Update 11/16: Thank you everyone, for all of the great lunch ideas! There were so many good ones, we put all of you in a drawing for the book and the name drawn was Natasha from 5StarFoodie. Be sure to visit her site if you haven't already because she has really creative posts! I will be giving away another book in January so be sure to check back.
With the holidays quickly approaching, I've decided to give away a copy of one of my favorite baking books, Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey by Jill O'Connor and Chronicle Books. True to the title, this book is full of mouth-watering sticky, gooey desserts such as Chocolate Caramel-Pecan Souffle Cake, Cinnamon Donut Bread Pudding, Chocolate Cupcakes with Caramel-Butterscotch-Buttercream Frosting and many, many more. Being a designer, I have to say this is one of the most creative, well-designed/food-styled cookbooks I've seen yet and you will love reading the entertaining forward.
So what's the catch? You need to help me out with the lunch rut I am in!
I've been struggling with lunch ideas for awhile now. I've been trying to be disciplined in bringing my lunch to work at least 3 days a week, although it usually pales in comparison to the carryout that my colleagues are eating across the table from me or what I order on the days I eat out. I feel like I'm packing the same thing and need some new inspiration.
The other side to the coin is that lunch through the work week is partly a social thing for me. An escape from the office and a chance to try new restaurants. My friend Steve is one of my favorite lunch buddies because he always wants to eat at the really good places and he is always game for seeing the dessert menu, even after polishing off soup, salad and entree. (You can face the worst of all days when you've ended lunch with cake.) And lunches with my friend Beatrice are a favorite because she always indulges my cravings for Mexican food week after week and we have the best conversations. So on the days I've exiled myself to the lunch table with a brown bag, I need to have something I'm excited about eating and not feel like I'm missing the party.
So help me out and reply to this post with your lunch suggestion or a link to your favorite lunch recipe, whether it be on your site or elsewhere. All I ask is that it's something that is relatively easy timewise through the week. I will select a recipe on Tuesday, 11/10 and post the winner. The winner should in turn, post the first sticky, chewy, messy, gooey recipe they make from the new cookbook. :)
