school lunches???

[christine in al]

have a 10 year old and an 8 year old, they are off to school for the spring..

lunches?? I have no clue about lunches?

 

(small , one-room style school house, must take lunch.)

 

beyond BP&J, does anyone have any great lunch ideas?

 

thanks,

~Christine

Edited December 14, 2010 by christine in al
clarity.. well attempting it.

[Laura Corin]

But I tend to make lunch for breakfast. Wraps are good: choosing from cheese, ham, prawn, tuna.... In each case I add a little mayonnaise and a lot of tomato/cucumber/other veg. That plus a piece of fruit makes a good meal. I buy whole-grain wraps.

 

FWIW I wouldn't suggest PB&J - too much sugar, not enough fresh fruit/veg.

 

Laura

[fairytalemama]

My daughter loves hummus and pita, veggies and dip, pieces of fruit, cheese sticks, and soup or pasta in a Thermos.

 

One book I would recommend to check out of the library to get some fresh and different ideas is Vegan Lunch Box. Even if you're not vegetarian or vegan, it gets you out of the mind set of a piece of lunch meat on a piece of bread for lunch.

[hsmom]

fruit cups, crackers with meat and cheese, mini sub sandwiches, freeze go-gurts and by lunch they are perfect. There is tons and tons of things.

 

My oldest doesn't like meat and cheese sandwiches, he will only eat pb&j's. I just try to find a low sugar jelly.

[christine in al]

I forgot hummus!!

I was a Unitarian for 20 years, how could I forget hummus.

 

 

thanks all,

'Is there such thing as a thermos " dish"? ds would love leftovers. If he hasn't eaten them for breakfast. :-)

oh , and I'll check out the vegan book.. more fruit and veg will be great.

 

thansk for helping me " think outside the (lunch) box"

 

~christine in al

[mich311e]

My son likes PB&J almost every time he takes his lunch. And it's the only thing I know for sure he'll eat. Turkey sandwiches get sent home half eaten.

 

We use whole grain bread with no HFCS. We use natural, organic peanut butter and organic blueberry preserves. And we usually send an organic apple. At least I know he eats. :)

[wapiti]

cheese stick, salami and crackers

 

boxed milk from Costco (plain or chocolate)

[Caroline]

I send--carrot sticks, muffins, bagels, pb&j on whole grain bread, fresh fruit, yogurt, cottage cheese, soup in a thermos, macaroni and cheese...

[Pippen]

I have a small stainless thermos that I use for hot stuff. When I make soups and chilli I make extra and freeze single serving size amounts in canning jars (freeze first then add the lids and rings). I can put those in the fridge the night before or heat them up gradually in warm water before microwaving. This method has been easiest for me and then she's not just getting the leftovers we ate the night before.

 

The food will stay warmer if you pour boiling water into the thermos 15 minutes in advance.

 

Most of the time I go with the same formula--1 main item, 1 bread if not included in main dish, 1 fruit or veggie, 1 dairy (organic chocolate milk, string cheese, babybell cheese) , something crunchy (nuts of carrots), and one small treat (often a small piece of dark chocolate).

[YourFidgetyFriend]

I always send 1 main dish, 1 fruit, 1 snack. The main dish is usually grilled cheese (wrapped in a napkin and put in a sandwich holder), macaroni, spaghetti (I always have her wear a navy top from the choice of navy or white on those days), stir fry, soup, quinoa and rice (Seeds of Change brand), or ravioli. Every now and then she gets pizza. The fruit is pretty much just whatever fruit we have at the time but generally berries, apples, or grapes. The snack is usually crackers, cheese, yogurt, or dried fruit. I usually send water with her lunch, but every now and then I mix sparkling water with juice (one of her favorite things in the world). I've sent chocolate almond milk before for a treat, but it was a hassle cleaning it out of her bottle.

 

My daughter won't touch a sandwich other than cheese and there usually isn't much meat around the house anyway since I'm a vegetarian (although I'm the only veg in the house, I'm also the primary shopper). My daughter hates peanut butter (actually jelly, too) so no peanut butter sandwich variations. I always think she is some alien child because I love peanut butter so much I eat it out of the jar with a spoon.

[christine in al]

Pippen,

I love the single servings in the freezer idea. I am aways making extra and making two meals while I'm cooking the first one,, , shoot, meaning I make enough for two meals if I can... but I hadn't thought of single servings.

 

~c.

 

And salami and crackers..

 

 

And I'm still looking for a cheap copy of the vegan lunch box.

~c.

[Deb in NZ]

Ds#2 begins highschool @ PS in February. We follow the Pacific 3 food groups in our family. Each meal includes 1+ Body-building food (protein, i.e. meat, dairy, etc), 1+ Healthy food (i.e. fruit or veg.), & 1+ Energy food (i.e. bread, cereal, starchy veg., sweet, etc.) His lunch choices will be:

 

1 main item (protien & "bread")

----filled roll (sub), wrap, pita pocket, calzone, cheese & crackers, potato salad w/egg, tuna mac salad, etc.

 

1 seasonal fruit

----apple, mandarin, fejoia, kiwifruit, grapes, strawberries, etc.

 

1 baggie of seasonal veggie sticks

----carrot, bell pepper, cucumber, cherry tomato, etc.

 

1 dairy item

----usually yogurt :)

 

1 "treat"

----homemade cookies, muffins, cupcakes, granola bar, etc.

 

If ds#2 has sport practice directly after class, I'll add in a frozen liquid breakfast milkshake box & extra museli bar for afternoon tea.

 

dd & ds#1 take left-overs for lunch at 'Tec, but they have access to a micowave.

 

HTH,

Edited December 16, 2010 by Deb in NZ

[Laura Corin]

Thanks for informing this information.

 

Laura

[LibraryLover]

HA!

 

This reminds me of a stand- up routine my oldest did as a young teen for a Children's Sunday program. "When I was a little kid we never went to McDonalds, but we always went to chruch. So for like 5 years whenever the subject of temple and church affiliation came up, I told people I was a member of The Frist Vegetarian Church downtown."

 

I guess it's a UU thing, because the whole congregation roared.

 

I forgot hummus!!

I was a Unitarian for 20 years, how could I forget hummus.

 

 

thanks all,

'Is there such thing as a thermos " dish"? ds would love leftovers. If he hasn't eaten them for breakfast. :-)

oh , and I'll check out the vegan book.. more fruit and veg will be great.

 

thansk for helping me " think outside the (lunch) box"

 

~christine in al

[christine in al]

so far the most important thing I've discovered is CONTAINERS. ds has a good collection of containers, and dd fell in love with a Bento Box Laptop Lunchbox and paid for some of it herself. We both love it. everything fits.

We've had a good first week with pretty healthy things getting taken. Bread machine is out of the cabinet and we've had two loaves this week.

 

Heating the thermos with boiling water helped. Hot water wasn't enough.

 

And Deb in NZ, thanks for your breakdown of categories.

 

Christine in al.