30 Day Beach Body Challenge

The time has come to start trying to fit into my dress. I've stepped it up a gear at Boot Camp and joined the 30 Day Beach Body Challenge.

A challenge which guarantees results I can measure...

So, the deal is I go to Boot Camp as much as I can, fit in other exercise around it (e.g. going on runs with other Boot Camp goers) and keep a food journal.

After 2 weeks of writing a food journal i've realised just how much booze I drink and how much all the picking during the day adds up. Anyway, the point of this story is that i've started really considering what I eat at lunch. My aim is to be healthy during the day so I can indulge in the evenings (I know its not the right mentality).

So far my lunches have consisted of cous cous as normal but with wholewheat cous cous and lemon juice instead of pesto and a lot of fish.

Here's an example of a 30 day challenge lunch;

Smoked mackerel on seeded Rivita with Butternut dip with Mrs Balls Chutney and basil on top.... Delicious (but not filling!)

To find out more about the challenge go to http://www.freeformfitness.co.uk/

No Heinz Beanz

A winter warmer for the rainy work days.

Hot bean salad.

Choose a bean, any bean and include. We had;

• Kidney beans
• Edemame
• Lentils
• Lloyd Grossman's tomato and chilli sauce
• Chilli
• Feta
• Basil
• Mushrooms

And here's the result.......

Love it, I definitely love it

Technology restored, we can all breathe again and more importantly enjoy the aesthetic pleasure of the most talked about sandwich in this office this year - that's some title. Here it is people, call it what you want but don't knock it until you've been brave enough to try it...

But let it not be said that we at Let's Grab Lunch are not impartial. For all those gherkin haters, you can log on to Ihategherkins.com here.

Only £1

Mussel meat is one of those things that ordinarily goes unnoticed (or noticed but not considered because it looks rank). But not in Tesco's with a huge great £1 sign on it. It's hard to resist.

So, what to do with your box of cheap mussel meat???...... cous cous of course!

Beautiful

Spinach

Edamame beans

Pesto (has to be Sacla, tried Jamie's & it's not good)

Chilli

Coriander

Lime

Done

Booming Basil

The world of pesto seems to be on the rise and Sacla is at the forefront of the basil-based revolution. Their slightly dubious link with England's Lawrence Nero Bruno D'allaglio (who cries when he sings God Save the Queen) isn't necessarily the subject of the high praise they deserve - although the partnership does seem to be working for them. What they are doing brilliantly though is getting to their consumers through really simple recipe sharing forums. Check out their Italian Food Lovers Facebook page which has over 26,000 fans at the time of writing this where people passionate about Italian food are sharing their Sacla-inspired recipes.

Their website continues the theme of hearty, simple and tasty Italian food and for a brand site, it's well worth a look here.

So, 'bravo!' to the basil boys at Sacla - brilliant stuff.

Love it or hate it?

I've been wanting to post the lunch we discovered the other week for a while, but I can't seem to get the photos from my phone. I still haven't managed to so i'll just leave this one up to your imagination for now. For most people they'd probably rather not see the photo anyway!

We discovered a true love it or hate it dish which had everyone in the office divided. I LOVED it. But I think maybe I loved it more because other people had a true hate for it (most people).

The dish was gherkin and smoked salmon pitta

Here's how it went;

Toast the pitta, in the meantime slice the biggest gerkins you can find (we got ours from M&S), cut feta into small chunks, break off slices of smoked salmon.

When the pitta has toasted, slice it down the middle, spread some hummous on it, add chillis, place the gherkins, salmon and feta into the pocket, add some spinach for the greenery and voila - potentially the best or most disgusting sandwich you've ever tasted!

Love it?

Better than a toasted sandwich maker..?

At the tender age of 35, it's rare that you get a birthday present that you are genuinely excited about. But that's exactly what happened this year when a Glass Panini Press landed on my desk at work. Sensational. It obviously meant that, like an excited kid at Christmas, I got it plugged in and heated up as soon as I could. Here it is:

So simple it doesn't have any buttons and therefore no instructions this is the ultimate boy's lunch gadget. A hasty trip to Tesco (as I didn't want to be apart from my new best friend for too long) to pick up some panini rolls, chicken, spinach, coriander and mushrooms and the Panini Press was making its debut. And what a debut it was. In all honesty the preparation could have been given a bit more love and attention but the main point was getting them into that press as soon as we could. A generous dollop of pesto added to the ingredients and they were in. Imagine our delight when we lifted the lid to reveal these little gems:

Not only does this thing make perfect paninis all on its own but it cleverly makes you feel like some kind of professional genius at the same time. And all that from a hot plate with a lid. The things modern machines can do! The point of this blog is not to bang on about cost or be smug and self righteous in what we do, but when you consider that the £9.50 we spent in Tesco will make 4 lunches and cover the daily spinach requirements for the rest of the week, then it can't be a bad investment. Especially when you walk back to your desk with food you've made and your plate looks like this:

So, is the Panini Press better than your traditional toasted sarnie maker? Horses for courses, of course, but I think it very well might be...