Need some fresh ideas for lunches? Our busy lifestyles can make it difficult to come up with ideas on what and how to pack the lunch and find time to buy the ingredients! With a little planning, making lunch for the kids can be rewarding and maybe even a little fun! Enjoy these ideas from Kari Thevenot on ways to streamline the process, new lunch packing trends and fresh ideas for sprucing up the lunch hour.
Tips and Tricks
- When possible, make two day’s worth of lunches at one time. This will give you a day off!
- Create a designated area in your kitchen with lunch packing items – food and drink containers, ziploc bags, wet wipes, utensils, etc.
- If your child is eating lunch at school, have your child review the school lunch calendar for the month and mark the days when he/she would definitely want to take a lunch to school. That will allow you to plan ahead.
- Make some notes to put into their lunch boxes – it can be “I love you” or a funny joke. Some children are easily embarrassed, so make sure this is OK with them. Other ideas: stickers, zany band (make sure they aren’t banned at your child’s school) or other small items.
What to Pack?
It’s important that our kids have a well-balanced lunch! Lunch should include a protein, fruits/vegetables, grains, as well as something healthy to drink. Here are some kid-friendly ideas:
Protein
- Tortilla pinwheels with any of the following combinations: cream cheese, ham and cream cheese, jelly and cream cheese, peanut butter and jelly. Healthier options: wheat tortillas, reduced-fat cream cheese, reduced sugar or sugar-free jelly.
- Crackers with cheese and/or meat. Healthier options: reduced fat/sodium crackers, light cheese.
- Sandwiches with meat (with or without cheese). Healthier options: whole grain bread, bread without high fructose corn syrup, light cheese.
- Mini bagels with cream cheese. Healthier option: wheat bagel, reduced-fat cream cheese.
Fruits/Vegetables
- Carrot/Celery sticks with or without Ranch dip. Healthier: light or fat-free Ranch dip.
- Lettuce with Ranch dressing. Healthier: darker leaf lettuce, light or fat-free Ranch dressing.
- Bing cherries (not recommended for younger children because of the pits).
- Fruit cups (applesauce, oranges, etc.). Healthier: fruit in its own juice, not containing high fructose corn syrup.
- Whole fruit (apple, banana, etc.).
- Apple slices (already prepared, or slice your own and sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent browning).
- Grapes (for younger children, be sure to slice the grapes in half).
Snack/Dessert
- Create a snack mix with your child’s favorites – pretzel shapes, goldfish crackers, nuts, M&M’s, etc.
- Nilla wafers with vanilla yogurt. Healthier: low-fat or fat-free yogurt.
- Toasted tortilla chips with cinnamon and sugar sprinkled, serve with applesauce. Healthier: wheat tortillas, all-natural applesauce that hasn’t been sweetened, use the cinnamon sugar sparingly.
- Cut up fruit pieces with vanilla yogurt. Healthier: low-fat or fat-free yogurt.
- Fruit salad (cut up pieces of apples and grapes with a little drizzle of honey or agave nectar for a sweeter treat).
- Small cookie.
- Pretzels with chocolate peanut butter.
Drink
- Juice box. Healthier: all-natural juice which hasn’t been sweetened with sugar.
- Bottled water.
- If your child has a lunch ticket, he/she can still get milk from the school cafeteria.
What other ideas do you have for packing lunches? Send us your ideas!
Need more ideas?
See our School Lunch Faves board on Pinterest.
Submitted by Springfield Moms contributor Kari Thevenot.
