Lunch-box main dishes ...
Packing a really good lunch-box meal—one that is high in important food values and in appetite appeal—takes more careful planning than many a meal that goes on the family table. For lunch-box foods are necessarily limited to those that can be held for several hours without spoiling or losing their freshness. But there are foods that pack well, and ways to vary them, so packed lunches need not be monotonous.
Sandwiches tend to be the “backbone” of the lunch-box meal. And when the fillings are high in protein foods—meats, eggs, cheese, fish, peanut butter, baked beans—they really are main dishes. To increase the protein value of these sandwiches, be generous with the filling. One-fourth cup of filling, spread clear to the edge of the bread, or 2 slices of meat or cheese, is not too much. Salmon or egg salad on a roll is a better main dish and more appetizing if part of the roll is scooped out to make room for more filling. Use centers as bread crumbs.
Provide variety in sandwiches by using different kinds of bread. For instance, “cheese on rye” is a favorite, but cheese on raisin bread or Boston brown bread may be a welcome change.
Vary the fillings—spread salad dressing or prepared mustard, topped with sliced cucumber or a lettuce leaf, over the meat or cheese; spread a thin layer of jelly over the peanut butter. Try different kinds of cheese. Or make a cheese spread: Put cheese through the food chopper and add jam or mashed cooked fruit, or salad dressing with chopped onion or sweet pickle.
For food value and variety, pack a salad of raw fruits or vegetables with the sandwich lunch. If the sandwiches are a little low in protein, include cottage cheese in the salad. Even with dressing and greens, salad travels well in a covered container of paper, glass, or plastic.
Hot soups, stews, or chowders—made with meats, fish, or beans—are good winter additions to the sandwich lunch. An individual-size insulated bottle or wide-mouth container for them may be a good investment, if these hot dishes cannot be bought at school or at work.
Moist, soft sandwich filling or salad mixtures made with finely chopped meat, eggs, or fish with salad dressing spoil quickly when temperatures are high. Refrigerate all such mixtures immediately after buying or making them and use them within 2 days. Lunches containing these mixtures are best refrigerated if they have to stand more than 3 or 4 hours before they are eaten.