know.

Fingers crossed the next person is nicer

Hi krustylouise :wave: welcome to the LTW thread.