It’s nice not to worry about what’s for lunch! Many times, I skip lunch simply because I am too lazy to make it. When you open the refrigerator and stare into the abyss for 10 minutes trying to find some inspiration for something to eat is not the answer for the lunchtime woes. You would think finding something for lunch with all that food staring back at you would be easy, but sometimes it is not. All those ingredients in there are great on their own, but they don’t make something on their own. Sometimes the thought of eating leftovers is, well……leftovers; they are not appealing to whatever mood you are in.
On days like this, it seems like a no-brainer to have something waiting in the freezer that you can grab, heat and eat without worrying about how lunch is going to happen. One of the easiest items to keep on hand in the freezer for lunch is sandwiches. These aren’t just your two-slices-of-bread-with-lunch-meat-and-cheese kind of sandwiches. These are special!
- Start with some bread. We use Keto bread, but you could use any kind of bread that floats your boat: sourdough, seeded, plain old white, whole wheat, flatbread, Naan bread, craft bread, or homemade bread. You get the picture.
- Then add some protein. On this day, I had some leftover roast in the freezer and I had a bag of premade grilled chicken. You could use any kind of protein on your sandwich: shredded rotisserie chicken, ham, pork tenderloin, smoked salmon, chicken breast, turkey, pastrami, and salami. Who says you have to use only one kind of protein? If you are into a Dagwood sandwich, pile it high with whatever you have.
3. Sauce me. My husband is a mayo man. My son and I like mayo and some type of mustard. There are so many types of fancy mustard on the market nowadays. Right now, whole grain mustard makes my heart sing for a sandwich. I think the spread used on a sandwich is what makes it tasty, so dollop on the Dijon, squirt the sriracha mayo, and slather on the sweet pepper relish. On this day, I threw together a cilantro horseradish mayo that added a little extra bite to my sandwich.
4. How about some cheese? I always keep cheese slices on hand. I had Provolone, Pepper Jack and Cheddar slices to divide across my sandwiches, but you could use Swiss, Fontina, Smoked White Cheddar, Gouda, dairy-free cheese or whatever cheese rocks your sandwichy world.
5. Add some embellisments. This sandwich will go in the oven or microwave. It’s a hot sandwich, so why not add something savory like caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, fresh spinach, grilled vegetables, tomatoes, roasted eggplant, artichoke hearts, and plain old pickles. Some things that you should not put on your hot sandwich are lettuce, cucumber, and bean sprouts. Trust me on that. These vegetables are better served cold. You could add them after your sandwich is heated, though.
6. Now that you have decided on your ingredients, set them all out to make them in an assembly line fashion. Mix up the ingredients so that you do not make the same kind of sandwich twice. If you bring a sandwich for lunch every day to work, give yourself the gift of variety. It will make you look forward to lunch!
7, Wrap your sandwiches in aluminum foil and write the contents of the sandwich on the outside of the aluminum foil with a Sharpie marker. Place all the sandwiches in a food storage container, or better yet, stack them all into the empty plastic bread bag.. A resealable plastic freezer bag also works.
8. When ready to eat your sandwich, place the wrapped sandwich in the oven to heat. You can set the oven on a low temperature to keep it warm until ready to eat, or you can heat it at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, depending on if the sandwich was frozen when placed in the oven. If you only have a microwave to heat your sandwich, remove the aluminum foil and wrap in a slightly damp paper towel before placing it in the microwave. Set the microwave on the defrost setting for a minute or two if it is frozen; then, heat for 30+ second intervals until heated through, turning the sandwich at each interval.
Making savory and delicious sandwiches for lunch does not take very long and it saves you from releasing all the cold air in your refrigerator out into your kitchen. Turn your lunch from a sad and sorry sandwich into something super exciting and scrumptious!
You can even make a veggie one! This looks amazing!!
Absolutely, you can! I love the Veggie Sandwich from Subway. Some people like them hot, but I like my Veggie Subway cold and crunchy! You could also create breakfast sandwich like this!