Lunch Guests Menu

Today we had Mom and Bill over for lunch. Bill's 65th birthday is today. It's hot, hot, hot and with Bill's health, his appetite is really poor. Bill is also very sensitive to smells, so I didn't want to cook anything "smelly" - good or bad.

Today's lunch fare:

Sandwiches!!

Seriously, what a great plan for a non-messy lunch for when we are having guests! We had fresh baked bread from Publix, 2 different deli meats, 3 different cheeses, sliced tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, mustards, mayo - and anything else one could want on a sandwich. The easy-peasy part of this is that most of these things are normal items from our refrigerator anyway! The huge sandwich making bar was a great hit. Paired with some chopped fresh fruit, and baked tortilla chips - everyone was happy!

While this seems like such an easy solution, it was really eye-opening for us. We've been wanting to introduce ourselves to visitors at church and invite them to lunch at our house after church. However, it's always really hard to figure out what strangers would want to eat for lunch. But we're thinking this sandwich making bar just might be a step in the right direction! How do you do a quick lunch for guests on short notice?

Hot summer night dinner and yogurt woes

It's a hot, steamy, stormy night. I didn't really want to fire up the stove, and it was too stormy to grill out. A bento-type meal was in order!

Tonight's main fare:
Peanut butter cracker sandwiches
Yogurt
Chopped fruit

With a big glass of ice water

My concern is this: I've spent way too much time reading the yogurt labels lately. Yogurt is really high in sugar. I don't want to do Light or any other low-sugar yogurt, because then the sugar is replaced with a chemical alternative sugar substance, and I'm even less of a fan of sugar substitutes than I am of pure sugar. I've tried Greek yogurt, and honestly, I'm not a fan - it actually makes me gag to even think about it.

I'm considering making my own yogurt. Anyone else try this? I'm gonna need some tips!

Sandwiches

This week was pre-occupied with many preop telephone calls. I feel as though it was not one of my better weeks providing meals for myself and the kids. Meet my two new best friends.... Slap these guys onto a slice of whole wheat bread, fold in half, and voila...dinner is somewhat made. Sadly, we had PB&J's for dinner twice this week. We also had Taco Bell one night when the power was out when the electricians were working on the street light in front of our house. Tonight we had Burger King that I grabbed from the drive-thru at 6:30pm on the way back from CVS picking up some dye-free Motrin for my sick 6 year old. How backwards is that?

Anyway, it was a week with different sandwiches. I will say that I am proud of the fact that I've come to realize that sandwiches are not best friends with potato chips. I still have a hard time eating tuna sandwiches without potato chips (heck, I usually put the chips on the tuna sandwich!). So I ask this...other than potato chips, what goes on the plate with sandwiches?

This week we did apple slices and grapes. Anybody got any better ideas?