Lunch Box Tips & A Reader's Advice

Winter came down to our home one night Quietly pirouetting in on silvery-toed slippers of snow, and we, we were children once again. ~Bill Morgan, Jr.

Today I wanted to share some tips from a book my parents gave me last month. It's a copy of The Good Housekeeping Cook Book from 1944. My dad has bought, sold and collected books for many years now and said this particular edition wasn't available online and they thought I would enjoy it.

With the economy struggling as it has been, we are all looking for ways to save money. Buying lunch for adults at work, or the kids at school doesn't seem expensive until you add it up for the month, then it becomes a fairly large expense. I found some good tips for packing lunches in my "new" book.

-Work butter or margarine with a fork until creamy and easy to spread, before using. Never melt it, it soaks into the bread.

-Avoid putting lettuce into sandwiches-it may become limp and unappetizing. Rather wrap the washed, dry leaves in waxed paper, so that they can be added to the sandwiches just before eating.

-Tomatoes sometimes have a tendency to soften in sandwiches. So frequently tuck a small whole tomato in the lunch box to be eaten with salt.

-Keep the lunch box in mind when planning dinner the night before. Oftentimes you can prepare enough of the soup, main dish, bread or dessert to include in the next day's lunch box.

-Because sandwiches are so often a mainstay in the lunch box, coax tired appetites by varying the bread you use. In addition to enriched and whole wheat breads, use raisin, bran, French, corn, rye, oatmeal, pumpernickel, cracked wheat, and nut breads for variety.

-Blueberry, corn, bran or other muffins left from dinner the night before, as well as hard and soft rolls, also ring a welcome change in the sandwich part of the lunch box.

-Be sure to vary the sandwich fillings too-in fact, try to include two different kinds of sandwiches in each lunch. It's a great help when at least one of these fillings can be made up from the dinner the night before. Leftover potroast, meat loaf, corned beef, lamb, etc. are all delicious.

-To keep sliced meat sandwiches from seeming dry, blend the butter or margarine with mayonnaise, salad dressing, prepared mustard, horseradish, catchup, chili sauce, pickle relish, or the like before spreading generously on the bread.

This was one sample menu:

Cream of Celery Soup
Minced Bacon and Egg Sandwiches on Whole Wheat bread
Tomato
Cookies or wafers

READER'S TIP
Martha sent in another tip regarding a substitute for corn syrup:
Your friend can make a syrup that will work in the recipe. Use 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar and 1/3 cup water. Mix them in a sauce pan and boil until it becomes thick like syrup. You can also add a little molasses to this too. Maybe honey? Here is good sugar free recipe:

SUGAR FREE PECAN TARTS: 1/2 c Splenda; 1 (12-oz) s/f imitation honey; 3 eggs beaten; pinch salt; 2 T butter; 2 c chopped pecans; 1 tsp. vanilla; 12 pastry shells. Melt butter, add Splenda, mix well. Add beaten eggs and mix. Add other ingredients; mix well and pour into shells. Bake @ 350 for 45 minutes. ~Martha

Yummy ideas for Grilled Cheese sandwiches on OFL:
http://oldfashionedliving.com/grilledcheese.html

~Brenda