If you're a parent who has children taking lunches to school or you'd rather not let your children eat the school lunches {or your kids WON'T eat the school lunches} then you know how I feel when it comes to "doing it right" for our kids' lunches.
I'm always looking for a healthy, yet 'appetizing' in the eyes of my short people, lunch ideas. These kids need healthy food that will give them energy. I'm trying to give them a decent variety as well.
What are your ideas? Lay them on this Queen...she needs help!
9 Royal Remarks:
We invested in the small lunch Thermos for our kids, and pack them with food in the morning.
I first fill the Thermos with boiling water to get it hot. Then I warm up the lunch. Casseroles and soups work the best. Tortillas get mushy and inedible. Nuggets get one thumb up, one thumb down. Mac & cheese and "real" pasta also work well.
make your own "lunchables"- Rachel Ray has some good ideas. alot of it had peanut butter, so i can't use it. but YOU can, she even made sushie w/ fruit roll ups and rice krispy treats. VERY CUTE!
and i freeze the bread so that the sandwiches are still cold, when lunch time rolls around. try frozen grapes. and freeze the "cookies" too. and maybe once a month i put in a note, cuz now its "TOO EMBARRASSING MOM". oh, and little pinapple juices and apple juice is good too. cute cans. and the disney chocolate milk over by the capri suns is NASTY. You have a good imagination, you will find some GREAT ideas.
I have a couple blue freezer packs (like ice) that keep everything cool. I'm lucky that my son has a microwave available, so I can send things that can be nuked. I've also used the thermos. He loves yogurt, celery sticks with peanut butter, carrot sticks with ranch, cheese sticks, individual containers of peaches, apple sauce, etc can be gotten anywhere and he expecially loves apples. You can cut them up and stick them in a zip lock. If you dip them in pineapple or lemon juice, they won't go brown.
Enjoy the "cold lunch" life. My son loves it. He hates eating the lunch room "guck".
My children have a wonderful lunch room with fridges and microwaves. I'm looking more for ideas that are different- ya know not the same 'ole PB&J.
I like your ideas so far, friends. Thanks!
My kids love salsa and cream cheese mixed together and rolled up in a tortilla for lunch. you could even puree carrots or cauliflower into it for extra veggies without them knowing. I've been using Deceptively Delicious. It is a great cookbook, I always think of what I can hide in what.
Since they have access to a microwave you could also try pita pizza pockets and they can heat them up or eat them cold.
Occasionally, the kids will ask for a home lunch.
Peanut-Butter & Jam sandwiches is what they usually request.(I can't believe they will turn down shrimp poppers for PBJ. To each his own I guess.)
I've also done crispy chicken strips, and crackers and cheese.
I'm glad my kids will eat school lunch, or I'd be in trouble :-). I have a hard time figuring out breakfast and dinner as it is.
I have a hard time coming up with great ideas too, my kids have started this "picky" phase that i am really not liking! Anyway, I am getting a lot of good info from your reader comments! Our stand-by is PBJ, but that's getting old!
Like Don said, we use the thermos a lot. But one of daughter's favorite things to take when she had access to a microwave was mini-pizzas. We would make them as a family and then she would get to take 1 she made herself. Now, our kids' favorite lunches are shepherd's pie and (believe it or not) Annie's Natural Mac & Cheese with all natural hot dogs chopped up in it. Don also makes these great chicken roll-ups that taste just like the ones at McDonalds. The kids love those. Hope this helps!
Glad to read something from you, Kara!! :)
Thank you all for your advice. It was much needed.
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