My lunch: June 15, 2011

Similar to Chip's from the same day, with a few little tweaks. We've tried kiwi twice, and he just can't like it. So I guess I'll have to eat all the kiwis in the family! I found out recently that I'm no longer allergic, so I've been trying to make up for lost time. Yes, kiwi allergies exist, I swear.



Salad with organic local redleaf lettuce, organic local salad mix, organic corn, and spiced black beans, organic carrots, raw almonds, organic kiwi, homemade guacamole, and salsa.

Chip's lunch: June 15, 2011

Chip and I had homemade Chipotle-style burritos the night before this lunch, with some spiced black beans (cumin, garlic, lime, and chili powder) in lieu of meat. I couldn't figure out a way to get a burrito in these lunchboxes. It was the first time I'd been really stumped, and I started to get really frustrated! Eventually I gave up and turned it into a sort of southwestern salad. Similar to the original ingredients, with more lettuce, and no tortilla. I whipped up the guac myself for dinner. It turned out really well this time...it's always different since I just throw ingredients together and cross my fingers. As usual, it was just avocado, red onion, tomato, a small amount of garlic, salt, pepper, and lime juice. It got a little brown while waiting for lunch time, but that was to be expected.



Salad with organic local redleaf lettuce, organic local salad mix, spiced black beans, organic corn, and Tillamook Cheddar cheese, banana, Kashi trail mix bar, organic applesauce, homemade guacamole, and salsa.

Chip's lunch: September 10, 2010

Mmmm...restaurant leftovers! We haven't had those in a really long time! My wonderful friend Lori took me out to lunch at Kogen's yesterday, and I had plenty of sesame tofu left over for Chip to have it in his lunch. And look! No banana! I'm sure they'll be back next week though. This is partly because, well, it's Chip, and bananas are what he eats, as well as the fact that there are no fewer than eleven bananas in our fruit bowl right now.



CSA watermelon, 1/2 sandwich on local organic 10-grain bread with guacamole, organic spinach, Roma tomatoes from our garden, and CSA red pepper, organic dark chocolate, organic Thompson raisins, organic macadamias, organic applesauce, and leftover sesame tofu with broccoli, water chestnuts, and fried rice.

Chip's lunch: September 1, 2010

I hate being the guy who says obvious and boring things, but I can't believe it's September. Last September here was beautiful: low humidity, cool temperatures, and little rain. This September appears to be opposite, considering today is supposed to be 92* and humid. This weather makes me want fall to get here now, but I know we'll be missing the summer food soon enough.

Tonight's dinner was Southwestern egg rolls, from a recipe recommended by a friend. Back in the day, I worked at the Hard Times Cafe and couldn't get enough of their Santa Fe egg rolls. Chicken, black beans, corn, cheese...yum! I haven't yet found a tasty vegetarian substitute...til now. This recipe was so satisfying! Easy to make, ridiculously tasty, reasonably healthy, and plenty of leftovers. We both enjoyed these for dinner, and are both looking forward to having more for lunch. We will definitely make this again (though we may reduce the salt...it was a bit much).



Southwestern egg rolls with organic black beans, organic spinach, organic corn, and organic cheese, banana, Clif Z Bar (S'mores flavor), local salsa, guacamole, and a CSA apple.

Chip's lunch: August 26, 2010

We're in one of those phases in which we've got stuff to use up. The guacamole, apples, and tomato weren't getting any younger. All week I've been trying to convince Chip to take some guac in his lunch, and tonight I stopped asking...I just did it. We bought a 3-pack of Wholly Guacamole at Costco, and while it's delicious, I think it's a little much for just the two of us.



Sandwich on organic whole wheat bread with guacamole, CSA tomato, and organic redleaf lettuce, local early Jonagold apple, organic Thompson raisins, Clif Z Bar (s'mores flavor), organic dark chocolate, organic banana, and organic quinoa with organic vegetable bouillon, CSA carrots, CSA onion, and organic cumin.

Chip's lunch: August 3, 2010

So we got a new fridge today. It's pretty much the most exciting (house-related) thing that's happened to us this year. Our house is 102 years old, so we've done a lot of preventative maintenance, as well as repairs. None of this has been particularly fun. And while we'd prefer to continue using our 20-some-year-old refrigerator, it is time to part ways with it. The repairman says it's on its last legs, and our home warranty helped us buy a new one. And it is beautiful. Everything in our kitchen is fairly old (though functional), and it's really exciting to have something so new and pretty. We've really agonized over our kitchen, and we never hesitate to make fun of the people on HGTV who are all, "oh, this kitchen is a gut job," just because there's no stainless steel or granite. Do laminate counter tops not hold your stuff as well as granite does? Does a stainless steel fridge make your food taste better? (In all fairness, though, we did go with stainless steel. Not our first choice, but since we're not staying in this house for more than five years or so, we figured we should go with what others prefer.)

Anyway...in taking items out of Old Fridge, I attempted to use up whatever I could so it wouldn't take up space in New Fridge. Hence the soup, applesauce, and guac. I realized once lunch was done that it's vegan, which is a nice bonus.

Goodbye, Old Fridge. You had a nice, multi-decade run. We will not miss you. We also will not miss covering the floor around you with rags to soak up all the water you leaked.



Hello, New Fridge. You are beautiful and new, and we love you already.









Whole wheat rollups with guacamole, organic greenleaf lettuce, organic spinach, organic grape tomatoes, and Newman's Own salsa, organic applesauce, raw almonds, organic dark chocolate, homemade lentil soup, and watermelon.

My lunch: July 31, 2010

I took Jack to Pupapalooza on Saturday morning. On Friday night, Chip and I had a small disagreement and went to bed unhappy with each other. When I woke up, he had made this lunch for me. He's never made lunch for me. He must have felt really bad! Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to eat the whole thing while I was out, but I enjoyed what I did eat. It was pretty neat to have lunch made for me. Now I know what it feels like!



Natural peanut butter on organic sprouted grain bread, trail mix (Chip even shelled the pistachios that he threw in here), Clif Mojo bar, organic strawberries, organic raspberries, organic blackberries, Wheat Thins, whole wheat pita, and guacamole.

Chip's lunch: April 29, 2010

Yikes...this lunch is low on fruits and veggies, but I guess that goes along with the whole, "needing to go grocery shopping" thing. I made these quesadillas for dinner tonight, and Chip said, "this is why we never go out to dinner. Because this tastes better than going out, and it's cheaper and it's in reasonable portions." I took that as a request to make it again, so here it is!

Also, by request, here's how I made this guac:
2 large avocados
1/4 red onion, chopped
5 or 6 Campari tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 large lime, juiced
salt and pepper to taste



Quesadilla with cheddar jack cheese, organic black beans, and red onion, homemade cornbread, organic fair trade dark and milk chocolate, raw almonds, organic Fuji apple, Newman's Own salsa, and homemade guacamole (avocado, Campari tomato, red onion, garlic, lime juice, salt, and pepper).