[Project Lunch] Tuna Pasta Salad

The beauty of pasta salads is that they can be made ahead of time and pulled out later to be enjoyed, which makes it the ideal dish to bring into work. Since I had a bunch of leftover ingredients waiting in my fridge to be used, the timing was perfect to make one of these for Project Lunch. The ingredients are relatively inter-changeable, but I always like adding celery, since it gives the pasta salad another texture dimension: crunch.



Tuna Pasta Salad
* 1 lb pasta shells, medium
* 2 cans (5 oz) solid albacore tuna, drained & flaked
* 4 oz black olives, sliced
* 1 1/2 onions, medium, cubed
* 8 oz grape tomatoes, halved
* 3 ribs (1 cup) celery, cubed
* 3/4 cup mayonnaise
* chives, chopped
* kosher salt + pepper
* oregano
* olive oil

01. Bring large, heavy-bottom pan of water to a boil.
02. Add pasta and return to a boil; cook for 8-10 minutes until al dente.
03. In a separate bowl, combine mayonnaise and flaked tuna, until properly coated. Add olive oil as necessary to thin the mayonnaise down.
04. Add celery, onions and olives to tuna mixture. Add mayonnaise and olive oil as needed.
05. Add s+p, oregano to taste.
06. Add pasta into the mixture and toss until all ingredients are evenly incorporated.
07. Add chopped chives and cherry tomatoes; toss ingredients again.

Price Check
$ 0.89, Pasta (@ 0.89 for 1 lb)
$ 1.30, Albacore Solid Tuna (@ 0.65 for 5 oz)
$ 1.00, Onions
$ 0.30, Celery (@ 2.27 for 32 oz)
$ 0.55, Black Olives (@ 1.10 for 6 oz)
$ 1.25, Cherry Tomatoes (@ 4.98 for 32 oz)
$ 0.50, Mayonaise
$ 1.33, Chives (@ 1.99 for 10 oz)

Total: $ 7.12

Tips & Tricks:
* If the pasta salad is dry, just add a 1 tbsp water to revive the salad.
* Any pasta shapes (e.g., spirals, penne) will substitute well for this salad.
* Left-over rotisserie chicken is a good substitute for tuna.
* Half the cherry tomatoes & pre-chop the chives, but pack them separately. Add to the pasta salad right before serving.

Verdict & Lesson's Learned:

:) Both boys liked it and it makes it a perfect dish to tag along to work.

:( One boy could pass on the celery, since he isn't a fan of celery-tasting things. Maybe carrots could be a celery substitute and still add the crunchy dimension.

:) I like how fast this dish is to make and how portable this lunch project was.

[Project Lunch] Smoked Salmon & Roasted Pepper Wrap with Tomato Salad

I had some brilliant inspiration from the pesto and mayo I saw sitting near each other in my fridge. I wanted to make a wrap with pesto mayo, and before you know it I dug out all the ingredients to make a great Smoked Salmon & Roasted Red Pepper Wrap. It's a fast and yummy, since the pesto mayo balances the smokey but sweet red peppers. In addition, the red peppers adds a nice complimentary sweet flavor to the salty, smoked salmon. To round of the lunch (and make the boys eat more veggies) I added a Tomato, Onion & Feta salad.



Smoked Salmon & Roasted Pepper Wrap

* 1 1/2 tbsp pesto
* 1 1/2 tbsp mayo
* 3 spinach & garlic wraps
* 9 oz smoked salmon
* 8 oz roasted red & yellow peppers, drained & pat-dried
* onions
* spring mix
* fresh ground pepper

01. Mix mayo & pesto; add freshly ground pepper to taste.
02. Spread mayo pesto on wrap.
03. Layer smoked salmon, onions, roasted peppers & spring mix.
04. Tightly roll & fold wrap; fasten with toothpicks.



Tomato & Feta Salad

* 1/2 lb campari tomatoes, quartered
* 1 sweet onion, sliced
* 3 oz feta cheese
* olive oil
* salt & pepper

01. Mix tomatoes, feta cheese, onions.
02. Add drizzle of olive oil, to lightly coat.
03. Add salt & pepper to taste.

Price Check
$ 1.35, Spinach Wrap (@ 2.69 for 6 wraps)
$ 8.03, Smoked Salmon (@ 14.27 for 1 lb)
$ 2.79, Roasted Peppers
$ 0.25, Mayo
$ 0.50, Pesto (@ 3.89 for 10 oz)
$ 0.96, Spring Mix (@ 3.87 for 1 lb)
$ 1.06, Tomatoes (@ 4.24 for 2 lbs)
$ 1.00, Onions
$ 0.74, Feta Cheese (@ 5.96 for 24 oz)

Total: $ 16.68

Verdict & Lesson's Learned:
:) Both boys said it was ok. They enjoyed the flavor experience.

:| Both boys sheepishly noticed that it wasn't really cooking -- more like throw together ;)

:( The feta cheese already is seasoned with salt, so pre-mixing the tomato and feta resulted in a lot of tomato juice extracted. Best to bring in separate containers.

:( Similarly, the spring mix wilted over time when I pre-wrapped the sandwiches prior to work. The lettuce lost its crunch and took away from my fresh wrap experience.

:( A bust on my budgeting, but there is probably ways to trim the ingredients justify the cost of the more luxurious, but oh so tasty ingredients.

If I had it my way, I would not try to make this as a packed lunch again. I have to find a way to tweak how this can be brought in, or save it was a luncheon item at my house. The wraps would have tasted exponentially better if rolled on the spot and eaten immediately. Similarly with the salad, it was not a good idea to pre-toss the tomato feta salad without dressing, because the feta cheese had enough salt to make it a very watery experience -- making the olive oil dressing almost unnecessary.

[Project Lunch] Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Last week's "Project Lunch" kicked off and I am happy to report that I fed all three of us to contentment--and all under $10. Since I did not have much time to make something, I decided to pick up pancetta on the way home to make my favorite, quick dish: Spaghetti alla Carbonara.



Spaghetti alla Carbonara is like breakfast in disguise: eggs, "ham", cheese all served with a carb. Who would not want to eat this for lunch? The only thing I regret about this dish is the lack of "veggie of the day." However, the boys certainly didn't mind ;)

Spaghetti alla Carbonara
adapted from "Pasta: 40 Wonderful Classic Pasta Recipes"

* 1 lb spaghetti
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 8 oz pancetta, medium-thick slices
* 4 eggs
* 5 tbsp light cream
* 4 tbsp freshly, grated pecorino romano
* salt + pepper

01. Bring large, heavy-bottom pan of water to a boil.
02. Add pasta and return to a boil; cook for 8-10 minutes until al dente.
03. Chop the pancetta into squares.
04. Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottom skillet.
05. Add chopped pancetta; cook over medium heat, stirring frequently for about 8-10min. Do not let pancetta crisp.
06. Beat eggs with cream in a separate bowl.
07. Season egg mixture with s+p.
08. Drain the pasta; immediately return the pasta to the pan.
09. Tip the pancetta and oil from the skillet into the pan.
10. Add egg mixture to the pan, along with 2 tbsp of pecorino romano to the pan.
11. Mix well & serve immediately.
12. Finish off by sprinkling parmesan and pepper onto each serving.

Tips & Tricks:
* Salt the pasta water so that it "tastes like the sea." This is the only opportunity to flavor the pasta.
* Drop the pasta and the pancetta into their respective pan or skillet at the same time. Since they have the same cooking time, they will be done at the same time, allowing the pancetta to be mixed in while the pasta is still hot.
* Make sure that the heat is off when adding the egg mixture to the pasta. Otherwise, the eggs will start hardening together, resulting in some resemblance of soggy scramble eggs. The goal in Carbonara is a nice smooth & rich texture, but some coagulation in the eggs is acceptable (due to the heat from the spaghetti).
* When bringing this to work, only make the pasta and pancetta ahead of time and mix them well together. Incidentally, the pancetta and oil keeps the pasta from sticking, which works out well. Bring the egg mixture and the cheese in separate containers. Re-heat the pasta in the microwave by adding 1 tbsp water and keeping the bowl covered with plastic wrap, until steaming hot. Quickly, pour the egg mixture and stir well, until all of the pasta is coated. Serve immediately.

Price Check:
$ 1.00, Pasta (@ 1.00 for 1 lb)
$ 5.09, Pancetta (@ 9.99 for 1 lb)
$ 0.39, Light Cream (@ 2.50 for 16 oz)
$ 0.64, Eggs (@ 2.89 for 18 pcs)
$ 1.50, Pecorino Romano (@ 11.99 for 1 lb)

Total: $ 8.62

Verdict & Lesson's Learned:
:) Both boys said it was a keeper on the "Project Lunch" menu.

:| One boy mentioned that the portion size was ok; the other said he could eat an additional bowl. We each had 1.5 bowls or so, and I felt quite satiated after that. Since there are 2 votes for "just right" and one goal is to be conscientious about portion sizes, I'm sticking with 1 lb. of pasta.

:( Nutmeg came up as a missing spice in a dish. But as much as I value their feedback, I'm throwing this suggestion out. When I'm on a mission to make Carbonara, then the Carbonara-purist in me screams: "No nutmeg!" For me, Carbonara is synonymous to simplicity. The simplicity in making this marvelous rustic, yet decadent-tasting, filling meal with just five ingredients. I'm also very adamant about the pasta, since this is a spaghetti dish -- no other pasta will suffice for me, since the twirling and slurping of egg with cream is just a must! But really any pasta that picks up sauce well (e.g., penne, bucatini) will do. The one part that I would love to change is the pancetta. The original recipes call for guanciale. But where can I find this piece of delicious meat?! If you know, do tell! I promise to keep your secret...

On a disclaimer note, there are many tasty variations, and I am not against to tasting them. In fact, our local Italian place makes their Carbonara version with sauteed onions and bucatini, leaving the happy and delirious diner in a trance-like food coma. On another plus note, they have figured out how to sneak in "veggie of the day" (if you consider onion a veggie)...something for me to go ponder ;)

So, are you a Carbonara purist, too? Or do you have a delicious version that you stand by? I'd love to hear about it! In the meantime, I hope that you'll have fun trying this really quick recipe.

[Project Lunch] Are you up for the Challenge?

I have hinted in my previous post that I am starting a lunch project. That's not entirely true, since I should really be saying "we are starting a Project Lunch." Two of my friends from work and I were having lunch as usual when we had a few revelations:

[Revelation #1]: The financial crisis. Funny enough, all the lunch places near work that we generally frequent did not "drop" their prices or offer any "recession-proof" lunches like some other chains have (e.g., TGIF).

[Revelation #2]: We easily spent $7-13 per person. That's an average of $10/person, or $30 for three. One work week makes $150. One month? A whopping 600$ on just lunch during work weeks.

[Revelation #3]: It's always the same stuff, isn't it? We cycle between pizza, sushi, chinese, burgers, and italian. Sometimes we throw in sandwiches or an Indian buffet to "mix it up." But generally, we each order the "same thing" on the menu too. Boring!

[Revelation #4]: Unhealthy portion sizes! Since portion sizes in the US have grown into monstrous servings, we know that any reasonable person needs only half of what comes on that plate. And besides, when it comes to "food coma vs greedy foodie"? Food coma always wins out and really inhibits that productivity in the office!

[Revelation #5]: I can make that...for less! I was sitting in a restaurant, eating a very delicious smoked salmon wrap, but the components were easy enough to reproduce for much less, so why not make it?

So, here is the weekly "Project Lunch" challenge:
Cook 3x a week for three people.
Each meal should be under $10.

It boils down to making lunch once a week -- ain't so bad, right? Are you up for the challenge?