Long-term readers may remember the days of my open faced sandwich obsession. I would say that it was probably my calling card there for a while. Over time I gravitated away from sandwiches for lunch and more towards grain bowls, egg scrambles, salads and soup. A lot of this was due to becoming more aware of gluten side effects and reducing the amount of gluten in my diet. IN BOLD LETTERS this never meant going gluten-free but just about trying to get away from so many carb and processed soy based meals and more towards real food. I love bread, I love baking, I love pasta. I’m not going to completely omit these things from my diet.
So while I don’t regularly buy bread anymore, I do get big sandwich cravings from time to time. Today was one of those days!
I stopped by the grocery on the way home for lunch and picked up bread, turkey and tomato soup. Then I proceeded to assemble sandwich perfection.
Turkey, avocado, mixed greens, muenster and my secret ingredient…feta yogurt dressing…on rosemary olive oil bread. I placed it all under the broiler to get warm and melty. Tomato soup and some chips on the side. I’m excited to repeat this lunch again tomorrow!
I had meetings this afternoon but managed to squeeze in time to do today’s WOD before I had to coach CrossFit. This doesn’t look so bad, right? Wrong. It was brutal.
So brutal in fact that all my athletes were on the floor by the time it was over. We like to call these “pain frames.” 🙂
It took me a little over 21 minutes to complete this WOD. I highly recommend. It’s an easy one to do on your own.
I left the gym around 7 p.m. and went to yoga. I haven’t been able to practice all week because I have been so busy at work. Class was packed and I was crammed into the last space in the room in the back corner. I ended up leaving early because I just couldn’t relax and needed some quiet solo time. I came home and made a big salad with “super greens” (baby spinach, kale and chard), avocado, chick peas, sweet potatoes, artichokes, pecans, dried cranberries, cottage cheese and feta yogurt dressing. Sounds random, tasted good. I ate a cookie out of the depths of the freezer after dinner. I love frozen cookies!
It’s late and I have a 6 a.m. client. Time to unplug and unwind.
What’s your favorite lunch? I’m totally weird and have to have “lunch” food like salads, soup and sandwiches. I don’t really love dinner/heavy food or leftovers for lunch.
I’ve been taking the “salads in a jar” that have been floating on Pinterest for a few weeks now. I love that I can prep them all on Sunday and have fresh salad all week! This week is Asian style – miso ginger dressing, edamame, mandarin oranges, chicken, carrots, greens!
i haven’t seen this phenomenon on pinterest! i’ll have to check it out!
I loooooove soup for lunch. I like to make a huge pot of something on Sunday and then the husband & I eat that and grilled cheeses for lunch throughout the week. Soup is my favorite thing ever, and the one thing I could eat every day without tiring of it. This week’s soup is minestrone. Yum!
i made carrot ginger this week! soup is such a great lunch…portable and reheats well!
i love this post! Also, I’m going to do that WOD tomorrow! I’m exactly the opposite. I don’t really like salads for lunch. For some reason, lunch to me doesn’t feel like lunch unless it’s warm and comforting. I’ve dedicated 2013 to going {mostly} Paleo, and I’ve found this recipe for a sweet potato & beef stew- it’s my lunch of choice these days- YUM!
that recipe sounds great – can you share the link? how is the mostly paleo diet going?
I’m with you on opting not to have “dinner-like” foods or leftovers for lunch. If i eat heavier foods for lunch, tend to feel more tired, thus resulting in being less motivated and productive throughout the rest of my day. Plus it generally ruins my appetite for dinner then as well! There are certain things I look forward to eating at each meal, you know? The salad dressing looks awesome by the way. Love anything feta or goat cheese related!
ditto on all points you mentioned! i keep a constant supply of goat cheese and feta in my fridge!
My hours are so weird because I work in late afternoon/evening (second shift), so I almost never eat traditional lunch, any semblance of a normal lunch time. Weirdly, I always have to have bread or something really starchy (potatoes, pasta, rice, etc.) for my midday meal, because otherwise I am starving within a couple of hours. I guess it just absorbs water or whatever else I drink and makes me feel full. My perennial favorite lunch is a pbj or egg sandwich on whole grain bread, an apple, and chocolate soymilk. Probably not the healthiest lunch ever, but soooo tasty, and it keeps me full until dinner every time. 🙂
I love making open-faced sandwiches at home–using the broiler to melt the cheese and warm everything up is my not-so-secret step. 😉 When I’m at the office, I usually eat quinoa; I’ve gotten in the habit of making a huge batch on Sunday to have on-hand for weekday lunches.
Can you post the recipe for the feta yogurt dressing or what brand it is? Sounds delish!
Marie’s, in the picture above.
I love frozen cookies too. So much better out of the freezer. I am the total opposite for lunch, I almost always have dinner leftovers from the night before. So easy to just put some leftovers in small container and then take to work the next day!
I totally need to eat “lunch” food for lunch, too! I’m not a fan of heavy foods in the middle of the day. A yummy sandwich, salad/soup always seems to do the trick for me!
wow that’s a tough wod and a long day! Get some rest.
I’m a soup and sandwich for lunch girl too. The rosemary and olive oil bread sounds good.
Oh, that La Brea Rosemary Olive Oil bread is so good. It’s been too long. And that dressing looks great. May have to pick some up on my grocery shopping today.
I eat a salad almost every single day for lunch. It’s my favorite. Plus, I make sure it’s light on the calories so I can endugle more in the evening. I do eat a heavier breakfast though (oats w/ pb & banana or oats w/ honey & almonds).
I LOVE frozen cookies too! I freeze a lot of my sweet treats, because I never can get through them quickly enough, which is a good thing. HA! And I love that bread too and making open faced sandwiches. I’m off to an evening hot yoga class now to just sweat and stretch and bring this day to a close on a positive note. Ciao! XOXO
I LOVE that bread!!!!!!! It is soooooooo good 🙂
Frozen cookies are where it’s at. I also freeze protein bars, chocolate, pretzels..umm you name it. I freeze it. My mom and dad do too – maybe it’s genetic? Maybe we are all freaks of nature?
I tend to stay away from gluten too because I prefer to eat more nutrient dense foods. Basically I try to follow Paleo guidelines because it makes sense to me but I just don’t think it’s any fun to cut all that stuff out completely….food is just too enjoyable sometimes and I get so bored eating meat, eggs, and veggies. My question is, when you do eat gluten, does it really upset your stomach? I’m pretty good about going without it for a while, then I want to eat it socially with friends (birthdays, special dinners, etc) but I end up feeling so gross after….
The classic CF finishing pose…haha