Enough with turkey wraps, soup shops, and sexy salad joints. There has to be a quick way to make something better at home and bring it in to work, rather than lining up at the over-crowded and over-priced lunch spots that fill midtown Manhattan.
In last week's New York Times Food section, Julia Moskin shared a tip: Progresso Lentil Soup makes a good base for a lunch. "Spike it with cumin, hot sauce and lemon juice, and stir in leftover rice to bulk it up into lunch," she suggested. While I usually question cooking from cans, I decided a semi-homemade lunch, Sandra Lee style, is better than another meatball sandwich from Subway.
I started with a can of Progresso Lentil Soup, labeled Vegetable Classics 99% Fat Free. The soup was $2.49 at my local Key Food. Fresh Direct also carries the soup in traditional or low fat for $2.39. I took a taste right out of the can and decided I could doctor it up. These lentils tasted almost as good as the far more expensive French vacuum packed lentils from Fairway.
I washed and finely chopped about six leaves of kale, discarding the toughest parts of the stems. I heated olive oil in a pan big enough to hold the kale. When the oil was hot, I added two chopped garlic cloves. Once the garlic was softened, I added the kale to the hot oil. I cooked the kale down for five minutes and poured the canned lentil soup on top. I tasted for seasoning and was glad to add some salt; usually canned soup is so salty. I lowered the heat to medium and let the kale and spinach cook together for five more minutes, watching to make sure the lentils didn't start to break down.
I packed my soup in a plastic take-out container I'd saved. I also brought half a lemon cut into wedges to squeeze into the soup and a hard boiled egg.
The verdict? The lemons added a bright flavor so my soup didn't taste canned at all. Next time I'll bring some left over rice to make it more filling. Soup is not the most travel friendly food out there and the next time I take it to work, it needs to be in something sturdier than a recycled take-out container. From bento boxes to Bed, Bath & Beyond, I'm off to shop for a better way to bring lunch to work.
speaking of bento boxes, have any of you seen this site? check out the archives. this girl is hypnotic:
http://bentotv.com
Totally, Mgt -- BentoTV was what made me think of Bento boxes as a way to take lunch to work. Also http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/
Lemon! I'd try adding that to soup.
Now if I could only remember to bring the lunches I pack!
I used to have this soup all the time - back in like 1991. How do the ingredients measure up in terms of sugar? Might have to go back to this as a staple of living.
Another great thing to add to this soup would be leftover leg of lamb bits. Superior.
Corningware makes a snazzy containter for taking soup with you. It is also ceramic, so safe to microwave. I have totalled a couple of "microwave safe" plastic containers getting soup hot enough.
The handle is also good for carrying around your lab or office.
http://www.amazon.com/CorningWare-French-White-22-Ounce-Mug/dp/B0002KZMCO
The contain is a little heavy.
SMART to pack the lemon and squeeze when you eat it
I used to pack salads for work that way
LOL Paul
in 1991 I was eating the Progresso minestrones . . .
the only canned soup I ever ate in my life
I wonder if boxed butternut squash soup would be up for this kind of treatment too . . .
but the vegan stuff made by Pret A Manger is so good I'll never find out
I eat a can of the 99% fat free lentil soup a week. LOVE it! There are only 4 ingredients (not sure on the order), water, lentils, spinach and spinach. I only add a bit of salt since it's so bland, and serve it along with a toasted bagel that I dip in it.
leave a bowl at work if you can and just transport the soup in a thermos!
I've always found Progresso soups to be high-quality products at very reasonable prices. And a much more desirable alternative to Campbells. Escarole and white bean soup, is the type of dish you think can only be good when it is homemade, yet Progresso's is excellent. It's the type of product you could probably pass off as home cooking as long as you dispose of the cans right away.
Those disposable Glad and Ziploc containers they sell next to the plastic wrap are the greatest thing to hit portable meals in a looooong time. Why wouldn't those work for your soup? I use them to transport all kinds of foods!
i'm a huge progresso lentil fan... my insta meal includes the lentil soup and cooking up a quick pot of couscous... sometimes plain, sometimes that near-east parmesean version. I serve up a bowl of cous cous, lentils and add fresh parsley and often some grated melty cheese, like cheddar. yum. It makes plenty for one person to dine on for dinner, and bring leftovers to work.
Sounds like a great idea. I just mixed a can with a container of chopped tomatoes; next time I'll squeeze in some lemon, too.
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Want to know the secret to Progresso Lentil Soup? Balsamic Vinegar. For some reason, Balsamic vinegar transforms Progresso Lentil from low-budget Cambell's alternative to amazing gourmet soup. Seriously, try it!
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