Mason Jar Salads

As everyone knows, January is famous for everyone being obsessed with their New Year's Resolutions.  For example, when trying out a new gym this weekend I had one con: it was insanely crowded. We all know by March that will not be the case.  At first I was annoyed, but then I had to remind myself that I am currently one of those people when it comes to my own resolutions so I needed not judge.  I have several resolution this year (probably too many) but one that I really want to stick to is packing my lunch for work.  I’d like to call it meal planning but I think starting with lunches is a good first step.

I want to do this for obvious reasons.  If I am packing I am not spending so much money on grabbing lunch out, and if I am packing it will be much healthier than having to pick up something on the run.  I know what you are thinking.... I have been out of college and in the working world for, dare I say it... 7 years.  Why have I not figured this out yet?  In my defense, prior to my new job, I would work from home a lot or go home to take my dogs out.  In my previous jobs I was able to eat at home at least 3 days a week. Now that this is no longer the case, I have found myself eating mostly crap more often than not during lunchtime.  As much as I love Jimmy John’s I cannot let this continue.  Eating out for lunch every day of the work week comes to approximately $1, 920 a year.  If you reduce that by eating out only 2 days a week that number comes down to $768.  That is a savings of $1,152.  Obviously, part of that money will go to groceries so that you can in fact pack your lunch.  Based on my shopping yesterday, making a week of lunches for 2 people came out to $2.60 daily.  You will have to take into account that sometimes you will have to re-stock those larger items like olive oil for dressings, spices etc.  But based on these numbers packing lunches everyday will cost $624 yearly saving you $1,299 dollars.  With this savings you can afford to re-stock the basics in your kitchen as needed!

Best Advice:  Find a buddy.  My friend Carl and I decided to do this together to make it A) more enjoyable and B) to share some ideas.  Carl and I stocked up on ideas and food, and then he came over to help with the test run! It takes a little time to get everything together so having someone to hangout with in the process makes it seem more like fun! 

Step 1: Make a plan.  I have decided the more I can do on Sunday afternoons the better my week will be.  As much as I love going out on the weekends we have developed a nice routine of hanging at the house on Sunday late afternoon/early evening.  This makes it a perfect time to organize my life.  I decided I would try the Mason Jar Salad approach for my lunches.  Based on my readings of other’s attempts it seems you can make 4-5 in advance, perfect for a work week!  My boyfriend, Alex, found a salad that I thought would be great.  We made our choice based on it being healthy but also hearty.  My hope is it will be enough on its own. 

I have to be honest, the first part of my planning process was a little ambitious. As usual, I got really excited about my new plan and almost over did it. I had 5 different ideas and a list to accommodate them all.  I quickly realized (with some help) this would just have me making a month’s worth of food in one day, all which would go bad quickly.  

Step 2:  Once I got myself in check…I headed out to the store.  This was no small feat.  I was getting enough veggies and fresh produce for a week's worth of salads for two people but also enough food for dinners for two people.  I had also planned on making dinner for a large group of people for the BCS National Championship game (already breaking resolution #1: stop overextending myself).  I think I have given up on that one, it is inevitable, I will always overextend, I think I like it. 

I would insert a picture here of all my groceries but there was no way to make it look like anything other than a mess.  I did get an important and I must say sustainable item.  The mason jars.  You can get these at most grocery stores. They will be great for not only salads, but other storage around the house.  Most importantly they are easy to clean and easy to throw in your bag and head out in the morning.

Step 3:  Once I got home and unloaded all of my groceries I decided to prep everything.  This way, all my produce is clean, chopped and ready to go.  If it is going in a salad, I would just have to throw it in.  Additionally, the rest will leave healthy things to snack on for other times during the week.  Most importantly, they are also ready for dinner so I don’t have to spend time after work doing this stuff when I just want to eat and do anything except be productive.

Step 4:  Get the salad together.  I chose a Couscous, Arugula and Lentil salad Alex found on Eating Well's website.  My version of the recipe is on the next post as I made a few changes.  It seems you can really do any salad you choose.  I plan to do a few different ones and will post those as recipes as the weeks go by.

Step 5: Put salad in jars, seal the lid, put in fridge.  All set and ready for Monday morning!