Two-minute Take-it-to-work Salad

I usually like to take my lunch to work. It saves money, and makes me avoid eating pizza or something that comes from a truck (a delicious delicious truck) every day. But, sometimes you are just not on top of it enough to have anything to bring, which usually means I run around the kitchen dumping random food items into little tupperwares and eat lunch feeling like a toddler. 


NO MORE! I have discovered the easiest, fastest, salad on earth.

I don't think this can even legitimately be called a recipe.

Yes, it's in a tupperware, on my desk. Part of being the easiest fastest salad on earth is that no work is involved other than dumping stuff in a container, shaking it up, and carrying it away with you.

The superstar of the dish is something I just noticed at Trader Joes: the frozen Melodious Blend, which has a couple kinds of lentils, green garbanzo beans, and some tomatoes.

 

Basically, here is what I did. Get a pencil, because it's pretty complicated.
Dump an amount of Melodious Blend that is slightly less than you think you'll want to eat into the tupperware (this is because this stuff will end up being way more filling than you predicted as you poured out frozen beans in the cold morning light). Cut up some bell pepper (or whatever you've got). Dump that on top. Squeeze half a lemon over the whole thing (you could also use vinegar, you just need some acid). Drizzle a little olive oil over the whole thing. Sprinkle some spices straight on there. I was going for easy, which means no thinking, so I used Mediterranean blend, salt, and pepper. Put the lid on it and give it a shake.

It's frozen, but since all the beans are little and separate, don't even worry. Just take it with you, and by lunch time it is a perfect chilled salad temp. If this thing isn't driving to work, and waiting for you to go to the gym, and then waiting for you to toil all morning before you eat it, you could probably microwave it and get a nice warm lentil salad, or do it ahead and leave it in the fridge. But really, the beauty here is in having a healthy option that involves no planning whatsoever.

The next day (today!) I made another version:

This one had a little bit of kale in there, and used creole seasoning (again, a mix, for pure easiness). Both were great! You can see my plating here is just as elegant as it was yesterday.

Anyhow, if you're looking for a backup plan that you can keep in the freezer that will make you feel all nourished and healthy and give the illusion of being totally on top of this whole lunch thing, this is for you!