Easy School Lunchboxes

Being a busy mamma, the school lunchbox’s are often one of those daily stressors that can tip you over the edge! So having the lunchboxes sorted can be a huge relief.

I’m going to share with you today my favourite formula for lunchbox success and hopefully it will leave you feeling less stressed.

The School Lunchbox List

I like to have a running list of favourite foods for my son on a piece of paper (you could do a spreadsheet if you’re that way inclined!). I put each favourite under a heading of macronutrients so I know that I’ve got everything covered.
Your macronutrients are; Protein, Carbohydrates (from wholefood such as vegetables, fruit & wholegrains as much as possible) and Healthy Fats. Why you may ask?

Kids need balanced meals to help them grow and give them energy for example include protein (for muscle development and repair), good fats (for the message system and brain), carbs (for energy).

Aim for :

1 x protein + 1 x whole grain + 2 x vege + 1 x fruit+ good fat (and water)

This may look like:
Chicken mayo, grated carrot & cheese wholegrain wrap, cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices. Diced apple with nut butter, oat & banana cookie.

or

Boiled egg, Roasted chickpeas & tofu squares. Carrot & capsicum sticks. Kiwifruit. Homemade stovetop popcorn with coconut oil & sea salt.

Protein ideas for the school lunchbox

Eggs: Boiled, Roll up, Mashed

Chicken: Drumstick, Shredded, Chicken mayo in sandwich

Meats: (beef, lamb, pork)Mini meatballs, Leftover roast meat, Good quality sausages

Fish: Tuna mayo in sandwich or sushi, fishcakes

Tofu

Cheese

Hummus

Carbohydrate ideas for the school lunchbox

Vege sticks

Vege fritters

Roast veges

Endamae beans

Chickpeas

Whole fruit or chopped fruit

Frozen berries

Wholegrain breads, wraps, crackers

Rice, quinoa, couscous, wholegrain or Quinoa/Rice pasta

Health fats ideas for the school lunchbox

Avocado

Coconut oil or olive oil when cooking fritters or roast vegetables

Oily fish like tuna, salmon or sardines (mixed with mayo or sour cream or pesto)

Full fat unsweetened yoghurt (sweeten a little with honey or berries)

Cheese

Olives

Nuts and seeds (if allowed at school)

Coconut yogurt, flakes

Prep is the key

• Sunday is a good day to do some food prep for the week, which makes lunches easier to throw together in the morning.
• Chop up veges such as carrots, celery, capsicum and store in a little water in a container in the fridge so they don’t dry out.
• Roast off some veges and chicken drumsticks, cool and store in fridge.
• Left over Sunday roast is great for lunch the next day!
• Buy large block of cheese and cube or slice cheese (as this works out cheaper)and seal in container in fridge.
• Mix up tuna mayo or chicken mayo.
• Cook off mini-meatballs or mini sausages; cool and freeze.
• Bake mini-muffins full of vege and freeze.
• Vege Frittata baked and sliced into squares, last in fridge for 3 days.
• Buy large unsweetened full fat yogurt and portion into small containers...mix in frozen berries or oats or a bit of honey. This is a great source of pro-biotics great for little tummys!

I hope this little guide has helped you have a bit more of a system for your kids school lunchboxes. Don’t worry if some of the new things come back at the end of the day…they say it takes 12 tastes before they like a new food.

Having a list handy for your school lunchbox ideas really helps to cut the busy mum decision fatigue plus it can help cut out some of the packaged foods that really are not too good for our kids. Get you kids to help you write the list too, you might be surprised what they might try when they are involved with making up their own lunchbox!

Go easy on yourself Mamma! Get more snack ideas from my ebook Gluten-free and Dairy-free Easy Energy Boosting Snacks (good for you and the kids!)

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