School lunch ideas

[msufan]

Go ahead and make it a public post not a PM, because I would love it, too. We all obviously need some new lunch ideas!

 

[mom4graceandlogan]

Be sure to read the label on nutella when making a decision. After seeing the commercials and letting my daughter try it and fall in love with it, I compared it to the betty crocker chocolate frosting in my cabinet and the nutella had more sugar and fat per serving. We won't be eating it anymore. Too me it is like dessert and we just don't do dessert.

 

[Harlie]

Try having a peanut free school and having a kid with a severe mold allergy! He can't have most deli meats or most processed cheese. It make lunches nearly impossible. It just irritates me that they banned the one but not the other when there are more children out there with mold allergies then with peanut allergies.

It is a good thing that our boy likes tuna and egg salad!

 

[pigletto]

The thermos reigns supreme around here. And sending a hot lunch feels better to me during Canadian winters
I end up sending mainly leftovers in the thermos. Generally because if I made it for dinner, I already know they like it, and it's a time and money saver.
Anything goes in the thermos.. meat and potatoes, soups, stews, mac and cheese, pastas, e.t.c.
DD 13 is vegetarian so it's a little trickier.. but again.. if I made a pot of veggie chili on the weekend it's super easy to pop leftovers in her thermos.
DS will be going for lunch this year as well, and I imagine I'll use the same method. The only sandwhich he will eat is PB&J and we have a peanut free school as well.
Some snacks we rely on are fruit, cheese, crackers, yoghurt, raisins, veggies and hummus, low salt tortilla chips and salsa, cream cheese and bagels, and of course cookies or muffins now and then.
Invest in some plastic containers of all sizes, you'll save a fortune on baggies (as long as your kids bring them home).

 

[tigger51276]

I let my DD6 buy lunch once a week and pack it the other 4 days. She gets a piece of fruit or applesauce, yahoo chocolate drink, preztels or a 100 calorie pack and then either a bologne and cheese sandwich, pb and fluff (my DD's school has a peanut free table in the cafeteria for those who can't have peanuts), bagel w/cream cheese, yogurt with granola. Sometimes I send her cereal in a tupperware bowl and she'll buy a milk at school for it. Also in the winter on a cold day I'll make her ramen noodle soup and put it in her thermos bowl and pack some saltines or oyster crackers and sometimes i'll also put mac and cheese in the thermos bowl. I always asked her how the hot items hold up and she never complained about it. And cereal was always a huge hit.

 

[DawnM]

http://www.lhms.org/nut-free-lunch-ideas.html

 

[PollyannaMom]

DS wouldn't take sandwiches for a long time either. - He went through a string cheese phase, a rolled up deli ham phase, and a cheese and crackers phase. Oh, and I remember taking hard boiled eggs sometimes as a kid.

 

[MattMatts-Momma]

I am looking for new ideas also. My son could eat the same thing everyday, I was so sick of making ham and cheese sandwiches last year I could have screamed.

 

[katybugsmom]

Im a parent with a child that has a severe peanut allergy. I always feel like I have to apologize to all the parents in her class. Trust me it tough !! There are 3 kids in her school with the Nut allergy and they group them together in the same class. Her class is peanut free but not the whole school. Its scary. She starts 1st grade next week and Im already dreading field trips etc. People just don't understand. Lunches are hard for us as well. She loves fruit and veggies so I stick to mainly that plus string cheese, lunch meat with crackers. Its hard to think of new things. The cafeteria lunches at her school are awful. We might try the thermos with soup this year. Thanks for the ideas.

I feel your pain! I teach 4K and we have had several children with severe allergies within our school. Last year we had a child with peanut allergies so severe that we had epi-pens in 3 or 4 different places. We are not a peanut free school, but I can understand why so many schools are doing this. Thankfully we didn't have a single incident with this child. We did have a special table set up for allergies and I'm grateful there was more than 1 child so no one had to sit alone. We also took out anything in the teacher's lounge that contained nuts of any kind and asked the staff to watch what they ate while at school. I know that sounds drastic, but we didn't give it a second thought! It's really not as hard as people think to be precautious-it just takes a lot of planning and awareness on the part of everyone.
I would hate to be a parent of a child with a severe allergy if I felt the school wasn't doing everything it could to protect my child-imagine the worry these parents go through each day! I actually have a child coming this year with lots of food allergies, but I'm not worried! I know we will do everything we can to keep her safe and sound!

 

[mickeyluv]

I make chicken, tuna and ham salad wraps and freeze them. I make enough to last 3-4 weeks. DH takes them too. Let me know if you want the recipe. I'd be happy to share.

I also take string cheese and wrap lunch meat around it. Stick it with a few toothpicks and slice into bites. DD loves anything on a toothpick. She got mad at me one time for not packing an extra one for her fruit. She had to use a spoon. Imagine!

Whole grain tortillas with cream cheese. Cold pizza other leftovers.

I'd also like this recipe...could you pm me too?

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

Just an FYI, if anyone wants to try Sun Butter as a PB substitute, I saw that Target now sells it. I remember a few years ago before DD turned 2 I had to go to Whole Foods to get it.

 

[PixiePlanner]

Since so many of you asked, I will post. I stumbled on a recipe online and then changed it to suit my needs. Please, make the recipe your own: just use my ideas as a guide.

FYI all the recipes contain cream cheese as mayo doesn't freeze well. If you don't like cc, I'm sorry.

For all the wraps, I try to use whole grain tortillas(DH prefers flour) as I am trying to increase fiber and protein in DD's diet. (You can use bread, buns or rolls too.) For variety, I sometimes "fill" a tortilla and fold it like a burrito. Usually, I spread the the tortilla with my 2-3 tbls of filling, roll it and cut it in half. I then wrap both halves together in wax or parchment paper or use baggies. I then put all of these in a big freezer bag and label.

Chicken, Ham or Tuna Salad

-2 cans of "meat" (found near the tuna) or you can use chicken you have cooked yourself. I would suggest about 2 cups diced. If using Deviled Ham, use 4 cans.
-8 oz cr cheese-softened. I use the light.
-2 tbls lemon juice
-2 tbls Miracle Whip (if you don't have, no biggie)
-1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
-S&P to taste

This is the bare basic recipe. To the chicken & tuna, I add about 1/2c frozen peas. To the ham, I add about 1/2c frozen corn. I also have added shredded carrots for more color. Sometimes I add dry onion flakes too... depends on my mood.

Anyway, put all of your incredients together in a bowl and mix. I use my electric hand mixer and it is done in a flash.

It does take time to sit there and make up the wraps so if time doesn't allow, cover, refrigerate and finish the next day.

Now for the best part... Morning comes and you need to make a lunch... You have a selection to offer and it takes no time! It thaws by lunch.

 

[mommyoeo]

For all the wraps, I try to use whole grain tortillas(DH prefers flour) as I am trying to increase fiber and protein in DD's diet. (You can use bread, buns or rolls too.) For variety, I sometimes "fill" a tortilla and fold it like a burrito. Usually, I spread the the tortilla with my 2-3 tbls of filling, roll it and cut it in half. I then wrap both halves together in wax or parchment paper or use baggies. I then put all of these in a big freezer bag and label.

Anyway, put all of your incredients together in a bowl and mix. I use my electric hand mixer and it is done in a flash.

Now for the best part... Morning comes and you need to make a lunch... You have a selection to offer and it takes no time! It thaws by lunch.

Utterly brilliant! Thanks for sharing!! My children will LOVE these.

 

[PixiePlanner]

I forgot about DD's favorite wrap recipe!

Bean Wraps

1 can of refried black beans
8 oz cream cheese-softened
2 tbls lemon juice
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tbls onion flakes

Mix together and spread on tortillas! Yum!

 

[Sugar Jones]

My kids school is peanut free and has since they've started so it's been easy to adjust

bagel/with strawberry cream cheese
cheese & crackers
veggies & dip
yogurt drinks
grapes, yogurt & cheese wraps
grahm crackers with a side of strawberry cream cheese (send popsicle stick for spreading)

They each have a thermos as well for soup, spagetti, Zoodles, oatmeal etc.... nice for cold winter days.

Just read lables carefully because it's surprising what "may contain traces of peanuts"

I just try to think about being the Mom of the child with the peanut allergy and then it's easy to make the effort to find fun, affordable peanut free lunches

 

[PixiePlanner]

Utterly brilliant! Thanks for sharing!! My children will LOVE these.

DD ate these atleast 4 days a week. DH saw me making her lunch and asked if he could try one. He actually takes two for his lunch.

The ham one also makes a good dip w/ pretzels.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Great thread! I'm looking for ideas too!

 

[LittleMissDisney]

We love a bento style lunch here. Check out lunch in a box for ideas. We don't do full on asian bento here but I've adapted a lot of the ideas and cute and cut presentation means more often my son will actually eat his lunch (instead of talking...such a chatterbug...dh says's he gets it from me)

Here are some more kid friendly bento sites (even if you don't bento it might inspire different lunch choices)

Wendolonia
Everyday things

 

[apnep]

I have deceided that this year I am packing lunches instead of buying from the school. Also, our school has gone peanut free. I could always get by with a PB&J, but my kids are very picky. Now without PB&J, what do I pack? Any suggestions?

So YOU can't send anything with nuts? Really?

 

[Tosie]

I have deceided that this year I am packing lunches instead of buying from the school. Also, our school has gone peanut free. I could always get by with a PB&J, but my kids are very picky. Now without PB&J, what do I pack? Any suggestions?

Have you tried Sunbutter instead of peanut butter? My peanut allergic dd eats this - it's made fom sunflower seeds and tastes almost exactly like peanut butter. My dh actually prefers it to peanut butter now. It is pricey - I buy it in Target for about $6.59 BUT as a parent of a food allergic child it's very easy to dismiss the expense.