Lunchboxing

Recently, a couple of people have asked me for ideas on what to pack in lunch boxes, and while my initial reaction is "Why are you asking me? I'm still trying to figure that out myself!" I realize that it's not unreasonable to expect me to have a clue. I am, after all, starting my fifth consecutive year of packing school lunches. It would be expected that I figure out what the heck I'm doing in that amount of time.

And so, while I'm still always looking for new ideas, I guess I do have several standards that I easily fall back on. What I'm hoping for, through writing this, is to gather more ideas.

My boys attend a school that has no cafeteria, and that encourages packing no-waste lunches - meaning that Go-Gurts, Lunchables, Uncrustables, and other pre-packaged convenient items are not an option. I will, on occasion, toss one in (usually individual yogurt containers that I inherit after the boys have stayed with their grandparents but haven't finished all the treats that were bought for their visit). But for the most part, I have whole-heartedly adopted their Green philosophy.

Lunch Boxes
Everyone probably already has a lunch box by now, but for those that are still using last year's or are considering getting a new one, I'd like to recommend the byo lunch bag - not that you need to get them customized, I'm just avoiding promoting any one store - because they are EVERYWHERE). What I like about these is that they store flat (and when I have to store 3, it matters!), they can turn inside out to clean, they have ample storage space, and if need be, they are machine washable!

Other supplies
My older kids are expected to pack any utensils they need, a napkin, and a place mat. One thing I've found is that the large collection of baby washrags that we have around the house make nice cloth napkins. I'm actually looking for cloth napkins to use at mealtime that work as well, but in the meantime, we keep our drawer of washrags - and pack the non-patterned ones in the boys' lunches.

I've also picked up a few of those cute-shaped reusable ice packs (a football, a smiley face, and a monkey, to be precise) to toss into their lunches if need be (the bags insulate for 3 hours, so it's really not even necessary).

Finally, I bought an Aladdin Mini Lunch Bowl that comes with a spoon, and does fit into the byo lunch bag.

A couple of sandwich containers, and a whole shelf full of mini-storage (1/2 cup mini-round), and we're ready to go!

Composition of a Meal
To me, a lunch needs to include one "entree" and two sides. Last year, I confess, my fallback meal (which was fine by my boys) was a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, yogurt, and fruit. But with more kids having peanut allergies, I need more options (besides, I want to save PB&J for lunch on soccer game days).

I recently bought a cookbook that boasts recipes made up of 3 or 4 ingredients. I'm hoping some of these turn into decent lunch options. I'm starting by making these foods at home first, and will test how they taste colder (because really, how warm will they really remain 3 hours later - I'll have to test that too).

To me, anything that has to be done repeatedly needs to be as simple as possible. Someone recently posted this quote on Facebook that applies here:

“Whenever there is a hard job to be done I assign it to a lazy man; he is sure to find an easy way of doing it.” –Walter Chrysler

And that's my goal: to make easy the daily chore of packing three lunches. While the school does offer pizza lunches on Friday (for which I definitely sign up), there's still a lot of lunches to be made.

Please send me your suggestions, and I will add to this list with your name. If there's a simple recipe online, include a link which I can then post. Honestly, I want to be able to bookmark the page so I can check for ideas before heading to the grocery store each week. :) But, if you can get something out of this list too, great.

Side Items
If possible, I will pack up a few days' worth of these items and keep them in the fridge (if it's got enough space, which is iffy). I could even get the kids - at times - to do this step, as long as I am patient enough to clean up after them. Certain fruit that is omitted is because it will brown and having to drizzle lemon juice on top is one step too many.

I try to choose two items from the lists below, trying to choose from multiple lists for a well-rounded selection.

Fruit

• Grapes


• Kiwi (one kiwi, peeled, fourthed and sliced, will fit in a 1/2 cup container)


• Cantaloupe


• Watermelon (only post-picnic, and only the day after it's been cut)


• Strawberries


• Cherries (if you can get your kid to eat it; no luck here)


• Whole apple


• Dried cranberries


• Banana chips


• Raisins (Kelly O'Melia)

Vegetables
(opt: include a small container of ranch dressing or other dip)

• Carrot sticks


• Broccoli


• grape tomatoes (yes, I know, technically they're a fruit)


• Red Pepper wedges


• cucumber pieces


• Zucchini spears/slices (ok, this one hasn't happened yet, but a girl can dream)


• celery sticks


• olives (Kelly O'Melia)

Dairy

• cheese cubes


• yogurt (I buy a big tub of yogurt and dole it out into 1/2 cup portions)


• cottage cheese with a dollop of jelly mixed in (or they'll just eat the jelly)


• string cheese


• kefir (Kelly O'Melia)

Other Sides

• sesame sticks


• goldfish crackers


• pepperoni slices


• Apple raisin salad (2 med McIntosh apples + 1 tart apple, cored + diced; 8oz can pineapple tidbits, drained (save 1 Tbsp juice); 1 cup cottage cheese; 1/2 cup dark raisins; 1/4 tsp cinnamon. blend fruits + juice, mix with last 3, store airtight 2 days. makes 5 cups) - from Jean Pare's "School Days Lunches" cookbook


• hard-boiled egg (Kelly O'Melia)


• veggie chips (Kelly O'Melia)

Combinations

• Sesame sticks - Dried Cranberries - mozzarella cheese


• veggies - ranch dressing


• pita wedges - veggies - hummus


• crackers - shredded cheese - tomato sauce (don't forget to pack a spoon for spreading)

Main Courses

I'm going to categorize these based on the containers used to store them in, for lack of a better grouping system.

Sandwich Box

• Peanut butter and Jelly (I choose Natural/organic brands with no HFCS in them - save the bad ingredients for their junk food)


• Cream cheese and Jelly


• Nutella and Banana


• Nutella and Peanut Butter (if you simply must get your child to eat SOMETHING!)


• Pita & Hummus


• Pita pocket filled with tomato, cucumber, sprouts (opt.) and a ranch dressing/Sriracha hot sauce mix (to taste)


• Black bean & goat cheese quesadillas (blend BB w/ 1/2 cup salsa, coriander, honey drizzled, goat cheese - cook on pan, cut into wedges)


• Wrap 'n' Roll (1 can mixed beans, mashed + mixed with 1/4 c salsa + 1/4 c cream cheese. spread on tortilla, top with shredded cheddar cheese or grated carrot, ham slice (opt.). Roll tightly, jelly-roll-style, and cut into thirds (to fit sandwich box). Serve with salsa and/or sour cream as "dipping sauce." - from Jean Pare's "School Days Lunches" cookbook.


• Two-Bite Pizzas (mix 1/4 cup pizza sauce, 1/4 c grated mozz, 2 Tbsp sliced green onion, 2 Tbsp finely chopped mushroom, 1/8 tsp dried basil; slice crescent-style rolls - don't unroll first - into 12 disks and flatten to 2" diameter discks. Spread 2 tsp topping on each, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp bacon bits (opt.) and bake in 375 degree oven for 10-12 min until edges golden and cheese melted - from Jean Pare's "School Days Lunches"


• leftover burritos



• Egg Sandwiches (Kelly O'Melia) - My version includes coriander chutney, sliced tomato, cucumber, and hard-boiled eggs. Egg salad works too, I suppose


• Tuna


• Ham & Cheese (or any other sliced meat)


• Turkey & cranberry relish

Thermos
Each of these dishes can either be made in the morning or re-heated in the morning before being doled out into the thermos.

• soup - with a side of crackers or a nice crusty roll


• Pasta with pesto


• assorted leftovers - rice dishes (read up on food poisoning first, though, to be sure you thoroughly heat up your food and don't put your child at risk)


• Couscous - cooked to instructions, mixed with sauteed leeks and cheddar cheese, or blue cheese and caramelized onions, whatever your kid likes


• leftover pad thai

The nice thing about the Thermos category is that it works nicely with leftovers. So if your kid really liked a particular meal, store the leftovers directly in the thermos and reheat it a couple mornings later before sending it to school (and yes, that's another reason I recommend the Aladdin Mini Bowl; it's also machine washable).

Well, I hope that helps as you set off on a new school year. I would love to hear your suggestions, and I will happily update this post (no guarantee on when, though).