kind classics: how to pack a healthy lunch that your kids will actually eat
Now that school's in full swing, I thought I'd share this one from the archives...enjoy!
I found this great article on Girlie Girl Army and thought I'd share these tips with all you kind moms!
How to Pack a Healthy Lunch that You Feel Good About and Your Children Actually Eat!
Lunches are such a tricky thing; on one hand all of the children are comparing what they got in their lunchboxes (and do you really want them to be the ones with the lame lunch?). And, on the other hand, you want to send them off with something nutritious to fuel them through their day that you feel good about and that they will eat! If this is your conundrum, read on!
Most Mom's Lunchbox Criteria are that the lunch must:
- Be quick and easy to pack.
- Be healthy and include fruits and/or vegetables.
- Contain foods kids will actually eat.
This Insulated Cow Lunch Bag (pvc-free/ ethically made and $30) is a perfect way for your kid to explain why s/he doesn't eat animals!
Some Healthful Hints to Improve the 'Lunch Box Battles'
Get your kids involved in the shopping and/or preparation and ask what they like. Take them somewhere like Whole Foods or your local healthy grocery shop and let them pick out some healthy options for their lunchboxes. Spend some time in the produce section and let them experiment with some different fruits. If your child normally only eats apples, try the cherries if they are in season! Buy a few mangos, a box of strawberries or some clementines. These make healthy, delicious lunchbox additions as well! Encourage them to make their own decisions as to what they want to try- whether it is a new type of drink or treat. They will be much more likely to embrace it if they have chosen it. Do not and I repeat do not take them to a big grocery store where the aisles are lined with potato chips and cheese puffs!
Buy a lunchbox that is easy to use and that your child likes!
My children use the Lands End ones but there are many other fun ones to choose from these days! One of my favorite companies is Laptop Lunches, which has fun bento box style lunchboxes and also a wide variety of fantastic lunchbox ideas!
Include multiple colors & textures into their lunches.
When we are at a restaurant, we like a variety of colors and textures on our plates and kids are like that too! Pack a soft sandwich, crunchy carrot sticks and creamy vegan yogurt for a satisfying combo. For nursery age children, cut their sandwiches into shapes and make fun things like "ants on a log" (celery filled with vegan cream cheese topped with raisons.)
Include condiments in their lunchboxes!
Condiments are not just for grown-ups, and children love, love, love to squirt and dip things. You could include hummus or ranch dressing to dip carrots into, ketchup for a tofu dog, or even maple syrup to dip a grilled almond butter and jelly sandwich into- yum!
Leftovers are great for lunch!
Get out of the 'grilled daiya cheese and pb&j thinking' and be experimental with what you include. Did you have grilled tofu the night before? Then wrap up the tofu in a wrap! Have pasta the night before? Include that too! You will be surprised how much more your children will enjoy their lunches, and eat them! Lunch boxes don't have to- and shouldn't- contain the usual sandwich every day! If you do pack a sandwich, vary the bread- serve it on whole wheat one day, a wrap the next, a pita the next and try to add vegetables such as lettuce and tomato when you can.
Last, but certainly not least, remember to always pack a treat!
When your child opens their lunchbox you don't want them to be the only one without something to look forward to! So, make sure when you are at the grocery store with them that they pick out something that is delicious but not high in sugar, high fructose corn syrup and saturated fat! I keep a variety on hand and just vary which one I throw in their lunchboxes.
Below are some specific ideas for you:
'The Cheat Sheet'
Main Course (choose one):
- PB&J with a twist- use almond butter & banana grilled on a whole wheat served with a side of agave
- Smart Dogs- in a bun or rolled up with vegan cheese in a tortilla
- Vegan Cheese Quesadillas on corn tortillas with a side of salsa
- 'Perfectly Healthy' Veggie Pancakes (recipe below)- cook it the night before & serve at dinner, then heat it up in the morning and pack it the next day (these also freeze well)
- Avocado & tomato sandwich
- 'Mexican Sushi' (see recipe below)
- Vegan chicken nuggets with organic ketchup for dipping
Snacks (choose one):
- Fruit- bananas, apples, oranges, clementines, cherries, or grapes
- Vegan Yogurt- (choose one high in acidophilis and low in sugar)
- Carrots sticks with hummus for dipping
- Celery sticks filled with vegan cream cheese
- Dried fruits (no-sugar)- raisins, apricots, bananas, papaya or mango
- Trail mix (no-sugar)- try one with Goji berries for iron and Vitamin C
- Veggie Booty (Roberts American Gourmet)
- Spelt Pretzels
- Organic 'Cheese' Crackers by Eco-Planet
- Treats (every lunchbox must have a treat, right!?!)
- Organic animal crackers
- Newman's Own "oreo" cookies
- Late July peanut butter crackers
(Some snacks via Vegan Girl Next Door)
Drinks (choose one):
- Always pack them a big bottle of water in a bottle of their choosing as well and encourage them to drink it throughout the day! Opt out of the sports drink route, unless you find some without added sugar!
- Honest Kids- (fun squeeze packs) comes in Tropical Tango, Goodness Grapeness or Berry, Berry Good Lemonade
- Apple & Eve All-Natural Apple Juice (box)
- Vruit Carrot Apple Juice (box)
- R.W. Kudsens Spritzers- Lemonade, Red Rasberry or Grape (can- they think it is soda!)
- Vita Coco Coconut Water (box)
- Good, Old-Fashioned Water!
Good luck and good packing! Do you have any great tips for packing kids' lunches?
More Parenting Stories:
Breastfeeding 101
The Continuum Concept
Fatim's Superhero Baby
Kind Cuties
17 comments
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Great idea's! ok this question is not about this topic,I 've been trying to find a really good selftan cream.does anybody know of an organic healthy one besides sitting in the sun ??
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My high school aged boys love wraps. They're not always quick and easy, but you can hide all kinds of goodies in them! I grate some carrot, chop up some lettuce and kale, slice tomato and avocado, then assemble it all in a whole wheat tortilla with vegan lunchmeat and cheese, garbanzo bean salad, mashed beans or leftover "meatloaf" along with whatever leftover veggies I have on hand- steamed broccoli, zucchini, whatever! With a little mustard, mayo, balsamic salad dressing, guacamole, or whatever condiment strikes my fancy! I've had the boys come home from school with requests from their friends to pack them a wrap, too!
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Great post! I like to encourage healthy eating habits in my family, including my toddler. I don't have experience in packing school lunches yet, but I do have a blog that contains many healthy baby and child-friendly recipes, many vegan and vegetarian. Take a look: healthymommyhealthybaby.blogspot.com.
I love the bento system too, Dawn! Laptop makes the coolest lunch boxes
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For some great lunch menu ideas and recipes, check out, www.laptoplunches.com. They are awesome! Our entire family uses their products, so we're able to enjoy the foods we like wherever we go. Their boxes are made in the US and allow us to pack an entire meal without any disposable products!
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More people need to write about healthy lunches for kids and even adults too. Seriously when I was in school I wish someone would have packed me some health food. : /
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Hi everyone, here are the recipes from Girly Girl Army!
Perfectly Healthy Pancakes
Vegan pancake and waffle mixEgg replacerRice (or almond/ hemp/ soy/ oat/ coconut) milkButternut squash (can also use zucchini)Walnuts- chopped (optional)Olive oil (to coat pan)Flax seed oilMaple syrup
Puree whatever vegetable or fruit you are using (this can be done ahead of time and frozen in tupperware to defrost later). In a bowl mix the pancake mixture, egg replacer, vegan milk, puree, and flax seed (again, this can be done the night before and kept in the fridge if your mornings are as rushed as mine!) Coat a nonstick skillet (or if making "waffles", a waffle iron) with olive oil and cook. Serve warm with maple syrup, vegan yogurt or fruit (however your crew likes it!)
Mexican Sushi Wrap
tomatos and/or avocados Cream cheese (use Tofutti or Follow Your Heart brand)Tortilla Wrap (preferably whole wheat or sprouted tortillas)
Liberally spread the vegan cream cheese over the tortilla and layer with tomatos and/or avocados . Roll up the wrap "sushi style" and cut into ¼ inch slices, and you're done! You can also fill the wraps with other veggies, vegan meats, and/ or grill up some vegan sausages and throw in some sprouts.
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Come learn more about Healthy School Food at the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food annual Fall Gala: Healthy Food in Fashion. It's next Wednesday, October 12, from 6:30 - 9:30 pm at the New York Academy of Medicine at 1216 Fifth Avenue (corner of 103rd) in NYC. Learn more and reserve here: www.healthyschoolfood.org/events.htm
Enjoy food from more than 20 vegan restaurants/caterers, a unique fashion show, a silent and live auction, book raffle, and great music. Everything plant-based!!!
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That picture up top is from a post on my blog, It's Easy Being Vegan, when I was sending care packages to my neices. I haven't done that in awhile. I need to get back to that!
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Great stuff! Packing 3 vegan lunches daily for my boys can be a challenge for sure, especially when they can be so darn picky. I also mentioned some ideas for lunches over at Veggie Kids. http://veggie-kids.blogspot.com/2011/09/vegan-food-pyramid-feeding-your-kids.html
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I don't have kids, but definately still act like one and a favorite healthy snack of mine is Larabars. They come in yummy flavors and are vegan whole food bars. I definately recommend them to kids and adults alike.
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This is so great! Thank you for posting. My little daughter (18 months) just started at day care and I just packed her first "school lunch" last night. Loving the tips
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Ladies, click on the link for Girlie Girl Army and it will take you to the original blog posting so that you can see the recipes "below". :)
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This is such a great article, but I would also like the recipes for Veggie Pancakes and the Mexican Sushi.
Thanks again.
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Thank You for this.
Packing a lunch from home allows us to really be involved in making better choices for our children that foster a lifetime of great eating habits.
When I look at the list above, while these are all vegan the reality is that the amount of hidden sugar is still huge. Just because the sugar may be organic or natural, sugar is sugar, whether it be from a fruit or a cookie or even dried fruit. Bread has sugar in it, crackers have sugar in it, even many spelt pretzles. We are creating a continued desire for that "something sweet" taste from the moment children can chew and now we know the detremental effect sugar and processed foods have on health, it is a wonderful time to train our little treasure's palette.
Children will eat what we feed them. How about we introduce them to sweet cherry tomatoes, and sweet bell peppers or Jicama, along with high water content veggies like cucumbers or celary sticks with almond butter on top. It may take a while but Rome wasn't built in a day ;)
I transitioned my son at 3 yrs old from eating pasta and cheese to a healthy vegan, vegetable filled diet and raised my daughter on a high vegetable (including raw foods) vegan diet. It can be done.
When they take their packed lunches to school, they get so much positive attention and are frequently asked to hold food preparation classes in front of their class as a way to show how to eat better. It is always a positive experience and parents ask me for recipes often.
Healthy food is a passion of mine, and this is not meant, in any way, as a negative post, simply an expansion of the term 'Healthy Lunch"
Thank you for all the awareness you bring to us all.
xx
Fiona
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awesome! Didn't see any recipes though, like for Mexican sushi (said see recipe below) I have found if my girl helps me make the food she is more likely to eat it, although it takes a little long!
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