Mason Jar Meals

Research shows that people who eat lunch at restaurants every day spend roughly $2,500 each year. That’s a lot of cash — and a very unhealthy eating habit.

Truthfully, packing your lunch does require some planning and effort, but there’s one tool that can make lunch fun (and healthy) again: Mason Jars!

Check out these recipes, which are all under 400 calories:

Chicken Taco Salad

Prep Time: 6 min

Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 whole 12-ounce mason jars

2 whole chicken breasts (grilled or poached)

1 cup black beans (canned)

1 cup corn (canned)

1 cup tomatoes (diced)

1 cup romaine lettuce (chopped)

Dressing: Choose your own creamy, low fat dressing (2 tbps)

Directions

Assemble each mason jar in the following order:

First (bottom) layer: dressing
Second layer: 1/4 cup corn
Third layer: 1/4 cup black beans
Fourth layer: 1/4 cup diced tomatoes
Fifth layer: 1/2 cup chicken
Sixth (top) layer: 1/4 cup romaine lettuce

Honey Nut Berry Salad

Prep Time: 10 min

Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 whole 12-ounce mason jars

2 cup strawberries (hulled and quartered)

2 cup blackberries

2 cup blueberries

1 cup roasted almonds (roughly chopped)

Sweet Citrus Dressing:

1/4 cup orange juice

1 whole lemon (juiced and zested)

2 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon honey

Directions

Dressing: In a small bowl, combine orange juice, lemon juice, zest, olive oil and honey. Whisk until combined, then set aside.

Assemble each mason jar in the following order:

First (bottom) layer: 2 or 3 tablespoons sweet citrus dressing
Second layer: 1/2 cup blackberries
Third layer: 1/2 cup strawberries
Fourth layer: 1/2 cup blueberries
Fifth (top) layer: 1/4 cup almonds

Sushi In A Jar

Prep Time: 10 min

Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 whole 12-ounce mason jars

2 cup white or brown rice (cooked)

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 whole avocados (skin and seed removed, diced)

2 tablespoon lemon juice

2 whole cucumbers (peeled, seeds removed, cut into small matchstick-sized pieces)

4 whole nori sheets (cut into small pieces)

1 cup lump crab meat (picked over)

Directions

1. Heat the vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. While your brown rice is still warm, pour the vinegar-sugar mixture and soy sauce over it and toss to combine. Let cool to room temperature.

2. While rice cools, brush avocado chunks with lemon juice to prevent browning.

Assemble each mason jar in the following order: