Homemade ‘Lunchables': What Would Be in Yours?
With word going around that "Lunchables" are in short supply on the grocery shelves, it made me wonder to myself "what would a homemade Lunchable look like?"
Lunchables are a brilliant idea from Oscar Mayer back in the 1980s. They packaged a meat product with a cheese product with a cracker product and a cookie all together and BAM! - a convenient lunch that the kids could just throw in the backpack.
I have to admit that I've had a Lunchable or two in my time. They were a welcomed treat when I was in the Army and had to go out in the field for a few weeks. Also, more recently, they are an easy snack when out on the water fishing. I try to not look at the ingredients or the nutritional value because I just don't want to know. What I do know is this: they are convenient and they satisfy my hunger long enough to get me home.
It seems that shoppers are seeing a limited supply of Lunchables in the grocery stores lately. Some speculation points to a disruption in the supply chain due to the coronavirus pandemic, or even maybe a disruption in production. The fact is, at this point, even the parent company of Lunchables doesn't know why there seems to be fewer on the shelves, other than they are selling a boatload of their product recently.
According to the story from Yahoo! News, the company has seen a double-digit increase in sales recently (I would guess it's because of kids spending more time out of school/at home due to the coronavirus pandemic).
In any case, the shortage brought to mind the question: If I had to make my own Lunchable, what would I put in it?
I'm fairly low-maintenance, so my first thought was to just throw together a few Ritz-type crackers, some cheese, slices of ham or turkey, and maybe some almonds. Kind of boring and not far off base from a regular Lunchable, right?
And then I realized that I don't have to seal up that Lunchable and hope for a long shelf life, which opens up my options. My Lunchable can now become a Luncharcuterable!
Prosciutto and brie and homemade jam and walnuts and sesame crackers with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Or Genoa Salami with smoked gouda and whole grain mustard and roasted pecans and cucumber and sun-dried tomatoes. Oh my!
Or how about a Cajun Lunchable? Nunu's pork sausage with Jack Miller's sauce, a few slices of Evangeline Maid bread, sweet potato crisps, and a few pieces of Jamie Bergeron's Beef Jerky. With a persimmon from my sister's tree for dessert.
Wait: did I just go from a Lunchable to making a brown-bag lunch?
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