WEBVTT - Upgrade your brown bag lunch

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to upgrade your brown bag lunch. You

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<v Speaker 1>have heard a million times that packing a lunch is

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<v Speaker 1>a great way to save time and money, eat more healthfully,

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<v Speaker 1>and reduce food waste. But if your brown bag lunches

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<v Speaker 1>are dreary, you may still wind up at the fast

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<v Speaker 1>food counter despite your best intentions. So make your packed

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<v Speaker 1>lunches more appealing and you will feel better about the

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<v Speaker 1>whole thing. Now, I should start this episode by saying that, yes,

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<v Speaker 1>I work from home. Theoretically I could cook myself a

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<v Speaker 1>gourmet lunch from scratch daily, but I don't. Instead, I

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<v Speaker 1>am grabbing the exact same stuff I would probably take

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<v Speaker 1>to an office leftovers, frozen meals, sandwiches, and so forth.

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<v Speaker 1>There are definitely days when my lunch is better than others.

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<v Speaker 1>So those are the lessons I am drawing upon for

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<v Speaker 1>this episode unpacked lunches. First, don't underestimate the power of

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<v Speaker 1>making lunch attractive. Eating straight out of the tupperware does

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<v Speaker 1>not feel like a treat. You want your lunch to

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<v Speaker 1>evoke dining at a nice cafe, So skip the disposable

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<v Speaker 1>paper and plastic. Get an attractive lunch box that makes

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<v Speaker 1>you smile when you see it. Pack stainless flatware and

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<v Speaker 1>a cloth napkin. After you eat, just wrapped the flatware

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<v Speaker 1>and the napkin to avoid getting your lunch bag dirty.

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<v Speaker 1>Depending on the items in your lunch, you might like

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<v Speaker 1>to pack of plate instead of eating everything out of baggies.

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<v Speaker 1>A spiffier presentation of your lunch will make whatever you

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<v Speaker 1>bring taste better, and it'll take you maybe sixty seconds

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<v Speaker 1>to make it happen. Just not a big enough time

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<v Speaker 1>stuck to worry about. As for what to take in

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<v Speaker 1>your lunch, remember that it shouldn't feel like deprivation. Most

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<v Speaker 1>people find meals interesting when they contain a variety of items, flavors,

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<v Speaker 1>and textures. Think protein, veggie, something crunchy or salty, and

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<v Speaker 1>something sweet. What combinations can you make within those guidelines.

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<v Speaker 1>It could be some rotisserie chicken, baby carrots, pretzel chips

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<v Speaker 1>and a banana. Or it could be hard boiled eggs, nuts,

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<v Speaker 1>a cucumber and fet a salad and some stunning chocolate

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<v Speaker 1>chip cookies. Bringing leftovers is always a great idea but

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<v Speaker 1>some leftovers are better than other leftovers. Indeed, I would

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<v Speaker 1>recommend cooking with the goal of creating great leftovers for

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<v Speaker 1>your lunches. A big lasagna on the weekend can translate

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<v Speaker 1>into several servings of lasagna during the week. A big

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<v Speaker 1>batch of curry can become lunch with microwavable rice. Chili

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<v Speaker 1>is even better as leftovers than it is the first day,

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<v Speaker 1>as the flavors mild together. Experiment with cast roles until

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<v Speaker 1>you find some favorites. Years ago, when I did work

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<v Speaker 1>in an office, I used to love my brown bag lunches.

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<v Speaker 1>The week after I made a chicken, rice and mushroom

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<v Speaker 1>cast role that featured some really good sherry yum. Choose

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<v Speaker 1>something you'd like to eat for Sunday night dinner and

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<v Speaker 1>make enough that you can cover at least three lunches.

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<v Speaker 1>Then you pack something else or go out on the

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<v Speaker 1>other days. As for side dishes, batch processing is your friend.

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<v Speaker 1>If you're packing nuts, for instance, go ahead and set

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<v Speaker 1>out several servings and several baggies are containers. Now you

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<v Speaker 1>can just grab one each morning. And let's not discount

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<v Speaker 1>the brilliance of prepackaged fruits and veggies and snacks. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>it's a bit more expensive, but if your pineapples go

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<v Speaker 1>bad before you eat them, because chopping them up seems

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<v Speaker 1>like more effort than you can muster, you are not

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<v Speaker 1>saving money. Feel free to get those packaged pretzels with

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<v Speaker 1>hummus or small servings of nice or cheeses. There's a

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<v Speaker 1>little more packaging than when you buy in bulk, but

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<v Speaker 1>you are still saving money and using less packaging then

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<v Speaker 1>you likely would with a full take out restaurant. Meal

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<v Speaker 1>batching and leftovers make packing lunch easier, but it's also

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<v Speaker 1>nice to have an appealing backup option ready to go. Personally,

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<v Speaker 1>I keep a stash of Amy's burritos and the freezer

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<v Speaker 1>for days when there is no obvious option for lunch.

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<v Speaker 1>Individual serving sizes of guacamole plus a few chips turn

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<v Speaker 1>this into something not too dissimilar than what I would

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<v Speaker 1>order in a Mexican restaurant. As an out of the

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<v Speaker 1>box solution, you might also consider teaming up with someone

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<v Speaker 1>else to help upgrade your brown bag lunches. Does your

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<v Speaker 1>spouse actually enjoy packing lunches? Maybe your spouse could pack

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<v Speaker 1>two lunches and you could unload the dishwasher every day.

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<v Speaker 1>In return, do you have a work best friend with

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<v Speaker 1>similar food tastes, Maybe you could bring lunches for both

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<v Speaker 1>of you Monday and Tuesday, and she could bring lunches

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<v Speaker 1>for both of you wins Day and Thursday. This lightens

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<v Speaker 1>the load for everyone and create some accountability to You

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<v Speaker 1>might be willing to scrounge from the vending machine and

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<v Speaker 1>a pinch, but you won't inflict that on your colleague,

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<v Speaker 1>or at least I hope you won't. And finally, remember

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<v Speaker 1>that you don't have to pack a lunch every single day.

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<v Speaker 1>To save money and eat more healthfully, it is all

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<v Speaker 1>about moderation. Eating out once or twice a week is

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<v Speaker 1>fine and can help you feel more social and feel

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<v Speaker 1>like you're getting more variety. That will keep you from

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<v Speaker 1>getting burned out unpacking, So you will put the energy

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<v Speaker 1>into making lunch great on the days you do pack.

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<v Speaker 1>What are your favorite ways to make packing your lunch

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<v Speaker 1>more appealing? You can let me know at Laura at

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<v Speaker 1>Laura Vanderkamp dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening and here's to making the most of

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<v Speaker 1>our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you.

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<v Speaker 1>You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else.

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<v Speaker 1>Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast pod. That's b E the number four, then

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an

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<v Speaker 1>email at Before Breakfast podcast. At i heeart media dot

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<v Speaker 1>com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.

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