food for picky eaters adults

- hey guys, we are in week three of our back to school bonanza, and this week we are going to tackle the packed lunch. now if you're new to mychannel and you're wondering what is all this back toschool bonanza business,

food for picky eaters adults, you can click on the annotation here, and it'll take you tothe other two episodes and get you caught up. and there are some wonderfulgiveaways attached,

so be sure to check it out. so, i am a big believerin bringing your lunch to school or work. you will save a ton of money this way, and you will also be incontrol of what you eat and how much of it you eat. but here's the rub when itcomes to packed lunches. did you know that each personwho brings a packed lunch using packaging, tin foil,plastic baggies, paper bags,

creates 67 pounds of waste per year per student, and just imagine how manystudents there are out there, and not even college students,think of the little kids too. so, i thought that thatwould be a fabulous giveaway, to offer some kind ofreusable lunch bag and box. so that leads me to this week's giveaway, the bento-ware lunchbox by laptop lunches. i love this thing.

it is my new favorite product. so i found out about thiscompany through my friend, catherine mccord of weelicious. if you don't already knowof catherine's channel, i encourage you to checkit out and subscribe. she is the ultimate lunchbox lady. she has some awesome videos on healthy lunches, healthy snacks. she has even written awhole book on the subject.

so she is definitely the go-to expert when it comes to the healthy lunch. so a special thanks to catherine for introducing me tomy new favorite product and a special thanks to laptop lunches for participating in this giveaway. so for this contest oneof you lucky viewers will win the bento-ware lunchbox which comes in its own hard carrying case

and includes three different compartments, one for a sandwich andtwo for healthy snacks. now, because it was just toocute and i couldn't resist it, i personally am throwing inthe insulated carrying bag and coordinating ice packs. i love these two things,because that way you can then pack more perishable itemsthat need to be kept cool, and you'll also be reallytricked out for lunch. so by now you guys know the drill.

if you want to enter this contest, just leave me a comment below, letting me know why youwant to win this prize, and i'll pick my favoritecomment and award the winner. and remember, you haveuntil october 7th to enter this contest and any of myback to school giveaways. so if you know anybody whocould also use this prize, be sure to pass thisvideo around, and that way it will allow the mostamount of people to enter.

so without any furtherado, let's pack a lunch. so let's start by reinventingthe classic turkey sandwich. so when it comes to turkey sandwiches, i'm a big believer in getting a little bit more adventuresome and not just going for the humdrum turkey. pick something a littlebit more interesting, like a smoked turkey is quite nice, or a maple honey turkeyis also a good choice.

they're usually right therenext to the regular turkey, and all you have to do is ask. often times in your grocerystore you want to head out of the bread aisle andgo into the bakery aisle. that's where they have themore interesting breads, and you can often findrosemary breads, olive breads, things that you wouldn't normally think of to use for sandwiches, andyou can also get it sliced right there and put into freezer bags.

i find the best way to store bread is to actually put it in my freezer and then just microwave it when i need it. that way, it'll stay fresher longer, and you can end up getting alot more interesting breads. now let's talk about the spread. so i love mustard when itcomes to a turkey sandwich, but we can make it a littlebit more interesting by using honey mustard, and youactually don't need to go out

and buy a separate jar of honey mustard. you can actually savea little bit of money and use regular dijon mustard and just add a little bit of honey to it. so, often times you have dijon mustard, and you probably havea jar of honey around. just add about a half a teaspoon of honey to about a tablespoon of dijon mustard. mix it together, and voila, honey mustard.

then for our sandwich we're going to need a little bit of crunch inthe form of some vegetables. so i love lettuce and tomato. it's classic for a turkey sandwich, but you don't need to rely on the sort of boring iceberg lettuce. you can use something alittle bit more flavorful, like butter leaf lettuce. it's just a little bit moresophisticated and gourmet

and has a lot more flavor to it. then i also like to use roma tomatoes. i find that they'resmaller and easier to cut and put in a sandwich, andthey also aren't as seedy and get as mushy as aregular tomato would. then you take your sandwich and put it in your sandwich compartmentof your bento box, and now we're going to tacklethe coordinating snacks. when it comes to snacks in a packed lunch,

i always like to have something savory and then something sweet. so i know it's tempting toreach for those potato chips, especially when you want tojazz up a boring sandwich, but we're going to usesomething a little bit healthier that will be just assatisfying, i promise, in the form of some pitachips and store-bought hummus. i love these littlebento box compartments, because you can fill the bottom of it

with the store-bought hummus, put those little pita chips on top, and the top of the lunchboxactually acts as a big lid. so it's so tight thatwhen you shake it around, you won't have to worryabout the pita chips or your hummus coming undone. then for our sweetsnack, i love applesauce. applesauce is such asoothing, satisfying snack, especially when you want something sweet

that's also healthy. now when it comes to picking applesauce, make sure you get thevariety that is 100% natural, unsweetened, becauseapplesauce can be loaded with all kinds of sweetenersand preservatives, and you don't want any of that. now here in the states, we are spoiled with this pumpkin pie spice, because we use it in ourpumpkin pies at thanksgiving,

but if you're not from the united states, and you want to know howto approximate the taste, you can actually make your own. and all it is, is cinnamon,cloves, cardamom, and nutmeg, or you could just use somecinnamon, that would work too. i love using these spiceswith the applesauce, because the applesauceis sweet and delicious, and then given this little spice, it just makes it all the more interesting.

now you just put the lidon your little compartment, and presto, there is lunch number one. moving on to lunch option number two for our vegetarian friends. i love a good bread, andfor this we're going to use some toasted olive bread. so go ahead and pop it in thetoaster or under your broiler, then we're going to addsome store-bought pesto, some fresh mozzarella.

i do recommend using the fresh mozzarella wrapped in plastic. it's better than themozzarella that's actually sitting in water, becausethat mozzarella is too soft, has too much water in it, and will actually makeyour bread too mushy. so it's better to use thekind wrapped in plastic, as it's harder and doesn'thave any water in it. and then we're going to topwith some sun-dried tomatoes.

and there you have it, a really yummy, italian-inspired, vegetarian sandwich. then for our savorysnack, we're going to take some fresh cherrytomatoes, cut them in half, and sprinkle them with a little sea salt. now i know we just usedthe sun-dried tomatoes in the sandwich, but ireally love the combination of the sun-dried tomatoesand the fresh tomatoes mixed with the pesto and the cheese.

it's a great flavor combinationthat's also really healthy. and for the sweet snack,we're going to use some dried apricots with some almonds. i love the combinationof apricot and almond. it's such a great flavor pairing. you've got that chewysweetness of the apricot, mixed with that nice crunch of the almond. it's a great little snack that will leave you completely satisfied.

so there you have it,sandwich combo number two. so moving on to sandwichcombo number three. this one is dedicatedto our vegan friends, and for this one i was inspired by the flavors of the mediterranean. so we're going to take a wholewheat pita, cut it in half, fill it with some store-bought hummus, then sprinkle about atablespoon of flat leaf parsley. i love the combinationof all of these flavors

with the flat leaf parsley. it just adds a wonderful freshness to it that i think you'll really enjoy. now we're going to top withsome fire-roasted peppers. just make sure that you've blotted them with a paper towel first so that they don't make your sandwich soggy. and then you're going to do the same thing to some artichoke hearts.

top with some pitted kalamata olives and presto, your vegan lunch is ready. now for our savory snack. i really love these bean chips. if you guys have not triedthem, you are in for a treat, and you should definitely pick up a bag. they're a lot healthier thanjust a classic tortilla chip, but they kind of have thesame satisfaction to them. they're salty, they're light and crunchy,

and they're filled withall kinds of beans, so they're going to giveyou a lot more protein to add to your hummus sandwich. then for a sweet snack, i'm going to use some of my homemade trail mix. i love this recipe becauseit's so easy to do, and it's such a great littlesnack to pack in a lunchbox. if you want to know how imake my homemade trail mix, just click on the thumbnail here,

and it'll take you to the video. okay, so the vegans are taken care of. now we're going to moveon to the pescetarians. so for this sandwich,we're going to do something a little bit more fun, inthe form of a pinwheel. the first thing you're going to do is start with some lavash bread. if you're not familiar with lavash, it's an armenian-stylebread that's pretty easy

to find now in most supermarkets. then you're going to takesome whipped cream cheese and spread it all overthe surface of the bread. i like the whipped cream cheese because i think it justspreads a bit better, but if you're not able to find it, regular cream cheese will work as well. to that you're going toadd some fresh lemon zest, some freshly cracked pepper,

some freshly minced dill, and about three pieces of smoked salmon. go ahead and roll up the bread, creating a nice long log,and then you're going to cut it into about two-inch pieces. then you can go ahead andtake your little pinwheels and put them in your bento box, and your sandwich is ready. now for the snacks.

for the savory option, we'regoing to throw together a quick cucumber salad. all you do is take a hothouse cucumber. i like these varieties becausethe skin is thinner than a regular cucumber, which meansyou don't have to peel it, which will save you a bunchof time in the morning. go ahead and cut them into small wedges. throw them in your bentobox, then dice up one radish. i love the radish becausethey're so spicy and crunchy.

and then you're going to takea splash of rice wine vinegar and throw it over the top. i love this vinegar becauseit's sweeter and lighter than traditional vinegar, andit's a great little condiment to have on hand when youwant to add some interest to some freshly cut vegetables. and then for our sweet snack,it couldn't get any easier. we're just basically going totake some fresh blueberries. i love blueberries as a sweet snack option

because they're a great fruit that's packed with antioxidants, and you don't have to cut them. all you have to do is rinse them and throw them in your container. okay, option number four down. moving on to option number five for all of you meat lovers out there. i'm going to show youhow to literally spice up

a roast beef sandwich. we're going to go backto our rosemary bread. so the nice thing aboutall of these recipes is i've doubled-up onsome of the ingredients. so if you want to make all of them, you could buy these ingredients, and then some of themwill play double duty throughout the week. so to our rosemary bread we're going to

spread some mayonnaise. then we're going to addsome prepared horseradish. i love having this condiment in my fridge, because it's so spicy and delicious and just makes anything you put it on taste a lot more gourmet. to that we're going tosprinkle a few capers. about three to four slicesof deli-case roast beef, and then top with arugula.

i love arugula as a greenbecause it's spicy and delicious and just adds a reallynice kick to any sandwich. for a savory snack, we're goingto use some edamame chips. again, i love them becausethey're crunchy and salty and just a little bithealthier than the potato chip. you can find them at major grocery stores or health food stores. i get mine at trader joe's. they're pretty inexpensive.

and what i like aboutthem is they're small, and they can fit into theselittle bento boxes perfectly. now for our sweet snack, which also has a bit of a savory twist to it. i love this little grape salad. i did it once for a packedlunch i had about a week ago, and i just had to shareit with all of you, because it's so delicious. you take some red grapes,some crumbled bleu cheese,

and some chopped walnuts. put it all together inyour little bento box, and then it's actually meantto be eaten with a spoon, because it does get a little bit messy. and you'll see you'llget that delicious, cold, refreshing taste of the grape, the saltiness of the bleu cheese, and the crunch of the walnut. these three ingredientswere born to go together,

and it's just a great way tofinish off your little lunch. so there you have it, myfive super sandwich combos with coordinating snacks. i hope you give one of these a try, and let me know what you think, or hey, give them all a try. you've got a whole week's worth of lunches right here waiting for you. and i will see you back here next week,

when we are going totackle a budget-friendly, gourmet meal made in atoaster oven, no joke. you don't want to miss it. i'll see you then.