Toast with eggs and avocado checks off all the boxes for a quick, tasty and satisfying lunch. (Photo: Getty)
By Haley Scarpino
After working on Julia Turshen’s latest cookbook, “What Goes With What,” I started thinking about meals as equations to solve.
Breakfast is easy. I tend to eat the same thing every morning until I burn out on it. Maybe it’s scrambled eggs and toast, or yogurt with peaches and granola. Whatever it is, I’m happy to repeat it for weeks. Dinner isn’t much harder. I have a handful of recipes I make regularly, and I sprinkle in new dishes I’m excited to try or recipes I’m testing for work.
But lunch? That’s where I get lost. For some reason, I can’t make one thing and eat it all week the way I do breakfast. By Wednesday, I’m usually tired of it. If I don’t have a plan, I end up eating cottage cheese and a handful of Cheez-Its over the sink, which isn’t exactly a balanced meal.
It’s important that lunch keeps me fueled through the afternoon. But lunch isn’t just about ingredients; it’s also about time. Depending on the day, I might have 5 minutes to throw something together or 20 minutes actually to cook.
Eventually, I realized I didn’t need a collection of lunch recipes. I needed a formula. A satisfying lunch almost always includes:
Something filling, like canned beans, hard-boiled eggs, cheese or leftover chicken.
Something fresh, such as fruit, vegetables or herbs.
Something crunchy or textural.
Something flavorful, whether that’s a dressing, sauce, pickle or condiment.
The formula stays the same. The only variable is time.
To make lunches easier, I try to keep a few building blocks on hand throughout the week. I’ll wash and prep produce, grill or poach chicken, hard-boil eggs, make a sauce or slice cheese. Those small tasks make it much easier to put together lunch when I need it.
When You Have 5 Minutes
Some days, 5 minutes is all I have. These lunches are all about assembly — no cooking required. I combine ingredients that are already prepped or ready to eat. The goal is to satisfy the formula with as little effort as possible.
Mezze Plate: Hummus topped with cherry tomatoes, olives, feta and a drizzle with olive oil, served with cucumbers and pita chips.
Chicken Caesar Wrap or Sandwich: Grilled chicken, romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing and Parmesan cheese wrapped in a tortilla or piled onto toasted bread.
Apple Peanut Butter Plate: Apple slices with peanut butter, honey and sunflower seeds, served with a glass of milk.
Grazing Plate: Sliced cheese, a beef stick or salami, grapes and water crackers.
Snack Plate: Triscuits, apple slices and Boursin cheese.
Bagel with Herb-Garlic Cream Cheese and Tomatoes: Simple, satisfying proof that lunch doesn’t always need to be complicated.
These lunches may be simple, but they work because they’re balanced. They’re assembled rather than cooked, yet they still check all the boxes.
When You Have 20 Minutes
Other days, I have enough time to cook something. These lunches require a little more effort, but not much. Most come together in about 10 to 20 minutes.
Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup: A grilled cheese sandwich served with tomato soup for dipping. I like Trader Joe’s tomato soup, though homemade soup from the freezer works just as well.
Bean and Cheese Quesadilla: A crispy quesadilla served with a simple sauce of sour cream and lime.
Creamy Ramen: Chicken ramen noodles stirred with American cheese and fresh spinach, then topped with oyster crackers. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.
Avocado Toast with Poached Eggs: Well-seasoned mashed avocado on toast topped with poached eggs.
Chicken Caesar Salad: Crisp romaine tossed with grilled or poached chicken, Parmesan cheese, Caesar dressing and freshly made croutons.
Tuna Melt: A classic tuna melt served with potato chips on the side.
These lunches are just a starting point. Once you have a few reliable building blocks on hand, the combinations are nearly endless. I like to do a little prep work on the weekend, but there’s no reason you can’t take shortcuts. Almost any homemade component can be replaced with a store-bought version.
Haley Scarpino is a chef, home cook, recipe tester, food editor and graduate of the Iowa Culinary Institute.
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