Lunch Explorations

I have always had trouble bringing my lunch to work. A bento box is adorable and we almost always have enough things on hand to make a bento lunch. But it requires a considerable time investment. And I simply do not have the wherewithal to devote a half hour plus to making bento lunches. And yes if I make one for myself you know Jeff will want one too.

Once I went on Weight Watchers and during that two week period I made turkey sandwiches on whole wheat almost every day. Those are certainly quicker to make than bentos. And they are pretty tasty. But there is a reason I only lasted two weeks. I could not keep up with eating the same thing every day. And even more: I could not stand not going out for lunch. It was simply not the same to take a mid-afternoon walk and try to buy no snacks.

So yes, I failed at Weight Watchers. And I'm 20 lbs heavier than I was when Jeff and I were married. But by golly if there is one thing that makes my work day easier to get through it's lunch.

I really like the salads at Fresh & Co. and the sandwiches at Pret a Manger, but they are chains and I live in New York after all. We New Yorkers scoff at chains, even our own chains.

So what I've decided is to pretend like I'm a temporary resident of the NYC area because you know if I were only living here a month I'd be eschewing all chains like the plague.

When I'm able to escape the office for a full hour I make a beeline for an eatery that is new to me and which gets good reviews on Yelp. I should probably expand my searches to chowhound and the like but for now Yelp is sending me to plenty of interesting spots.

It helps that for some reason (lack of math skills or ability to plan ahead?) I have quite a surplus in my my flexible spending transit account so I do not feel the pinch of hopping on a subway for a quick ride. This is especially useful in the summer since I don't always realize my limitations. On my first foray I decided to walk over a mile and back again on a 90+ degree day. (Not a good idea.)

A friend jokingly (I think!) suggested I make this the Craige Moore Eat and Workout Tour because I said that to do this I would need to work out more. Or, you know, at all. Despite my failure on that first day I have tried to incorporate a walk when I'm able. But I'm still going to have to up the working out. I'm back with Jillian, but still only on level one. And I have yet to get out of bed more than twice a week even for those short workouts.

I am I inherently lazy and I love food (not a great combo). I read online recently (the internet told me so it must be true) that people have better success losing weight if they have fewer food choices. I knew a guy once who was so uninterested in food that he admitted he'd often open a can of beans for dinner and eat it only because he knew he needed to eat something. It's no wonder he's no longer my friend. If I am presented with limited food choices I am likely to cry. So that won't work for me. My only option is a treadmill desk.

But anyway, I've just landed in Portland, Oregon. So more on this later.

Super delicious

Do you want to know what is super delicious? I'll tell you.

It's this for lunch:

Whip up tuna salad real quick in the morning (with not too much mayo, but the real stuff, no fat free crap) with diced scallions mixed in (I would have added relish, but I couldn't find it in the fridge).

Boil a cup and a half (a cup seemed like too little and two cups seemed like too much) of whole wheat pasta. Drain, run cold water over. Put in Tupperware container.

Go outside into your yard and snip some parsley and some chives. Cut these into tiny bits and add to the tuna salad.

While outside, pick any ripe cherry tomatoes. Be sad that there are only four today. Examine pepper plant and be tempted to pick one. But be strong! It's turning red, but it's not there yet. Patience is a virtue.

Mix herbs into salad and then spoon salad onto pasta. Place tomatoes on top.

Bring in to the office and enjoy audibly (ie, lots of saying "mmmmm!" and "your lunch sucks compared to mine!")

Seems disgusting

I amaze myself multiple times per week by how disgusting my lunch looks. And then I gobble it up, thinking the whole time, Oh my god, this is delicious. One of the more amazing aspects to this salad is the fact that I like it all mixed up. And I was one of those kids who refused to let each food item touch the other food items on my plate.

The contents of my delicious salad from the company cafeteria where I can select my own ingredients and pay by weight, not by some arcane system of number of ingredients:

-no lettuce, seeing as how I'm in the Beth school of lettuce-free salads. It's extraneous. (Note: I will gladly eat lettuce on any occasion and I often have it at home because Jeff is not in this club and I don't dislike it. I just find it to be extraneous.)
-turkey cubes
-tofu cubes
-edamame (a LOT)
-avocado (one quarter, if they have it, which they don't always)
-quinoa
-bulgar wheat
-tomato
-cucumber
-corn
-blue cheese
-sunflower seeds
-green beans
-egg white (just a little)
-one scoop of Italian dressing
-one small scoop of a composed pasta salad, if they have it and it's one I like (tuna and pasta: yes. anything with olives: NO).

Before consumption, the salad has to be thoroughly stirred and all the large pieces (cucumbers, tomotoes) have to be cut into smaller pieces. This is because when I eat it, as many different kinds of things need to be in each bite as possible. This ensures maximum satisfaction.

One thing: I feel a little strange about eating the edamame along with the tofu (although this feeling is not stopping me). It seems as if different types of the same thing are weird to eat together. Like, chicken with egg on it? That just seems creepy.

Cheap tastes good

Sandwiches are ridiculously expensive in NYC. Even a simple turkey, Swiss, lettuce and tomato on a roll costs at least $6. At my company cafeteria, I can get the same for $3.50, but the rolls are always stale. I cannot enjoy this favorite sandwich of mine unless the roll is soft and squishy.

I was getting this sandwich several times a week from a deli near work and paying the approximately $6 price (it varied, depending on who made the sandwich).

And then one day, when walking home from the train in Jersey City, I stopped like I always do to give change to the homeless guy who stands in front of the Paradise Deli. (Jeff and I are his "favorite couple!!" or as we like to refer to us after we pass him, the people putting his son through college, most likely.

It was a particularly cold night and he asked for a sandwich, so I thought what the hell. "Turkey and cheese, please!" he said as I went inside. (He's the nicest homeless guy I have ever met.)

I watched the guy behind the counter pick out a nice squishy roll and slice some Boar's Head turkey. All the meats and salads were wrapped in plastic. I tried not to think about why they must be carefully wrapped, but wrapped they are.

The sandwich rung up at $3.50. Bargain! I took it to the homeless guy who thanked me profusely. I said, "that's my favorite sandwich, too" as I handed it to him. "Really??," he said, "turkey and cheese??" It then dawned on me that he probably prefers American cheese, not the Swiss that I selected for him, but oh well. Free is free, buddy.

And from that day on, I have been stopping at Paradise Deli a few mornings a week and picking up a turkey and Swiss to bring to work. I skip the tomatoes so that it won't get soggy. I look forward to it all morning and as soon as it's noon, I can't wait any longer. It's a damn good sandwich. And no, not just because it's cheap.