school lunches

[AndreaDM]

I'm in the same rut, but with even fewer choices since DD's school is a peanut free school. PB&J has always been the old standby until this year. I second the funtainer thermoses, we use ours at least once a week with leftovers from the night before. I'm blessed to not have a picky eater at least! We have recently disovered mini pepperoni and she loves to take that with little cheese cubes and crackers. Throw in a piece of fruit and we're good.

 

[cheap traveler]

My DD6 is an awful eater - if I dare to not pack PB&J I will probably hear about it. Finally this year I hit on something she loves. She was always begging me to buy lunchables, but those things are HORRIBLE! So I made her one one day - rolled up turkey, quartered american or colby jack cheese slices, whole wheat crackers in one of her tupperware sandwich containers. Of course I send a fruit, drink, and somthing else along, but usually the fruit comes home un-eaten. I only wish she was like her sister - that girl will eat anything. Her teachers were amazed last year when she devoured a green salad at lunch - 2 years old

 

[DCLbrideSept2009]

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! For one of the posters, no, a microwave is not available for them to use, unfortunately. I made a brief run to the store yesterday and got some Kashi stuff, which I love but are a little pricey sometimes. Next week I'm going to try celery with PB and/or raisins or maybe cream cheese (one of my faves from when i was a kid), PB and apples... will get some whole wheat crackers for their cheese (i have been getting the individually wrapped cheese snack thingies - packs are 2/$5 at Kroger, not too bad... also the string cheese, same). Even though cheap, I'm going to discontinue the cheese/PB cracker packs. Might see about doing up a big bowl of salad too that they can take with dressing on the side. Just gotta see if they'll bring containers home. We go through tons of containers as it is. 2 of our girls dance... one brings dinner 3-4 nights a week and the other 1-2 nights a week, so that's 3-6 containers a week right there for their dinners. (I try to get dinner ready early before they leave for dance so they have an actual dinner, the same thing everyone else is having, everyone else just reheats or it's in the crock pot.)

 

[coliebird]

Today my daughter took spaghetti in a thermos. I gave her an apple and some cheese & crackers.

She loves egg salad. Sometimes on bread, sometimes just in a container. She also loves to make her own salads. I find if I let her cut up her veggies (cucumbers, peppers, onions), she will eat it more often.

I also pack her hard boiled eggs, cheese sticks (she loves the low fat colby jack ones), frozen gogurts, grapes, pretzels, baked chips, bagels & cream cheese.

There are so many things that can be put in a lunch, it doesn't always have to be a sandwich.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I use a formula for my son's lunch/snack -- I've used the same formula since preschool.

1) "entree" -- either a sandwich with whole wheat bread and some kind of low fat lunch meat (turkey or ham) OR a whole grain bagel with cream cheese OR a whole wheat tortilla filled with left over taco meat and cheese, grilled on the Forman grill so it doesn't make a mess OR whole grain crackers, cut up sliced turkey and cheese.

2) "yogurt" -- something fat free and relatively healthy

3) "convenience fruit" -- unsweetened applesauce, or an apple, or a banana, or a little dish of mandarin oranges canned in juice. Basically something I can pick up and throw in.

4) A fruit that actually involves some work (e.g. some grapes I need to wash and put in a bag, cut up kiwi fruit, cut up melon, a cut up orange etc . . . )

5) A vegetable -- mini ear of corn on the cob, or baby carrots, or frozen peas (they just defrost in the bag) or edmame.

It's not perfect -- I wish I was sending home made roasted meat and organic fat free yogurt with fruit puree, but I can put it together in 2 minutes, it's pretty cheap, pretty healthy and he'll eat it.

 

[dismom301930]

You have some great suggestions here for lunches. We do many of them, but some are new to me and I will try them.

We had the same problem last year with lunches so this year I invested in new lunchbox systems that my kids and I absolutely love! It has made a huge difference in the way I pack lunch and my kids are much happier with their lunches this year.

http://www.lunchsense.com/

The lunches stay cold (except the stuff in the thermos which stays hot!) and everything fits into the lunchboxes perfectly in the little containers. No more bags or little plastic containers to throw away.

I saw someone posted a link to laptop lunches earlier, which I also considred, but I decided on this system after reading many reviews and I am so glad I did. The Lock & Lock containers DO NOT leak at all! I pack everything from yogurt to pasta salad to fruit salad in juice and nothing leaks. They are great!

The system is a bit pricey, but I know I have saved money by not buying so many prepackaged items. I also don't have to buy plastic baggies, etc. anymore.

 

[MinnieForMe]

My kids love:
hummus and whole wheat pitas
cut cucumbers
watermelon (cut up) as dessert

I would think Greek Yogurt would be a change because they have flavors not seen in standard yogurt for example honey.

For elementary school kids, sometimes it's the shape of their food that can make a difference. I purchased a cutter from Pampered Chef that forms your sandwich into a circle and presses it closed. I can then send egg salad without a mess and it eliminates the crust too!

 

[lukenick1]

I always give my oldest a natural peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat with organic grape jelly with a water and some sun chips. My youngest takes a cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese everyday, with a no sugar added applesauce and a roarin water capri sun.

 

[Gigi22]

Laughing Cow cheese was always considered a major treat by all the kids I knew. The cheese is quite soft so it can be eaten with celery sticks or crackers.

 

[squirrel]

How about Lettuce wraps-forget the tortilla wrap and use just the lettuce to make wraps. Fillings-meat, cucumber, olives, pepper, cheese, etc.

I made mini ones with lettuce from the salad one night and my niece saw me eating one so she wanted one. Couldn't get the older one to try it-she doesn't like lettuce.

 

[mhsjax]

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! For one of the posters, no, a microwave is not available for them to use, unfortunately. I made a brief run to the store yesterday and got some Kashi stuff, which I love but are a little pricey sometimes. Next week I'm going to try celery with PB and/or raisins or maybe cream cheese (one of my faves from when i was a kid), PB and apples... will get some whole wheat crackers for their cheese (i have been getting the individually wrapped cheese snack thingies - packs are 2/$5 at Kroger, not too bad... also the string cheese, same). Even though cheap, I'm going to discontinue the cheese/PB cracker packs. Might see about doing up a big bowl of salad too that they can take with dressing on the side. Just gotta see if they'll bring containers home. We go through tons of containers as it is. 2 of our girls dance... one brings dinner 3-4 nights a week and the other 1-2 nights a week, so that's 3-6 containers a week right there for their dinners. (I try to get dinner ready early before they leave for dance so they have an actual dinner, the same thing everyone else is having, everyone else just reheats or it's in the crock pot.)

A little late in the posting for me and I haven't read the entire thread, but if you heat whatever it is that you want to put into a thermos, I mean really heat it, it should still be hot for lunch, at least that is what the moms tell me. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I will.

 

[disney*mom*82]

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! For one of the posters, no, a microwave is not available for them to use, unfortunately. I made a brief run to the store yesterday and got some Kashi stuff, which I love but are a little pricey sometimes. Next week I'm going to try celery with PB and/or raisins or maybe cream cheese (one of my faves from when i was a kid), PB and apples... will get some whole wheat crackers for their cheese (i have been getting the individually wrapped cheese snack thingies - packs are 2/$5 at Kroger, not too bad... also the string cheese, same). Even though cheap, I'm going to discontinue the cheese/PB cracker packs. Might see about doing up a big bowl of salad too that they can take with dressing on the side. Just gotta see if they'll bring containers home. We go through tons of containers as it is. 2 of our girls dance... one brings dinner 3-4 nights a week and the other 1-2 nights a week, so that's 3-6 containers a week right there for their dinners. (I try to get dinner ready early before they leave for dance so they have an actual dinner, the same thing everyone else is having, everyone else just reheats or it's in the crock pot.)

My kids love salad too and one thing we do is add one baggie full of salad and another baggie has the dressing of their choice (a good tablespoon or two) and they can dump their salad into the baggie that has the dressing in it and shake it up and eat it right out of there. My kids were bad about containers too. GL

 

[lovehoney]

Not the healthiest but I make pepperoni rolls for DS6. I just buy frozen dinner rolls (follow the directions for thawing). Place 5 pieces of turkey pepperoni and 1/2 slice of provolone - let it rise (according to directions) and bake. He loves these plain but you could send marinara sauce.

I haven't tried it but you might be able to find whole grain frozen rolls and use turkey/ham and other cheeses.

My kids usually get pb&j on whole wheat, sliced apples or other fruit, one variable snack (cookies, gogurt, dry cereal, goldfish, chips, carrots) and their stainless steel bottle of water. I only send water with lunch.

 

[Priorityonecb]

My daughter likes the following and doesn't get bored...she likes stability!!

Entree...either bagel with cream cheese, or a tortilla wrap with black pepper turkey and lettuce or tuna lunch "kit".

Fruit or veggie...either apple, grapes, oranges, pears, baby carrots, raw broccoli, cantelope, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries.

Treat... either Sun Chips, crackers and peanut butter, Goldfish, rice cake, animal crackers, pretzels, oatmeal raisin kashi cookies.

Drink...always a lemonaide Capri Sun

Every Sunday I make up 5 of each of these catagories and put them in the bottom drawer in the fridge. Each morning she picks one entree, fruit/veggie/treat and adds her drink and takes those with her. This makes our mornings much less hectic.

 

[eatatmidnight]

This is what I pack on my DS lunch. He is in 7th grade.

P, B and J (on high fiber bread) and a box of raisins

Boar's Head Salami and string cheese (orange cheese) I freeze these and
they stay cool enough to be food safe.

Organic yogurt and organic granola bar (Freeze the yogurt and it is thaw and cool at lunch.

Since DS started Middle School, several things changed. The biggest change is that he doesn't take fresh fruit in lunch anymore. It gets smashed in his heavy school bag

 

[sherabby]

My son has to pack every.single.day due to multiple food allergies. I often do soup in a thermos. He eats a lot of sandwiches and he can only do one lunchable..the one with the chicken nuggets. Sometimes I make him his own lunchables by buying lunchmeats thick cut and dice them small with crackers. No cheese due to milk allergy. His lunches get really boring due to the food allergies. I wish I could find alternatives. Food service is not willing to work with us either. They tell us to pack for him.

 

[Crystal0608]

My kids don't have fridge or a microwave. My son likes pb&j or pb&honey rolled up in whole wheat tortillas, he eats that about every day. Both kids like yogurt tubes, easy to freeze to keep cold. PP mentioned laughing cow cheese- my dd loves the garlic one with I think rosemary wheat thins or triscuits. My kids are 8 & 9 and all tupperware comes home, just some silverware hasn't made it back so I send plastic spoons. Spaghetti-O's usually are still warm in a thermo. I've also sent turkey dogs in a thermos with the bun separate and it was still warm. My kids like dry cereal, so I've made various trail mixes with cereal, mini marshmallows, choc chips, etc.

 

[need2cruise]

Question for you all who send apples--I've tried so many times on sending apple slices---from the ones I cut up, to the store packaged kinds....and they always turn brown before lunch and dd WONT eat brown apples. I put a cooler thing in her bag but they still turn. How do you keep yours from turning brown?

Also--grapes.....I'm scared to send grapes to school with dd. Choking hazard and there isn't enough supervision in the lunch room to catch a choking child quickly!!

One thing my dd likes is a whole wheat hot dog bun with peanut butter spread in and a banana placed on top.

I will send strawberries, oranges, cut up uniq fruit, mango,etc.

Cold veggies are always a hit--she love broccoli and cauliflower primarily. Sometimes peppers depending on her mood.

Plain yogurt w/ a tablespoon of honey, cut up diced apples in it with a few walnuts always goes over well. The yogurt will take on that flavor by lunch time.

My plan is to have some type of whole grain for filling, some type of protein and a veggie/fruit.

But--every once in awhile, I will toss in regular juice box, or some type of chips for her or even the taco roll ups (tortilla, cream cheese, taco seasoning and a little salsa--spread on tortilla, roll and cut).

Eating healthy is VERY important in our family due to sugar issues--but we also aren't strict to the line on it-- I think something once in a great while is fine and helps resist that urge to eat only junk when its around. Thankfully, it has worked--she prefers the fruits/yogurt/cold veggies to the cookies and cakes. I see kids that are so restricted that at the school parties--they load up on the junk stuff.

Hmm--reading all that got me to thinking, I am too scared to send stuff like spaghetti, etc to school......to messy!! lol

 

[Priorityonecb]

I send in apples not cut at all. No one likes brown apples! Same with pears. At home, dd loves to eat an apple using a melon baller!! LOL At school she just eats them whole.

 

[ShannonMB]

Question for you all who send apples--I've tried so many times on sending apple slices---from the ones I cut up, to the store packaged kinds....and they always turn brown before lunch and dd WONT eat brown apples. I put a cooler thing in her bag but they still turn. How do you keep yours from turning brown?

I haven't tried it, but 'they' say you can toss with a little lemon juice and that will keep them from turning. Since I haven't tried it, I don't know if that would make the apples taste sour, but might be worth a try if you really want to send apple slices!