5 Five Minute Lunch Ideas

I got the idea for this post when I was getting nervous for the upcoming craziness of having a newborn and a toddler at home while trying to breastfeed, blog, take care of my house, be a good wife and mother, etc. I am definitely someone to get nervous for any big life changes coming up so my way of dealing with this is to prepare for these changes as much as possible.

I was thinking about how busy that I remember mealtimes being with a newborn. Breakfasts were eaten in bed while trying to answer emails and were usually Greek yogurt or oatmeal. I don't even remember what I did for lunches. Dinner was often meals from family, dinner at my parent's house or whatever I could throw together.


I have a bunch of freezer meals made which I will talk more about soon but I really wanted to think about having some quick, easy and healthy lunch solutions on hand for when hunger strikes despite being busy. I thought about what I truly enjoy eating because there is no point stocking my house with food I'm not interested in. This is what I came up with:

1. Toasted corn tortillas with black beans, shredded cheese and salsa verde

This is one of my go-to snacks when I am hungry and just want something quick. I don't always include beans and may swap the salsa verde with hot sauce. I would pair it with some sliced veggies.

2. Open faced PB and J sandwiches

I love every single kind of nut butter and love having it on any kind of bread that we have: whole-grain English muffins, whole-wheat bread, brown rice cakes, Flatout wraps, etc. Top with either jam or fresh fruit such as blueberries or banana slices.

3. Chopped Greek salad with chickpeas

Drain and rinse a can of chickpeas. Chop up some cucumber, tomato, green onion, parsley, green pepper, or whatever you have on hand. Top with feta cheese, lemon juice (or vinegar), olive oil and black pepper. This is great made ahead of time and can be enjoyed for a few days.

4. Snack plate

This quick meal option is inspired by my daughter who loves snack-type lunches. I just slice up cheese, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, whole-grain crackers, lunch meat or whatever we have on hand and serve it all together. This is easy to eat with one hand if need be.

5. Quick pizzas

When we need a quick lunch stat, we turn to quick pizzas all the time. I love that they are totally customizable based on what you have on hand. Any kind of bread product would work great. Almost any kind of meat, cheese or vegetable will work. I just load up my bread of choice with marinara sauce (or pesto), sprinkle with cheese and then load with chopped up veggies, meat or whatever I have on hand. I either microwave it if I need it quick or broil it for a few minutes if I have more time. Easy peasy!

I hope that this helped to give you a few easy lunch ideas! It helped me to gather my thoughts of quick and healthy things that I enjoy eating for when baby #2 is born so I don't go too crazy!