Packable Lunches I: Chard Wraps

As we move from the more relaxed pace of summer to the often overly structured days, every minute in the kitchen counts. As a 29 year veteran mom I can tell you there was truthfully no chore I dreaded more than lunch packing. This month I’d like to help remove the sting by sharing six of my favorite packable lunches. We’re starting off with these sweet chard wraps for two reasons:

1. They are my favorite lunch hack by far! (Especially if you avoid grains.)
2. I made a set last week for our 50K bike trip and if they handled the jostling in my bike basket, they surely meet my standard for a packable recipe.

Yes, I know. I have featured chard wraps before but, honestly, there are so many reasons to love these delightful little packets! I will spare you the rest of my list this time around and just get into the how-to’s.

The wraps pictured here feature the following ingredients (in order of use):

• Garden fresh chard leaves, the smaller more tender the better
• Avocado, mashed with a drizzle of olive oil for spreading
• A dollop of sundried tomato pesto
• Thin slices of sweet pepper
• Grated carrots

Instructions:
1. Remove the spine from each chard leaf by flipping it face down on a cutting board. Use a knife with a pointed tip and trace along the outline of the spine and remove, leaving two strips of chard. (This is much easier when using young smaller leaves.)

2. Begin with the wide base of the leaf and spread mashed avocado 1/3 the way up the leaf.

3. Add the dollop of pesto, smoothing with a knife to cover the avocado.

4. Top the filling with a few thin slices of sweet pepper and grated carrots.  Roll the wraps from the wide end to the narrow.  Place wraps in the container you will pack along for the day, aligning them to fill the available space.

While these can certainly be made the night before, I’ll admit they are best when fresh. To save time on those hectic mornings, prep the fillings the night before and make quick work with remaining steps or you can even have the kids roll their own.

Enjoy!