The Working Lunch #11
Your weekly reminder to show your lunch break some love. This week: pea & mint soup; avocado & sun-dried tomato sandwiches; oven-baked tortilla; and goat’s cheese toast.
Hi again
Mondays can be a bit hectic, can’t they?
What are you having for lunch today?
It’s not just about the food though, what else can you do, just for you.
Read a book. Go for a walk. Practise yoga. Meditate. Watch TV. Nap. Listen to a podcast. Call your mum/dad/friend. Go for a run. Walk your dog. Spend time outside. Just sit.
I think I’m just going to sit in the garden for a little bit. It’s just about warm enough.
Happy Monday.
Make ahead…
Pea & mint soup
Now that everything’s feeling that little bit more springy, I’m not quite ready to give up on soups, but I am happy to welcome some brighter fresher flavours.
This soup isn’t strictly pea & mint. I’ve snuck in some other bits— a bit of broccoli and a handful of wilting salad to use them up.
To make, cook finely diced potato in a little oil, add broccoli stalks, spinach, rocket & watercress, peas and veg stock.
Cook until the potato is tender. Add mint leaves, season, and blend.
If you cut the potatoes really small, this cooks so quickly.
I’ve served it with garlic bread made from squashed roasted garlic cloves (saved from the Sunday roast potatoes), a drizzle of rapeseed oil and a scattering of flaky salt onto day-old baguette toasted under the grill.
Just a sandwich…
Avocado & sun-dried tomato
A quick no-cook sandwich filling that feels a bit of a treat — it’s the tomatoes that are the star! Good sturdy bread is a must to give it some substance.
To make, toast a couple of slices of good bread (I’ve used seeded sourdough for crunch).
Drizzle over a little of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes (instead of butter), then layered up mashed avocado seasoned with some cracked pepper and sea salt, sun-dried tomatoes and baby leaf salad.
Simple swaps: I’m a big fan of sun-dried tomatoes, but fresh ones would work well too.
Something on toast…
Goat’s cheese toast with walnuts & honey
Give your usual cheese on toast routine a serious upgrade with this goat’s cheese and walnut toast. So simple, so good.
Take two slices of seeded sourdough bread.
Top it with a generous spread of creamy soft goat’s cheese.
Scatter over some smashed up walnuts, a few fresh thyme leaves and a drizzle of honey.
Pop it under the grill to toast the nuts.
Goat’s cheese and walnuts are a match made in heaven. This on toast idea was adapted from a recipe on Epicurious.
Cook while you work…
Oven-baked tortilla
It’s fair to say that at lunchtime we don’t really have time to stand at the hob cooking off potato slices in olive oil and slowly sautéing the onions for hours. So, this oven-baked alternative pays homage to a true tortilla (Spanish omelette) but without all the effort. (It’s really not the same; you’ll need to lower your expectations.)
Start with a warm oven and a pan on the hob. Choose a pan that will happily move from hob, to oven, to table.
Sauté some sliced onions in a little oil on the hob. I’ve used spring onions on this occasion.
While they’re cooking, drain and slice a tin of potatoes and whisk together your eggs. I’ve used 8 eggs — to feed two with some leftover to save for mañana.
Add the potatoes and eggs to the pan. Season well and whack into the oven at around 185c for 20mins—until the egg is cooked through.
Bonus points for some crusty bread and ketchup to make a wedge of the omelette into a sandwich.
Why only four meals?
I know, most people work five days. I do too. But it’s nice to wing it one day a week. Raid the fridge, eat cereal (shhh, I won’t tell)…
See you next week, lunch buddies.
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