Mason Jar Salads and More: 50 Layered Lunches to Grab & Go

by Julia Mirabella

THE FIRST GUIDE TO THE COOLEST NEW TREND—CREATING HEALTHY, HEARTY, AND PORTABLE SALADS IN ADORABLE VINTAGE JARS

Packing a lunch has never been so fun and creative! Instead of grabbing fast food or an instant meal to choke down in front of the computer, Mason Jar Salads and More shows how to prepare nourishing, beautiful, and convenient lunches packed with fresh produce and whole foods.

Made by layering ingredients vertically in the jars, these meals benefit from the tight seal of the lid and can last for up to five days in the refrigerator. Mason Jar Salads and More offers the easiest way to whip up a week’s worth of grab-and-go recipes like Layered Quinoa and Veggies, Pesto Pasta with Tomatoes, Southwestern Salad, and Easy Fruity Oatmeal.

Mason jars have been used to can and preserve food for over 150 years and are more beloved now than ever. But there is more to the Mason jar than just canning, and this book reveals how perfect they are for easy breakfasts, lunches, and snacks.

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Food, Cooking, Reference, Adult

160 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 17, 2014

Reviews

[Pattie Tierney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Food in jars has surged in popularity over the last number of years, and no one is more appreciative of this clever way to store, serve, and display food than I am. That's why I didn't hesitate for a moment when I was offered a copy of this book to review by the publisher. I am in love with this book! While its subtitle is “50 Layered Lunches to Grab and Go,” it is so much more than that. Lunches, yes, but dinners, side dishes, and the convenience of having a fresh, delicious meal at arm's reach makes this book a necessity in every kitchen library. Imagine a busy day, no time or energy to prepare a meal, but a delicious and healthful one readily at hand, previously prepared and stored in the fridge in a Mason jar. This is the stuff dreams are made of.

It's a lovely book, loaded with mouthwatering pictures - so important in cookbooks - with an incredible variety of succulent salads from more commonplace green salads (though there is nothing at all common about these ingenious recipes and unique combinations) to breakfast, pasta, rice, snacks, you name it! I'm talking curried chicken salad, chili, potato salad, and ratatouille. I may need to buy an additional fridge, and certainly cases of Mason jars, to hold the ample and diverse jarred meals included in this book. The Porcini Mushroom Risotto is excellent, the Mango Salsa I could eat right from the jar. Who needs chips when you have something this good?

If you are a fan of homemade salad dressings like I am, let me tell you that this book is worth having for the vinaigrette recipes alone. I have had a different salad dressing every day this week and am stymied as to which one I like best. All of them have a summery freshness that makes me feel as if I am dining at some Oceanside resort.

One of my favorite salads so far is the Corn and Blueberry Salad with Lime Vinaigrette. I have been crazy about the inclusion corn in salad ever since first having it in Italy in 2000. They must have had a bumper corn crop that year because every restaurant in every city we visited featured corn in the salad. I love that tasty, colorful little addition. Blueberries are another favorite, undervalued in salads, I think, providing a blast of juicy deliciousness and welcome hint of sweet. I customized the original recipe by using a mixture of romaine lettuce and my own homegrown sorrel, and layering it in a quart jar. Sorrel has a bit of a lemony taste making it perfect with this salad combination. It pairs beautifully with the lime vinaigrette and really makes the flavor of the berries pop. (For the complete recipe, check my blog http://pattietierney.blogspot.com) This salad, and many others, are restaurant quality, and make a satisfying and filling meal when paired with a crusty piece of bread or tasty biscuit or muffin.

I highly recommend this wonderful book. No matter how many cookbooks you have in your collection, make room for this one. You'll thank me later.

[Jocelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

ok - this is a good one.
mainly because it is not complex (it also lost a star for not being complex enough ... a tricky line to navigate)

it irks me when i look at a cookbook and it has ridiculous ingredients i would ... probably never find, never mind buy.
OR if it calls for eighth teaspoons for things that i can only buy in bulk :::: bulk product goes to waste on shelf, yadda yadda.
this, i think, is a common problem for several people.

mirabella is not a chef, she is a lawyer, so i think she simply had the $$ to publish a book, and made some salads at home, and decided to E.L. James it and publish something she loved.
and since she's not Top Chef-ing it 24/7, and instead just shoving things in jars that she finds at the farmers market, everything is pretty simple to access.
for example, one salad is avocado, kale, mango and red onion (oh, and lemon vinaigrette dressing, which the recipe for is basically just lemon juice and oil)
see?
nothing too crazy ass, but also, by adding the mango, it goes a little outside the "come on, i can put avocado on kale without some book telling me to."
so yea.

but some do have the "seriously?" pull to them :
orange, grapes, mango, kiwi, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries.
OK, mirabella. you gave me a fruit salad recipe.
i think i coulda figured out fruit salad.

and then the
'other lunch ideas!'
is just (basically) "use your mason jar as tupperware!"
some of the recipes were 'yes, i will cook this!'
but some were "we are just putting tortellini with pesto in a salad jar, mirabella."

so, yes ::: this is a good brain boost when it comes to salads!!
i definitely updated my grocery list while reading it.

oh yea : and she says at the beginning to microwave your mason jar freely (for when you transport leftovers) ... i have a feeling she shoulda added a disclaimer to take off the lid first.

[Lori Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this for my husband, as there's definitely a trick to not getting a soggy mess at lunch time. I was impressed by the feasibility of the salads...sometimes you get a cook book and you have no idea what an ingredient us or the combination sounds disgusting. Beautifully illustrated as well.

A keeper.

[Kellea · Rating 2 out of 5]

As someone who is always trying to come up with new ways to incorporate more salad into my life, I was excited, at first, to read this book. However, while the cover of the book is intriguing, I was not impressed as much, by the lack of other photos in the book. And, to me, many of the recipes were a little boring.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this on the Goodreads Giveaway and it is really terrific! The pictures are wonderful and the advise is terrific! I will quote my daughter when she looked at this book, "I would eat everything in here!" Highly recommend! :)

[Rochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic recipe book that not only includes mason jar salads that can be made a week in advance but also lunches, snacks and smoothies.

This is an essential book for any working person and most importantly for super moms who are often juggling work and kids and after school activities. With this book, you can spend about 3 - 4 hours on a Sunday and pack Breakfast and Lunch for 5 days or more for yourself and the entire family.

There are ideas for snacks and dips that I simply adore and what’s more I can even pack smoothies that can be blended in the jar using an immersion blender (can it be more simpler than that?).

If you are a batch cooking fanatic like me, and looking to eat the freshest in season fruits and vegetables, with the least amount of wastage then this is definitely the book for you.

[Jonii · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were a lot of great tips in here: from selecting jars to how best to layer ingredients so your salads stay fresh longer. Most of the recipes sounded absolutely delicious and had (win!) plenty of pictures to whet your appetite. I consider this book, which I checked out from KCLS, to be one to permanently add to your cookbook collection.

[~Vixhen~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great! It has tons of ideas for healthy eating using a mason jar as your building block. I like that there are breakfast options - mostly smoothies. There are salads and other lunch ideas which include pasta, some chicken and a lot of vegetarian options. This book has a lot of variety and the pictures are gorgeous. Everything looks yummy and I can't wait to try some of the recipes.

[Tricia Woods · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really appreciate this book for practical, healthy eating on the go. One day of washing, slicing, dicing, roasting, and ordered layering results in lots of grab & go meals and snacks for the week. The directions are straight forward, easy to follow, and easy to remember. The pictures are lovely too! This book pairs well with a CSA share.

[MichMali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get this & great Gift

For me this wasn’t your typical mason jar “cookbook”. I loved how everything was broken down and how these were pantry staples in your kitchen. No nonsense, fancy, BS ~ just straight to the point deliciousness and easy to follow recipes. Would recommend this Grab & Go for the simple at heart and it would make a GREAT GRADUATION gift.

[Kim Engle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good intro I guess but I found that there was a bit too much cooking for my taste. Kind of like the crock pot books that require you to cook ingredients prior to slow cooking. IMO it defeats the purpose. Better info online.

[Mairead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the ideas here for meal prep!

[Peg Voth · Rating 4 out of 5]

many helpful and healthful hints and ideas

[Silvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, recipes are easy and you can eventually use your own ideas. If you do not have a lot of time to cook and want to eat healthy, this book is for you.

[Klyon · Rating 2 out of 5]

cute, but not really necessary or practical

[Lotzastitches · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yum!

[Kristen Barenthaler · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing overly spectacular to blow your mind. Pretty common salads and lunch ideas just stuffed into a mason jar.

[Wanda Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cookbook review

A great deal of imagination was used to create the recipes for this cook book. I tried several of the recipes. They were easy and very good.

[Virginia Johnston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't wait to try.

I read the book and the instructions were clear. Anyone should be able to make these salads. I am looking forward to having these in the fridge.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mason Jar Salads and More is a cookbook that contains a bunch or recipes that you pack into a mason jar. The title makes you think it's just a bunch of lettuce mixtures but there really is a lot more to it than that. There are smoothies, oatmeal, pasta, bean, dip recipes in this book. I was really excited to give this book a try because I've always wondered about those mason jar meals you see online. I don't only use it for quick on the go lunches, I use it for last minute I-don't-feel-like-cooking dinners as well.

The first recipe I tried for the guacamole salad. Primarily because the Mr. has been on a guacamole kick lately. No seriously, we have a container of guacamole in the fridge at all times because he munches on it just about every night. So this was the perfect recipe to try. I made his with chicken and mine without and I must say that the salad was delicious. You don't make guacamole, instead you chop up all the components of guacamole and layer them into the jar and let the flavors comes together. You end up with one delicious salad that resembles the guacamole dip.

The second recipe we tried was the lentil squash. I have been in a fall kick since September rolled around. So I decided to give this recipe a shot. I made a large amount of it so that we could have it for dinner that night. Then I let the ingredients cool down and put the rest into jars for later. I must say that it was just as good warmed up a couple days later as it was the day of. I put smaller mason jars for quick side dishes for later dinners.

If you are a busy person or just want to do some make ahead meals, this is a great book to have in your back pocket. Not only do you get recipes for meals, but Julia gives you recipes for salad dressings that you will use with the recipes. You literally made everything from start to finish. Which in my opinion makes the recipes that much more delicious. Plus, my favorite feature from the cookbook are all the mouthwatering pictures. My biggest gripe about cookbooks is when they don't have pictures in them. I'm a visual person and want to look at what I'm making, and thank goodness this one does. I really could go on and on about this book. I have only tried a couple recipes so far but I plan on trying more recipes in the very near future.

[Narita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have looked at many books on Mason Jar Salads and I have to rate this one as the best. The author’s information about the how’s and why’s of jar salads is concise and to the point. I loved the step by step pictorial of how to assemble one. She also shares some special tips I had not seen or thought of.
As a widow I struggle with not only eating, but eating healthy. The publisher’s book Muffin Tin Chef was a big help in cooking for me. But I have found myself as time goes on wanting something FAST and EASY; the latter meaning little effort. Let’s face it, 99% of the time, fast does not equal healthy. This book fits both of those needs and throws in HEALTHY too!
The pictures are wonderful! The visuals really help me in picking a recipe, and every recipe has one. They are all very practical and down to earth, yet creative and tasty. Any ingredient I might not like or don’t have are easily substituted. Tips are dispersed throughout the book to make your jar salads even better.
The book includes recipes for breakfast, salads (of course), lunches, meals you can heat in the jar, snacks and dips, and dressings. With 50 recipes you are promised lots of variety to choose from!
Since motivation is an issue, I like having something premade and ready to eat for several meals. Not only will I get the nutrition I need, but also feel good about having eaten period! I wonderful book everyone should own!
I received a copy of this book free from Ulysses Press . I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mason Jar Salads
Julia Mirabella

Subtitled ’50 Layered Lunches to Grab & Go,’ Mason Jar Salads presents delicious-sounding alternatives to a limp sandwich in a plastic bag or expensive and fattening fast food.

Mirabella suggests about 30 salad combinations (with easy dressings), as well as breakfasts, soups, and dips, to pack into pint or quart wide-mouthed Mason jars. The recipes give instructions about how to layer the jars to insure crisp vegetables. Most recipes make one lunch, and many of them can be prepared several days in advance.

Just imagine the envy of your co-workers when you tip your Mason jar’s yummy and nutritious contents into your salad bowl, while they nuke salt-laden frozen food or leftovers.

[Lilah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a number of salad options that use seasonal ingredients. The author uses different types of greens including some that are found during the spring and fall seasons. She also includes salads with fruit and grains. There were some twists on the jar salad such as the caprese salad which used slices of tomato and cheese instead of chopped ingredients. One strength is that there are number of vinaigrette ideas. I was not crazy about the breakfast section which included a lot of smoothies. Part of the versatility of the mason jar is that you can prepare foods ahead of time - but this is not the case with the smoothies. There were a number of pasta dishes. I was more interested in the salads and could have lived with fewer pasta dishes.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

If nothing else, this book gave me some great ideas for salads. Several people who saw me reading this book asked, "Why the jar? Can't you just put it in a plastic container?" I mean, if I heard that once, I heard that fifty times. But I say, hey, kudos to the author for being so passionate about Mason Jars and sharing these great recipes in a book that I thought was very beautifully represented by such colorful photos. It's all about presentation and that's what made me pick up the book in the first place.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this book 5 stars just from reading the recipes and looking at the beautiful photographs. I reserve the option to amend my rating after trying some of the recipes. I'm not convinced that sliced apples and cubed avocado will not turn brown in the packed jars but we shall see. If nothing else, the vinaigrette recipes sound easy and delicious. I checked this book out of my library and will buy it if the recipes pan out.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. This is basically just advocating pre-packaging your lunches for the week, using the current mason jar trend as a sell-point.

Some all-right recipes, but all common things. The useful idea that is the cornerstone of this book is putting the dressing/sauce on the bottom of the container so the rest of the food doesn't get soggy during the ensuing couple days.
Otherwise, some regular soup or pasta made in a regular way is not special because you're portioning it out into mason jars.

[Tressa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was skeptical when I first started reading Mason Jar Salads and More, but it is an intriguing idea. I do like that the mason jar is usually more compact than other containers. Once I acquire a set of mason jars, I’ll have to re-read this cookbook again and try several recipes as the photographs were quite enticing.

[Sonya · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of these recipes especially the smoothies, oatmeal and salads are delicious and easy and inexpensive to make. I quit using Tupperware and started using the mason jars it saves room in my small fridge and the food tastes crisper and stores longer. I really enjoyed this book and quick, easy recipes.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice selection of recipes for salads and other meals. My only complaint is that you need a bowl/plate to eat the salad at work. This could be a problem in workplaces that don't have a staff kitchen or storage area. But overall a great idea for busy people who want healthy meals.

[Alana · Rating 5 out of 5]

good recipes.