school lunch

Its not what it used to be. No more brown paper sacks with pb&j; this is grown up school with grown up lunches. There is nothing better than sitting in math class and knowing that the lunch I get to indulge in immediately after solving those complex system of equations is a homemade quinoa salad, a fresh juice, and a green tea to keep me going through speech class. A good lunch is something to look forward to for the first half of your day, and give you energy and satisfaction to complete the afternoon. A good lunch can save the day.

So, here is one of my many midday pick-me-up, packable quinoa salads that should bring you a little lunchtime joy.

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 10 oz. bag of frozen peas
• 15 oz. can of white beans (I used great northern)
• 1/2 cup fresh mint (about 1/4 cup when chopped)
• 1/2 cup fresh basil (1/4 cup chopped)
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• 2 green onions
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Cook quinoa with water as directed. Mix with thawed peas and drained and rinsed beans. Finely chop mint, basil and green onions. Combine all ingredients with olive oil, salt & pepper, and lemon juice. And viola! A fresh and hearty lunch on the go!

Whenever I make a juice I always make enough for two. It can be a task dismantling and cleaning the juicer everyday, so make enough for two, and clean once! I know that the fresher the juice the better, but sometimes convenience trumps freshness. This juice was carrot, celery, cucumber, apple, and turmeric (basically whatever was in the fridge!).

Another lunchtime tip: green tea. I just put a green tea bag (usually STASH Moroccan Mint Green Tea) in a jar of water and let it marinate in my cooler all day, but the time I am ready to wash down my lunch, it is perfectly steeped!