Do you ever go through phases where you’re obsessed with certain kinds of food?  I do.

And I’m definitely going through a phase with Toufayan whole wheat pita bread.  It’s so good and guilt free!  I found that my grocery store sells an 8-pack of mini loaves for just $1.69.  I’ve been eating one a day for almost three weeks and I just love that they’re only 80 calories each.

I think they’re IDEAL for meal prep because like I said, 8 pack at $1.69, and only 80 calories each!

 

I like to cut them up and dip them in hummus.  Or I fill the pita “pocket” with tuna salad, roast chicken, turkey lunch meat… or veggies and even more hummus!  They’re really satisfying if you’re low-carb.  You can find them in the bread aisle. 🙂

Enough about pita bread. 

So I came up with another meal prep plan using tuna salad.  Growing up we would make tuna salad with mayonnaise.. which I carried into adulthood.  Well, turns out Mayo isn’t working for my waistline at the moment, so I decided to come up with a low-calorie tuna salad that tastes similar to the one mom used to make.  But it’s low calorie.  No mayonnaise.  NONE.  Sorry mom!

 

I substitute the mayo with 2% Greek Yogurt.  I also make sure to buy tuna in “water”.. not tuna in “oil.”  I use dill relish which has zero calories, and to add sweetness I use a dollop of honey.

 

I must say, it’s pretty darn good!  No, it’s not “mayonnaise-based” good, but for “diet” tuna salad I really like it.  Sometimes I impress myself so much I sweep myself off my feet!!

“Now I know what I’ve been looking for all these years. Myself. I’ve been waiting for me to come along. And now I’ve swept myself off my feet!”

– Jerry Seinfeld

True 😛

 

Now that you have a low calorie tuna salad, it’s time to assemble some lunches!

LUNCHES, ASSEMBLEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

Note: Pita bread can be stored separately in a baggie to prevent it from becoming stale.  If you’re using flavored almonds instead of dry roasted (like honey cinnamon for example) store them in a separate container also.  My flavored almonds didn’t like the humidity in the container one bit! 🙂

 

Viola!  Easy as pie.

 

Tuna Salad Lunch Box (low-cal meal prep)

• Romaine Lettuce, for garnish or lettuce wrap
• 2 cups low cal Tuna Salad (recipe below)
• 2 medium Apples, sliced
• 4 hard-boiled Eggs
• 1/2 cup Almonds
• 4 mini whole wheat Pita Breads
• Sliced cucumber (optional)

Divide everything between four lunch containers.  The Pita bread can be stored separately in a baggie to prevent it from becoming stale. If you’re using flavored almonds instead of dry roasted (like honey cinnamon for example) store them in a separate container also.

Please note the recipe below makes just under 2 cups of tuna salad…

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Low Calorie Tuna Salad

• 3 cans Tuna in Water (not oil!)
• 1/2 cup 2% Greek Yogurt
• 1 teaspoon Mustard
• 1 tablespoon Dill Relish
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Honey
• 1/4 teaspoon dried Dill
• 1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Pepper

Mix everything together in a bowl.  Makes just under 2 cups of tuna salad. 😉

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Caloric equation for your reference:

One Meal = 1/2 cup low-cal Tuna Salad (106 cal.), 1/2 Apple (52 cal.), 1 hard-boiled Egg (78 cal.), 1 whole wheat Pita (80 cal.), 1/8 cup dry roasted Almonds (66 cal.) = 382 Calories