Do you work from home like we do? Are you tired of eating boring Leftovers For Lunch? Eat our 5 Minute Taco Salad and you’ll never complain again! This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.#HeatAndEat #CollectiveBias
Every Thursday, we eat tacos. Yes, every single Thursday. My kids are very ritualistic when it comes to food. They know what they like and they like to know exactly when they get to eat it.
This used to make me a little bit bonkers because when it was just my husband and I, our menu changed weekly. We would spend our weekends flipping through food magazines deciding what fun, new recipe we would try in the upcoming week. I dream about some of those recipes – back when it was just me and him…and the cats. Chicken Ruben Sandwiches. Roast Beef Tenderloin with Red Wine Reduction. Pepper Jelly Glazed Chicken.
O.M.G. I need to make some of these recipes right now!
Anyways, dinner with the kids is a family ritual in our home and if it means that we have to eat the same things every night, then so be it. One day, they’ll go away to college and it’ll just be me and him, eating whatever we want again, being sad that the kids aren’t there with us. Life is funny, isn’t it?!
But for now, we have Muffin Mondays, Taco Thursdays, Pizza Fridays, and Saucy Sundays. Tuesdays and Thursdays haven’t been named yet, but they usually involve Meatloaf Muffins, Chicken Tetrazzini, Chicken Avocado Wraps or something equally familiar.
Since I work from home, I’m always the one who makes the leftovers disappear. But when you make the same meals each week, you need to get creative with what you’re eating for lunch or else you’ll end up as big as a house. This means making lots of creative salads so that I don’t overdo it.
One of my favorite leftovers for lunch is my super fast Taco Salad. We add black beans, sweet corn and fresh salsa to our taco meat each week, so this lunch is chock full of lean protein and tons of veggies, especially when piled atop a nice bed of leafy greens.
I recently found these new Reynolds™ heat & eat containers at Target, and I have to say, I adore them. They store my leftover taco meat neatly and help me re-heat my food safely in the microwave. I also feel good knowing that they are heat and leak resistant and can go easily from freezer to fridge to microwave. This means that I can be a nice Wife and pack leftovers for lunch for my husband too! Did I mention that these containers come with a BPA-free, recyclable plastic lid that snaps shut to help prevent messy leaks? This is super important when your office is upstairs and your kitchen is downstairs. (Yes, I eat in my office!) Plus, the containers and lids are recyclable too! Yay!
But on to the salad…because it’s time for lunch and I’m hungry!
LEFTOVERS FOR LUNCH: 5 MINUTE TACO SALAD
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup of leftover taco meat
- 1/4-1/2 cup leftover yellow rice
- 1 cup shredded romaine lettuce
- 1/4-1/2 cup salsa
- 1 tablespoon greek yogurt
- Tri-color tortilla strips, for garnish
Directions:
Step 1: Take your Reynolds™ heat & eat container with the taco meat and rice and heat in the microwave until hot; approximately 2-3 minutes.
Step 2: While the taco meat is heating up, wash and dry fresh lettuce. (Tip: I prefer Romaine Lettuce for taco salads as this variety of lettuce holds up well to heated taco meat.) Tear or chop lettuce up into bite-sized pieces (why use a knife to eat if you don’t have to, right?).
Step 3: Remove taco meat from microwave. Open container and allow to cool for a few seconds. Add lettuce and toss. Garnish with salsa, greek yogurt and tortilla strips.
Check out Reynolds™ recipes for more lunch leftover ideas! And let us know in the comments below — what do you do with your leftovers for lunch?
Happy Eating,
Denine
