vegetarian packed lunch ideas please

[shonafp]

i host foreign students in the summer and for very short periods in the autumn / spring.

on sunday i have 2 boys arriving, one is a vegetarian 😞

it's only for 5 nights so i can just about sort out 5 dinners but i also provide a packed lunch every day.

i cannot, no i really cannot do cheese and tomato sandwiches every day !

can anyone suggest something easy and cheap, preferably a sandwich filling as i don't plan to spend long doing their pack lunches so will not be making home made sausage rolls etc. i have checked and he is a proper vegetarian i.e. he does not eat fish 😞

and...

i have a tin of green lentils in the cupboard - what can i do with them for his dinner one night ?

thank you

[stroppy*cow]

Supermarket should have a good selection of lunch box bits - cheese & onion quiche, cheese and onion pasty, vege sausage rolls, veggie scotch eggs etc.

If you really want to stick to sarnies you can usually find sliced meat substitute made from quorn, and there are usually things like vegetarian egg mayo sandwhich fillers.

The salad section should have things like cous-cous salad with veg, pasta salads etc.

[stroppy*cow]

As for the lentils - use them instead of meat in a bolognese sauce, or instead of meat in a curry sauce or try this:

fry an onion

stick a teaspoon of cumin and half of turmeric in

chop up some fresh tomatoes and cook them for a minute or two ( or you can use chopped tinned tomatoes if you drain them really well)

chuck in your drained lentils

serve on a naan bread

[kaeptm]

Vegi sandwich fillings are difficult! I'm a vegi and have a sandwich for lunch but tend to take the ingredients and make it fresh at lunchtime as some fillings make soggy sandwiches.

The obvious filling is cheese and something, but the cheese can be varied. Cheddar and pesto is tasty, a soft cheese like philly and celery, brie and grape, vegi sausages, humous and cheese. Some cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, pepper sticks etc.

Not all vegi's like soya meat. Why don't you ask the student what he would like for his packed lunch. Other things that could be eaten cold: vegi rice, pasta salad.

Sorry can't help with the lentils. 

[shonafp]

love the idea of lentils in the spag bol !

i take on board the meat substitute for dinner and pack lunches and that not everyone likes them, think i'll go for the easy option of different cheeses - some supermarkets do mix an match mini cheeses might be cheaper than buying a piece of brie or whatever and not using it again.

unfortunately my students don't get to choose any of their food, unless they specifically say they don't eat such and such, but at least every day is different 🙂

[ed_blackadder_1]

One if my personal favourites is goats cheese, rocket and red onion chutney. Yum yum.

[lhasa.two]

A Panini with a smearing of green or red pesto mozzarella cheese and tomato is good!

[ed_blackadder_1]

Ooooh I like the sound of that.

[funnyshapedcat]

Just a question - is he a vegan?

If so, you have a more difficult task ahead.

However, you can buy Quorn 'Sausage rolls' which aren't too bad. Quorn slices which are copies of ham, beef and chicken for sandwiches.

Lentils you can cook with veggie sausages in a kind of stew with some sauce or make a lentil bake with herbs and breadcrumbs and if he eats them, mixed with an egg and some grated cheese.

Pasta with various assorted veggies, olive oil, hot as a dinner or cold for a lunch. You can, if necessary, get vegetarian cheese.

(Have been cooking veggie for a long long time)

[m25jet]

I've thought of some sarnie fillings for veggies - see if any of these will do:

1.  Cheese & Onion

2.  Egg Mayonnaise

3.  Cheese, Tomato, Lettuce & Mayonnaise

and if the veggie doesn't mind eating fish products then you could also consider:

4.  Prawn & Rocket

5.  Tuna & Sweetcorn

6.  Salmon & Cucumber

[shonafp]

luckily he is not a vegan, i would have said no to hosting him if he was - too much hard work, not enough reward 🙂

no, he does not eat fish, otherwise i could have done ' fishy ' sandwiches and not just vegie ones.

[duck_a_lorange]

If the lentils are green lentils you can make a salad with them (rinse first). Just add chopped tomatoes, chopped onions or spring onions, maybe a chopped pepper and a bit of salad dressing (not mayo).  You can mix it with cold rice as well.

[funnyshapedcat]

Don't forget peanut butter, if he likes it, good source of protein. I make sandwiches with peanut butter, cream cheese and celery, or peanut butter, cream cheese and banana which is a bit gloopy but very filling.

Also (one of my favourites) grated carrot and humous in pitta bread with a chopped salad on the side. Falafel which can also be eaten in pitta with chopped salad and humous.

Cheese and beetroot. 

Veggie sandwiches are really nice and cooking a veggie main course can be easier than cooking meat.