Meal planner and recipe ideas

Looking for healthy and affordable ideas for lunchtime meals? Take a look at our meal planner and recipe ideas below.

All of these can be made using what's provided in our food parcels [PDF].

Menu suggestions

	Lunch	Pudding
Day 1	Jacket potato with beans	Yoghurt and a piece of fruit
Day 2	Tomato soup with bread and butter	Soreen and a piece of fruit
Day 3	Sausage, mash and beans	Yoghurt and a piece of fruit
Day 4	Beans and cheese on toast	Soreen and a piece of fruit
Day 5	Tuna and cheese melt	Yoghurt and a piece of fruit

Recipe ideas

Toasty Melt

• Grate some cheese and combine with either the tuna / ham/ beef / beans / tomato
• Place a slice of bread on an oven tray and top with the mixture, top with another slice of bread
• Place into the oven until the cheese begins to melt and ooze out the side of the sandwich.

Jacket Potato

• Wash the potato and prick several times with a fork
• Preheat an oven to 180°C/gas mark 4 and cook the potato on a tray for roughly 90 mins
• Alternatively, the potato can be placed in the microwave for 10 – 15 minutes depending on how powerful the microwaves is
• Can be served with the either the beans, tuna, or grated cheese.

Loaded Potatoes Skins

• Using the jacket potato, allow it to cool and cut in half
• Carefully scoop out the soft middle of the potato and put it in a bowl, keep the skins to one side on an oven tray
• To the potato add either chopped ham and mix together
• Refill the potato skins with ham and potato mix
• Grate a little cheese over the top and put them into the oven until the cheese is golden and the potato is hot
• The ham could be changed for Beans, beef or Tuna

Omelette

• Heat a frying pan on a medium heat, add a little oil
• Beat 2 egg until combined and fluffy and pour into the pan
• Once the egg has begun to set fold and turnover the omelette
• cook until the egg is completely firm.
• Ham, beef or grated cheese can be added to the omelette while it cooks

Mash Potato

• Wash and peel the potato, then chop into a 4cm dice
• Place the potato into water bring to the boil and cook for 20 mins or until the potato is soft when poked with a knife
• Drain the potatoes well and put them back into the dry pan
• Mash until they are a smooth puree
• You can add milk or cheese to the mash

Fishcakes

• Use the mash potato and add the tuna and some sweetcorn
• Mix together and form into potato cakes
• Fry gently in a pan.
• The tuna could be swapped for ham or beef

Homemade Oven Chips

• Wash and peel the potato
• Cut the potatoes into chips
• Place in a pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Once boiling drain well.
• Heat a tray in the oven at 180°C/gas mark 4 with a little oil on it
• Carefully add the potatoes to the tray with the hot oil and return to the oven.
• Cook for 40 mins turning every 10 minutes. Carefully remove from the oven.
• These can be served with, Ham, Eggs, Beans.

Potato Wedges

• Wash and peel the potato
• Cut the potatoes into wedge shapes
• Place in a pan of cold water and bring to the boil. Once boiling drain well.
• Heat a tray in the oven at 180°C/gas mark 4 with a little oil on it
• Carefully add the potatoes to the tray with the hot oil and return to the oven.
• Cook for 40 mins turning every 10 minutes. Carefully remove from the oven.
• These can be served with, Ham, Eggs, Beans.

Lettuce Tomato and Sweetcorn Salad

• Wash and chop the tomatoes and place in a bowl
• Add the sweetcorn and the lettuce leave and mix
• Serve as a side dish

Eggy Bread

• In a bowl mix 2 eggs until they are completely combined
• Soak the bread in the eggs until it has absorbed the egg
• Fry the bread until it is golden, and the egg has firmed up the bread.
• Can be served with beans and ham

Sausages

• Cut the links and place the individual sausages on an oven tray.
• Place the tray in a pre heated oven at 180°C/gas mark 4 for 20 -25 mins until they are nicely browned on the outside and cooked through in the centre
• The sausages can be served with mashed potato, or chips, with beans.

Soup

• Carefully open the tin and pour into a pan and heat until it is boils. Keep stirring the soup until it boils to ensure it is hot all the way through.

Eggs

• Hard Boiled Egg: Place the egg (in its shell) into a pan of boiling water for 8 minutes,
  once cooked cool under cold running water
• Soft Boiled Egg: Place the egg (in its shell) into a pan of boiling water for 4 minutes, once
  cooked cool under cold running water – Served with soldiers
• Poached Egg: Boil a pan of water and then turn it down so its simmering, add a splash of
  vinegar and crack in the egg, cook for 3 mins or until the egg white is fi rm.
• Fried Egg: Heat oil in a frying pan over a medium heat, crack in the egg and cook until
  the white is firm.
• Scrambled Egg: Mix 2 eggs with a splash of milk, cook in a pan over a medium heat
  for 4-5 minutes stirring constantly until the egg is cooked and fi rm. This can be done in a
  microwave by putting the egg and milk mix in a bowl and cooking for 1 minute at a time;
  stirring each time, until the egg is firm and cooked.

Sandwich ideas

• Ham
• Ham and tomato
• Ham lettuce and tomato
• Boiled egg
• Cheese and tomato
• Cheese and ham
• Cheese ham tomato and lettuce
• Tuna
• Tuna and sweetcorn
• Tuna and lettuce

On toast

• Cheese on toast
• Cheese and tomato on toast
• Cheese and tuna on toast
• Ham cheese and tomato on toast
• Beans and egg on toast (scrambled, fried, poached eggs)
• Beans and cheese on toast
• Egg on toast (scrambled, fried, poached eggs)
• Soft boiled egg with soldiers