Lunchbox Goals: Five Delicious Packed Lunches You Can Make At Home

Brought to you by Centra These quick and easy treats are just the ticket to get you falling back in love with your lunchbox.  Did you know that the average Irish daily consumption of fruit and veg is only  3.2 of the recommended 5 servings? Give that number a boost this week by following these recipes. Check them out below. Monday: Super-Healthy Quinoa Salad This is one of our go-to Spring salads. Colourful, filling and packed full of goodness, it's the perfect lunchbox treat. Check it out below. You'll need:

• 2 grated carrots
• 1 diced cucumber
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 5 sliced scallions
• 3 stalks vine tomatoes
• 1 handful roughly chopped parsley
• 170g uncooked quinoa
• 300ml water

Method:

• Bring the water to the boil in a saucepan. Add the quinoa with a pinch of salt. Turn down the heat to a low simmer (about ‘2’ on most hobs).
• Put on the lid and cook for 15 minutes. It should soak up all of the water. Allow the quinoa to cool down and then fluff it with a fork.
• Using a large bowl(big enough to hold all of the quinoa and the vegetables) mix the vegetables with the lemon juice and parsley and add a little pepper.
• When the quinoa is at room temperature, stir it into the vegetables. This is ready to eat but If you can leave it for a while before eating, the flavours will develop and it will taste even nicer!

Tuesday: Steamed Kale and Sweet Potato A super meal to get you over the midweek slump. You'll feel great after this nutritious snack You'll need: 

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 sweet potatoes
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 6 cups of chopped kale

How to: 

• Heat olive oil over medium heat.
• Add diced sweet potatoes. Cook for 10 minutes or until tender.
• Add garlic
• Add kale, stir to combine with sweet potatoes. Cook 2-4 minutes.

Wednesday: Colcannon Potato Cakes You'll need:

• 30 g butter
• 50 g finely shredded or chopped kale
• 1 medium egg
• 100g plain flour
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• 50g grated red cheese
• 500 g mashed potato
• 1 pinch salt and pepper

How to: 

• Remove and hard stalks from the kale.
• Bring a pot of water to the boil, add the kale and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes until tender.
• Drain it and then blot it with some kitchen paper to get rid of as much water as you can.
• In a large bowl, mix together the kale, mashed potato, egg, flour, garlic and grated cheese.
• Add some salt and pepper.
• Heat your frying pan to a medium-to high heat and add the butter.
• Put some flour on a plate and start to make little cakes from the potato mixture.
• Dip each cake in some flour and pop it on the pan.
• Fry on each side until golden brown and then remove them to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
• Serve with a sour cream or salsa dip. These are best served warm but still work at room temperature.

Thursday: Salmon and Spinach Fritatta This is a perfect meal for getting more veggies into your diet. Packed with iron-rich spinach and protein from the eggs and salmon, this is a  great lunch option. Serves 4 You'll need:

• 8 Eggs, beaten
• Salmon darnes
• 300g spinach
• 1 medium onion
• 16 cherry tomatos, halved
• salt and pepper
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Method:

• Warm oil over medium heat in a frying pan with an oven safe handle. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add spinach and salmon; season with salt and pepper. Sauté until heated through. Add cherry tomatoes and cook for a further minute.

• Spread your ingredients in an even layer around the pan and pour over your eggs, moving around very gently to cook through. pre-heat your grill. Reduce heat slightly and cook for 5-7 minutes, until bottom is set but frittata is still wet on top.

• Place the whole thing under your grill and take it out when its lovely and golden on top, usually about 1 or two minutes.

• Slide the whole frittata out of the pan onto a board and cut into slices. Serve with a beautiful green salad for a healthy, delicious meal!

Friday: Sweet Potato Sliders You'll need:

• 1 large sweet potato
• 100g turkey slices or cooked turkey breast
• 2 cups spinach
• BBQ sauce
• Smoked paprika
• Garlic salt
• 1 - 2 large tomatoes
• 2 -3 tbsp cottage cheese
• 2 wooden skewers

How to:

• Wash your sweet potatoes and cut the ends off. Leave the skin on. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius / Gas mark 6.
• Slice your potato in 4 or 6 round slices. Then layer slices of tomato, spinach, turkey, BBQ sauce and cheese. Push 2 wooden skewers into them and sprinkle with garlic sauce and paprika.

This article is brought to you by Centra. For lots more healthy snack ideas visit Centra.ie