Works for Me Wednesday - keeping lunches cool

In an effort to be frugal and free up some “me time” during the day at work, I pack my lunch and eat at my desk, saving the remaining time for little items on my to do list or checking out my google reader. I don’t know about you, but I’m forever forgetting to refreeze my cold packs or leaving them at work – I’m lucky to have one ready and cold for my daughter’s milk pack when we’re on the go. In an effort to eliminate cold packs from our lunches, I came up with this solution – whenever possible, pack something that can be frozen the night before! This won’t always work, as some things don’t thaw well, but usually there is at least one item in my lunch for the day that does freeze well. I (try to remember to) put that item in the freezer the night before – during the morning while my lunch sits on my desk that item thaws and at the same time keeps the rest of my lunch cool. Items that tend to get frozen in my lunch are: pasta leftovers, frozen meals (when they are on sale) burritos, applesauce, yogurt or pudding, and pizza. At lunch time, these items have kept my salad or cottage cheese or whatever perishable items might also be in my lunch cool and ready to eat – it works for me!

For more WFMW posts, head over to Rocks in my Dryer!