Lunch Made Easy: Leftovers - Cook Once, Eat Twice!

"Cook Once, Eat Twice!"  I learned this philosophy from MOMables and it makes packing lunches so much easier for my family.
As it worked out this week, Little Miss was on Spring Break from school but that doesn't mean we don't still pack lunches! Anywhere she goes because of her dietary needs - to my folks, the babysitter, or a friend's house - we pack it. 
I was able to turn all our dinner leftovers into deliciously fun lunches this week! 

Let's break this down:

All those yummy Easter leftovers made for an easy lunch on Monday! She has ham dices, corn, Udi's gluten, dairy, soy, & nut free Baguette slices, apples, and a deviled egg - topped with bacon... because bacon makes everything better! hehe ;)

Pizza leftovers are always the best! We had made pizza on our Kinnikinnick brand gluten, dairy, and nut free pizza crust. She had three leftover slices which fit perfectly in her EasyLunchboxes container! Along with pears, carrots, and radishes. 

One of our favorite and easy dinners I love throwing in the slowcooker in the morning is our Crockpot Zesty Italian BBQ Chicken recipe. I keep it gluten free now by using my own blend of Italian seasonings and spices. 
If it were me, I'd have mixed my veggies right into the rice but Little Miss likes them separate so that's how I packed them. :) 
She also has apple slices and a MOMables gluten & dairy free Chocolate Beet Cupcake for dessert. 

Pasta is always an easy dinner dish. I purposely cook a bit of extra noodles to use how I see fit for lunches later on! Here she has her Sam Mills brand gluten, egg, dairy, soy, GMO free pasta topped with a tomato sauce and Italian sausage.  She also has a side salad, pears, and half a banana. Dip the cut end of the banana in a little lemon juice to keep it from browning. 

Lastly, a fun favorite that's great for dinners, lunch, snacks, and freezer friendly! Gluten Free Mini Corndog Muffins! Corndog... Corn Dog... I've seen it spelled continually both ways. lol
There have been many versions of corn dog muffins on Pinterest but the first place I discovered them was from my friend Shannon of BentoLunch.net. Since we can't eat the jiffy version, we made an allergy friendly version instead! They only took 15 minutes! That includes prep & bake time. 
This is also a great idea as summer rolls around and you start grilling! Use up any leftover hot dogs this way. 
Add a sweet Lunchbox Love Note to any lunch!

{Click Here for Printable Recipe}

• 1 Cup of Gluten Free Cornbread Mix (or your preferred homemade blend, I like the mix because it already has the amount of starch, baking soda, powder and xantham gum I need)
• 1 flax egg (1 TB of ground flax + 3 TB of warm water, mix and set aside until gel-like)
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup of milk or non-dairy sub
• 6 hot dogs - turkey, tofu, or nitrate free, your choice!

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini-muffin tin pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, mix flax egg (as indicated in ingredients above) and set aside.
3. Slice turkey, tofu, or nitrate free hot dogs of choice to depth of pan: You should get 4-5 slices per dog.
4. Mix corn bread batter in a large bowl: Cornbread mix, flax egg, applesauce, and milk.
5. Pour batter into muffin tin, filling each cavity about half full. 
6. Press a hot dog slice to the center of each. 
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes. 

Recipe yields 24 mini muffins.

Freeze leftovers or pack them for lunch!

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