Modern Lunch: +100 Recipes for Assembling the New Midday Meal: A Cookbook

by Allison Day

From Allison Day, the acclaimed cookbook author and award-winning blogger behind Yummy Beet, comes Modern a collection of over 100 original, plant-forward recipes that celebrate the midday meal.TASTE CANADA AWARDS SILVER WINNERModern Lunch is the new lunchtime hero for time-strapped, budget-conscious, and salad-fatigued people everywhere. Focusing on healthy, quick--and, yes, Instagrammable--recipes with minimal effort, Allison takes readers on a feasting journey inspired by fresh flavors and ingredients, and her travels. Meals in jars and adult-appropriate lunchboxes will actually make you look forward to lunch now, especially when recipes like Chicken and Cucumber Ribbon Salad with Peanut Butter Vinaigrette, Tomato Sourdough Soup with Cacio e Pepe Socca Triangles, and Walnut-Crusted Avocado, Feta, and Eggs with Pesto Rice are waiting for you. Find inspiration for delicious lunches to eat at home, too, like Greek Chopped Salad with Crispy Peppercorn Salmon, and a new take on the classic ploughman's lunch. Spend weekends with friends gathered around easy-to-assemble platters and picnic baskets, and enjoy homemade brunches that rival any restaurant's. And, if you're someone who likes to improvise, Allison shares her staple recipes and tried-and-tested strategies for mastering meal prep, as well as ideas and combinations for quick, on-the-fly lunches that encourage creativity but promise satisfaction--even if you have to dine at your desk.With dazzling recipes and photography, and smart tips on hacking the lunchtime game, Modern Lunch proves that a delicious, exciting, and inventive lunch can be achievable for any appetite, wallet, and busy schedule--and maybe even spark a little office envy.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food

259 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 5, 2019

About the author

Allison Day is an award-winning writer, bestselling author, food stylist, recipe developer, and content creator. She has written, styled, and photographed three cookbooks, including the Indigo Heather’s Pick, bestseller, and Taste Canada award-winning Modern Lunch. Her first book, Whole Bowls, is the national winner of the Gourmand Award for Best Vegetarian Cookbook and a Taste Canada-shortlisted cookbook. Her long running recipe blog, Yummy Beet, is a Taste Canada gold award winner and is read around the world.

She has written for, contributed to, and been featured in some of North America’s top publications including, The New York Times, Bon Appétit, New York Magazine, The Globe and Mail, Food Network Canada, SHAPE, FLARE, Elle Canada, and more.

Reviews

[Sadie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing cookbook full of ideas for healthy, flavorful salads, grain bowls, and platters for lunches. Simple ingredient lists and easy ideas that can be adapted with ingredients you have on hand in the pantry.

[Jocelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, like many people, I've been working from home due to the pandemic, which has given me a wide range of possibilities for lunch since now I have access to an oven, stove, all of my pantry, refrigerator and freezer. Yet somehow I still end up reheating dinner leftovers... I would love to change that, and that's part of why I picked up this cookbook. (The other part is that I love pretty cookbooks, my only fatal flaw.)

I would honestly say that almost every single recipe in here is something that appeals to me or I'd be at least open to making and trying it out. Of course, if you've read any of my previous cookbook reviews, you know I greatly enjoy when each recipe is accompanied by a photo (I'm a very visual person), and I would say about 98% of these recipes had very beautiful photos. There were also quick icon references to indicate whether a recipe was good to pack for going into the office or wherever, good to reheat, good to freeze and then defrost, was grain-free, vegetarian or vegan. Day includes an estimate for how many days ahead you can make this recipe before you eat it: the best-before date. She very kindly chose to include how to pack and in which order to pack for maximum freshness -- yes, it seems extreme but I've seen some truly horrendous packing from people in my life.

Aside from the recipes, Day writes out suggestions for easy or quick meals, lots of variation, including protein or dairy variants (not on all, but on many), and picnic location menus (i.e., lunch menu for picnicking in a park, at the waterfront, for camping, etc.). There are even drinks, desserts and snacks, rather than simply the "main" lunch course. In my opinion, this cookbook is wonderful in its variety of foods, courses, suggestions. I doubt making multiple meals, regardless of whether they're for lunch or not, from this book would be boring!

Will update once I've tried some recipes.

[Jennifer Pretoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

The recipe times clearly don't take into account any of the ingredient prep time and most of the ingredients include a lot of chopping, shaving, de-veining, etc. before the recipe even begins. Also several recipes call for expensive ingredients (like saffron or pomegranate seeds) or not easily accessible ingredients (like powdered dry hibiscus). So for that reason it's not as useful for work-week lunch planning as I had hoped. That being said, I did find some inspiration for make-ahead lunches and there's a good section on snacks with a lot of no-recipe snack suggestions. I also really enjoyed the brief section on Platters for hosting.

[Shipshapeeatworthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Modern Lunch was written because Day realizes that a sad lunch al desko is avoidable using some simple strategies and delicious recipes. While I'm focused on packing a school lunch, this cookbook offers options for anyone who eats lunch (read: everyone!). Throughout the introduction Day reminisces over her own school lunches and reminds us that lunchtime offers a chance to celebrate the communal nature of lunch. Building our community by eating with friends, colleagues, and sometimes strangers. I really appreciate how she elevates lunch and highlights the important connections it can build. Last week my friend brought her son over for lunch and a playdate, so I made us the Walnut-Crusted Avocado, Feta, and Eggs w/ Pesto Rice (the kids had their playdate fav -- Annie's with a ketchup smiley face). Both of us loved this recipe for its simplicity and flavour! It was delicious if I do say so myself, and, even better when shared with my friend!

Modern Lunch is divided into twelve chapters: Meals in Jars, Soups + Stews, Contemporary Lunch Boxes, Plates + Bowls, Salads w/ Substance, Platters, Brunch for Lunch, Picnic Baskets, Modern Lunch Club, Lunchbox Treasures, Modern Meal Prep Staples, and Gear Guide. All these chapters contain recipes that help to reimagine any lunch scenario, from the typical lunch at work or school, lunch at home, to the more relaxed weekend lunches. I love that the book is full of recipes that aren't about leftovers or sandwiches (in fact there are no sandwich recipes at all)! What I found after cooking almost a dozen recipes is that everything I've made is delicious! I'm already beginning to see different things I'll be able to send in my daughter's lunch.

When it comes to packing a lunch (especially in my daughter's case) texture is key -- nothing that may be "slimy" or "gross." Having this in mind I start to look at recipes where the texture will remain -- such as Day's recipe for Black Bean Salsa Salad w/ Homemade Crepe Tortillas. Beans are such a great choice to pack in a lunch because they keep their texture, taste ok at room temperature, and taste great when paired here with avocado (creamy texture is ok!), crisp bell pepper, kernels of corn, and the sweet, with a bit of chew, cherry tomatoes. Adding in the crepe tortilla provides a fun element that is easy to eat with your hands (a great kid option for kids).

It's with this recipe that I'm reminded what a master Day is at formulating gluten-free recipes. Just as I found with her previous cookbook, Whole Bowls, all her recipes are gluten-free because she develops them with her sister, who has celiac disease, in mind. So, with the tortillas she uses chickpea flour and a gf all-purpose flour. Since we don't need to eat gluten-free I used regular all-purpose flour, but I appreciate that her recipes offer a delicious and flexible way for everyone to enjoy lunch. And, while this is not a strictly vegan or vegetarian cookbook most of the recipes are flexible enough that you can either omit or substitute ingredients which better suit your dietary needs.

The more I cook from Modern Lunch, the more I realize that it's not just my daughter's packed lunches that need tending to but my own lunches as well. As an at-home parent I don't always have time to create elaborate midday meals so I've been turning to Day's book to help build an arsenal of ready-to-go, quick and easy lunches that will carry me through until dinnertime. There's nothing worse that feeling ravenous around 4 o'clock and then reaching for snack food! What I've noticed is what is good for me is also good for my kid. The other day I set out a tray of Chopped Thai Salad with Peanut Sauce and as soon as the tray touched the table my daughter grabbed the tongs and started to serve herself. Reminding me that fresh, whole-food ingredients (with sauce because that is key with kids) are enticing. While she doesn’t love bell peppers she quickly went for the tofu, mango, cucumber, and even the purple cabbage! Giving her options helped her to make "big girl" decisions without any fuss.

The Springtime Pasta Salad w/ Tuna and Creamy Pesto Dressing is another favourite here. I love how regular pasta is swapped out in favour of quinoa pasta, and, to be perfectly honest that dressing is incredible. My mouth is watering just thinking about it; which is what happens when I think of many of the Modern Lunch recipes! Day does an excellent job of incorporating different flavours and textures when creating her unique recipes. The Avocado w/ Turmeric Yogurt and Walnut Crumble is so delicious! She takes two of the plainest ingredients -- yogurt and avocado -- and by adding umami elements (miso, tamari) with sweet ones (maple syrup) along with turmeric and lemon to the yogurt and a savoury walnut crumble to the avocado she's devised one of the most moreish lunch dishes I've had in awhile!

What's lunch without a little treat? Here she offers satisfying, yet healthy-ish options that taste just like childhood. I know that when I say the Express Chocolate Pudding Cups contain tofu (I use the silken variety) many of you may grimace but, in truth, this recipe tastes exactly like the chocolate pudding I had in my lunch as a kid. No fooling! And, it's something that I happily add to my daughter's lunch box because she loves it! No lunch is complete without a little something special.

Allison Day says it best in her introduction: "A modern lunch is special, simple, (mostly) make-ahead, healthy, share-worthy, community building, money saving, colourful, and delicious." It's with all her recipes within Modern Lunch that she helps to reimagine the midday break without having to resort to consuming sad lunches or spending hard-earned money on fast food. And, while my daughter still enjoys her sandwiches, I'm glad to expose her to different, healthy options that nourish her.

Please note that this review is an excerpt of a longer version posted to www.shipshapeeatworthy.wordpress.com

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Appetite by Random House for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

[Elyse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this cookbook! I bought it on a whim and wasn’t expecting much but it far exceeded my expectations. Most of the recipes (save a couple) have very simple ingredients, and are not too fussy to make, which I really appreciate. My favourites are the spring pasta salad, baked squash, and beans on toast. A lot of the more robust recipes are designed to be made ahead of time (so you have to want to meal prep) and they keep really well throughout the week. I find the portion sizes are quite large though, so keep that in mind when planning your meals for the week.

[Isabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing cookbook! I’ve wanted to spice up my boring lunches for a while now but had no clue where to start or what recipes to use. The problem with lunches you take to work is that the recipe has to be something that tastes good cold or at room temperature, and has to be quick enough to make the night before or morning of. This cookbook compiles some amazingly unique, quick, and approachable recipes. My pantry is pretty well stocked and there are only a few ingredients I’ve had to go shopping for, everything else I pretty much had.

[Adrienne Adrimano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ideas for every type of lunch/setting.
Accessible plus aspirational recipes, plus recipe-free (i.e., "just throw these ingredients together") ideas!

I actually liked this book-- it didn't feel too complicated, and it not only has recipes, but also grouped them by occasion (e.g. lunch box, picnic, platters, brunch, etc.). My favourite part was the pantry stocking recipes, including dressings and sauces and I loved the pour-over coffee instruction and the format ideas for group gatherings. The extra stuff like that actually made me want to have a copy of this book.

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great recipes and mindset on how to approach lunches to make them not so hard to think about or prepare. Author also includes good tidbits on what ingredients hold well in storage containers, at work, etc. I do wish the time listed to prepare each recipe included the time of prep for things you need cooked beforehand (ex. shredded chicken to throw into a salad) to make it more realistic about what can be done if you don’t meal prep ingredients each week.

[Alisa]

I liked this book but it should be called Casual Dinner, not Modern Lunch. These recipes are simple, but do require time. So unless you cook for an hour for lunch and another hour for dinner, what you will probably want to do is make an extra large dinner and keep the leftovers for next day's lunch. Hence, this is actually a weeknight dinner cookbook.

[Bel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of good ideas for easy pack-able lunch options, but I skipped through some of the other chapters like the picnic ideas. The book was very visually appealing with lots of beautiful pictures of scenery and food and the layout as a fresh, instagram-ish feel to it. I look forward to including some fresh ideas to my lunch options soon!

[Rochelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this was a good book that gave ideas for road trip lunches and camping lunches and much more, in my opinion it fell short in the "make ahead" category. Caroline Pessin’s Cook When You Can, Eat When You Want, stands out as the best in this area, and I’m still to come across a book that even comes close.

[Rini P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Healthy and delicious lunches (or a light dinner). This cookbook provides some great ideas and the author includes snacks and drinks, along with meals.

While a little more prep work is required for some of these dishes, the finished product is worth the time. She does include a range of items that do not require a lot of prep beforehand.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book to look through, but I highly doubt I'll ever make anything from it. There are some great original ideas meals, but not as many pack lunches as I had hoped to find inspiration for.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great recipes/ideas. Simple, easy, and healthy.

[JC Cornell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only 2 recipes in her that I was interested in. Just not the recipes for me.

[Tori · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are a few recipes that I’m really excited about, but a lot that don’t interest me for one reason or another. I like it enough to keep it and cook from it, but not enough that it will become a go-to book. I do really like how it’s pushed me to think about lunches. It’s not as hard as it feels like it is, as long as you’re willing to do a little prep work.