Awesome Lunchbox Lunches
Packed Meals Your Kids Will Love to Take to School
Children may be better off eating a lunch that’s packed and brought from home, but only if they eat what’s inside that lunchbox.
Many parents prefer to send a lunch to school with their children. The quality of food service lunches at public and private schools varies greatly. Many schools don’t monitor what your child is buying for lunch and how much of it gets thrown into the garbage at the end of the lunch period.
Sending a packed lunch with your child gives you control over what he’s munching on at lunch time and allows you to give him the kinds of foods he likes.
If you’re packing your child’s lunch, brainstorm with him first to get ideas of what he will eat and won’t eat in at school.
Keep in mind how much food your child will be hungry for at his lunch time, and what he can open and serve himself. Most kids aren’t picky about food being cold or room temperature. Food that is normally eaten hot, such as chicken strips or English muffin pizzas, are just as good served cold.
For your child’s lunch tomorrow, try some of these packed lunch ideas for kid friendly lunches.
- Wrap sandwiches can be filled with anything from peanut butter and jelly to turkey and cheese with mustard. Lay the filling ingredients on top of a flour tortilla and roll, tucking the ends in as you go. (For easier rolling without rips, heat the tortilla in the microwave for 10 seconds before filling and rolling.)
- Hard boiled eggs sliced in half sprinkled with paprika.
- Leftover grilled chicken cut into strips with ranch dressing for dipping.
- Celery sticks, baby carrots and cucumber slices with dip.
- Cut up apples with caramel dip. (To keep the apple slices from turning brown, brush with a little bit of lemon juice.)
- Yogurt - try sending along some granola or a crunchy cereal like Grape Nuts for your child to add in.
- Fruit – grapes, orange wedges, whole plums or peaches are the easiest and most nutritious foods in your child’s lunchbox.
- Ants on a Log – celery stuffed with peanut butter sprinkled with raisins.
- Cherry tomatoes hollowed out and stuffed with cream cheese.
- Whole wheat or bran muffins with a container of honey nut cream cheese and a plastic knife.
- Mini pocket pitas stuffed with cheese and salsa or turkey and Swiss or tuna salad.
- Peanut butter on whole wheat bread with banana slices and a drizzle of honey. Any sandwich catches a child’s eye and taste buds if the crusts are cut off and it’s cut into a fancy shape with a cookie cutter.
- Rice cake sandwiches – carefully cut a rice cake in half, using a sharp knife. Spread one half with peanut butter and jelly and top with the other half.
- English muffin pizzas – toast and English muffin and spread it with a little pizza sauce and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese. Broil until cheese melts.
