Every recipe site tells you how to cook these. None of them tell you how to get one to a child still hot at noon, out of a bag that has been sitting since seven. That is what these are for, so the cooking is the short half and getting it there is the long one.
Thai Curry & Rice
Mild, not spicy, and it holds heat better than almost anything else in the planner. The curry paste is the one thing to check.
20 min hands onMac & Cheese
How to keep gluten free pasta from turning to mush in a thermos by lunchtime.
25 min hands onChili & Cornbread
A thermos of chili with cornbread on the side, and how to make the cornbread without a boxed gluten free mix.
15 min hands onCheesy Grits
Cheese grits packed loose enough that they are still edible at lunchtime.
25 min hands onSausage & Sweet Potato Hash
A dry food in a steel thermos arrives lukewarm, so this hash gets packed wet on purpose.
20 min hands onLentil Soup
The everyday thermos soup: brown lentils that hold their shape until lunch, and what to thin it with when you reheat.
25 min hands onChicken & Hominy Soup
Pozole cut down to thermos size, with the garnishes handled at home so nobody is building a bowl at a lunch table.
20 min hands onChicken Rice Box
The no reheat lunch: vinegar and garlic braised chicken over rice, packed cold and eaten at room temperature.
20 min hands onTomato Rice Box
Jollof cooked down to lunchbox size: deep red tomato rice, one pot, and no reheating at school.
20 min hands onPasta Salad
A cold pasta salad built around the one thing gluten free pasta does badly, which is sitting in a container until noon.
15 min hands onLemon Quinoa Salad
Tabbouleh made with quinoa instead of bulgur wheat, and packed so the grain does not compress into paste by noon.
35 min hands onPotato & Egg Omelette
A thick potato and egg omelet that is supposed to be eaten cold, which makes it the rare hot dish that needs no thermos.
15 min hands onEgg Muffins
Bake a dozen on Sunday and pack two a day through Thursday, with no reheating and no fork.
20 min hands onCobb Salad Jar
The order things go into the jar, so the greens are still crisp at lunch.
10 min hands onSandwich
How to handle gluten free bread so the sandwich does not crumble or go soggy.
25 min hands onRice Balls
Shaping seasoned rice by hand, and why these are a same day lunch.
15 min hands onChicken Salad
A three day chicken salad, and how much of a lunch week can be cooked on Sunday.