Back to School: Lunch Box Ideas
Back to school means the not so fun task of ensuring your child eats a well-balanced meal during school hours. It can quickly become difficult to entice your child to eat their lunches and even more difficult to think of new ideas to make it interesting to them. Fear not, you are not alone in this! We have come up with some suggestions to ensure those bellies come back full and the lunch boxes empty!
Frozen Fruity Fun Cups
For those hot summer days at school, an immediate cool down is a must! Why not create some miniature fruit cups into your child’s packed lunch to add some color and a serious cool-down at lunch. Simply combine your chopped, favorite fruits together with a fruity juice e.g. orange or apple, and then freeze them overnight in a single cup container. Add a cup to your child’s lunch box and by lunch, it will have thawed into a slushy, fruity delight!
Double-decker Club Sandwich
Children are always drawn to things that look different, that’s why doubling up your sandwiches will make a simple, yet exciting new twist. An extra tier also allows some leeway for adding a bit more greens and goodness; therefore giving them that extra energy to power through lessons. Simply add some chopped avocado, cherry tomatoes, a handful of rocket leaves, along with some hummus together in rye bread and you are ready to go.
Crunch Cinnamon Apple Bites
With a simple mixture of sugar, ground cinnamon, and slices apples, you can create a delicious crunchy snack that will fit nicely in the lunch box and get 1 of that all-important 5 a day. To make these delicious additions, preheat oven to 250°F, slice apples thinly and sprinkle a combination mixture of the cinnamon and sugar. Bake these delights for approximately 1.5 to 2 hours, turning every 30 minutes until dry.
Traffic-Light Pepper fingers
Does your child love the taste of bell peppers? Why not brighten up their lunch box with chopped red, orange and green peppers into a small cup container. They are an excellent source of a wide range of vitamins and minerals such as B6, A and C!
Pizza Pods
If you are wanting to step away from the sandwich-scene, we have a quirky – yet exciting, alternative guaranteed to be a winner at dinner. Pizza pods are fun little bites that children can enjoy during their school lunch. All that you need is ready-rolled puff pastry, pizza sauce, ham/salami, grated cheese and finely chopped red capsicum! Simply spread the sauce thinly over the sheeted pastry, add the capsicum and then roll the pastry into a scroll. Seal the edges with water and then slice 1cm rounds and then bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
Fun and Fruity Cookies
It’s always nice to add a little treat to finish off a healthy packed lunch. These fruit infused cookies will surely do the trick. Simply combine some butter, maple syrup and sugar in a medium saucepan. Once melted add a mixture of boiling water and bicarbonate of soda and continue to stir to prevent frothing. With a quick mix of rolled oats, flour, and dried fruits; add these to the saucepan and combine. Scoop the mixture into miniature, slightly flattened dough balls and place in oven. Bake for 13-15 minutes and your fruity-fused cookies are ready!