Let's Do Lunch

Caroline Connell, editor-in-chief

“I sometimes boil up a quick soup at 7 a.m. with chicken broth from a box, broad egg noodles and a handful or two of broccoli, carrots or frozen corn, then I throw it in the Thermos.

“Another combo I rely on is leftover rice along with chopped chicken or cooked veg and a bit of soy sauce. Mini-cucumbers, widely available now, are a big favourite too.”

Jo-Anne Martin Grier, senior contributing art director

“I just experimented with lunch kebabs, alternating bagel pieces, cheese cubes and sliced roast turkey. The wooden skewers came back empty! Yay!

“My daughter, Sydney, also loves those Chinese dumplings you can find in the supermarket freezer section, so I put some in her Thermos with a side of soy sauce.”

Jacqueline Kovacs, deputy editor

“My sandwich-phobic boy is a lover of leftover soft tortillas filled with spiced meat, then heated, rolled up in tinfoil and stored in a Thermos. He always brings his favourite raw vegetable — broccoli — and giant whole wheat fish crackers to round things out.

“Hayley favours tortilla chips with containers of salsa, shredded cheese and sour cream, along with crackers, cookies and grapes.”

Sandra E. Martin, senior editor

“Bronwyn is a budding chef who likes to put her own lunch together in different creative ways while she’s eating it. So I pack a selection of three or four different foods that can be mixed and matched: Today it was a few slices each of deli ham and salami, some cheese, red pepper slices and a whole wheat bun. She’ll tear off some bits of the bun to make tiny cheese sandwiches, then move on to a meat-and-red-pepper roll-up, and so on.”

Laura Bickle, managing editor

“I find doubling up on regular cooking and baking a great way to avoid the morning lunchbox scramble: I individually wrap and freeze brownies and cookies and stash away some popcorn before I serve it at movie night. A couple of wedges of whole-wheat cheese quesadillas from dinner are also popular. And, since Paige loves peas, I have been known to send frozen ones in a container ‹ they are just the way she likes them when it’s time to eat.”