Water Boils: Demystifying Brown Bagging

This blog documents my quest for brown bagging every day. My goal is to pack a lunch and a couple of snacks for under four dollars. However this is no ordinary lunch with a lone sandwich or a microwave dinner. I will have a real meal, albeit sometimes made using frozen convenience items. But I will have local cheese, fruit, chocolate and occasional guilty pleasure; things that most people don’t consider fit for a weekday lunch. But lunch is important, at least for me. More importantly, I want to demonstrate that there is no mystique in eating better. It is not rocket science, nor it is a sole privilege of upper classes. With a reasonable budget and some effort, it is attainable, accessible, and more importantly: rewarding.

My motives in doing this, and the constraints that I impose upon myself are detailed in my first post; but if you prefer a summary, here they are:

1. The total cost of lunch and snack(s), including fruit and/or drinks, cheese, chocolate truffle, etc. will not exceed four dollars. I am trying to keep the average down to 2.5-3; we’ll see.

2. I will predominantly cook from fresh (seasonal, and preferably local), frozen or dried unprocessed food. Convenience food is OK, but only in moderation.

3. All lunch boxes should cost less than four bucks, and should include two servings of fruit and/or vegetable, one serving of protein, one-two servings of (preferably) low glycemic index carbohydrate, and at least one snack (a piece of chocolate, yogurt, nuts, dried fruit, cheese and crackers).

4. No lone sandwich or soup allowed: even if I eat lunches like that (and I do more often than this blog suggests), they won’t be blogworthy. Other than the dead-tired Tuesdays when I come home at 10:00 pm, repetitions from the past day will be frowned upon.

5. Other than a few exceptions -say tamales that get rubbery when cold- I will prepare foods that could be enjoyed at room temperature, or could be carried with a thermos.

NEW 6. I pledge that, within 6 months of the launch of this blog, I will minimize the use of frozen convenience items to only once every seven meals or less.