School lunch ideas

[amykw33]

My daughter starts 1st grade in September, and she's doing a summer day camp program for the month of July. Packing her lunch the last two weeks has made me aware of just how many foods she doesn't like to eat, and how boring her lunches are looking to me. I am just doing low-maintenance healthy stuff that doesn't require much cooking/baking , but am looking for ideas for the fall.

Right now her usual lunch looks like:

hummus and mini-pitas
squeeze yogurt
carrots
pretzel sticks
a fruit (peach, pear, banana)
cookies or a piece of chocolate
lemonade or milk
water

She doesn't like deli meats, with the exception of bologna, which I don't want to have her eating that often. She doesn't like peanut butter, tuna or cheese sandwiches either (though she'll eat cheese & crackers or cheese sticks). She likes soup, but the one day I gave her minestrone, she wouldn't eat it because she couldn't get the thermos open and she wouldn't ask a camp counselor for help. (We worked through that one...)

I can find plenty of sides for her, but the hummus is going to get old for her soon, I fear (though she loves hummus). I thought of just giving her lots of sides, but part of me wants her to have something more substantial as the centerpiece of the meal. Tonight we made chicken brochettes and I even thought of making some in advance and refrigerating them for the next day.

She also has a best friend whose mother feeds her JUNK and who I am afraid is adversely influencing her food decisions. I refuse to get potato chips or Doritos for her lunch, but i want to give her something interesting that she won't sneer at (her friend apparently is now pretending to gag over her hummus, so I'm afraid that the peer pressure thing will enter into it and suddenly she "won't like" hummus anymore, or any of the other healthy stuff I give her).

Help!!! TIA!

[Anna Banana]

Well, I have a daughter going into the 2nd grade, so maybe I can help you.

However, my daughter is the complete opposite...she will eat practically anything!

I let her have the school lunches 3 times per week...and was pleased with them. She ate a lot of fruit, veggies, etc. that way.

I did pack PB&J for her a lot...but only because she loves it.

How about Lunchables? They look "cool", but have pretty good stuff in them(not the ones filled with drinks and candy, though...:rolleyes: ) I let my daughter have one as an end-of-year treat. But that's just because I'm cheap.:p

Other things she may like:

*Tortilla sandwiches...use cream cheese instead of mayo, etc. Roll up lunch meat, cheese, some lettuce, etc. Lots of kids love it!

*A cheese quesadilla, just melt the cheese and put it in a tupperware. Should be fine at lunch....

*How about chicken salad sandwiches, cut into star shapes and such?

*How about a nice pasta salad in a cooler? Any sort of other salads she'll eat, too? Just package them the way you see in the grocery store. In a tupperware container or something, and use a small baby food jar for dressing, etc. Unless her school has a "no glass" policy. Then just find some small plastic containers for the dressing.


P.S. My daughter is the same way...couldn't get a canteen open for the life of her. I finally gave up!

[jf mom]

You said she likes cheese sticks, so how about string cheese. They come individually wrapped in plastic.

I was also going to suggest a pasta and veggie salad (non-mayo, so you wouldn't have to worry about refridgeration if it's unavailable).

I also think finger-friendly left-overs are a great idea.

[ebabe]

string cheese
peeled, hard cooked eggs
pasta salads (veggies and some oil & vinegar)
oven-baked, breaded chicken strips (you could prepare a large batch and freeze, then just defrost the night before)

[hunter]

For packed lunches, my kids prefer salads and casseroles over sandwiches. I frequently make extra stuff at dinner with the idea of leftovers for lunch. I throw together leftover rice, leftover veggies, with a spoonful of salsa, or leftover pasta with lettuce and caesar dresssing. Stuff a leftover baked potato with chili, it's yummy even when it's cold. Make a big bowl of pasta salad (with beans for extra nutrition) and it will last for a couple of days. Same with rice salad with chicken or tempeh. And if you put a little icepack in her lunch, you should be able to send cheese or mayo-based things.

And I understand your concern about lunch meat, but there are tons of other sandwich fillings. "Fakin Bacon" is a smoky-flavored tempeh and very healthy, and you can make your own marinated tempeh strips very easy. Egg salad or tofu salad sandwiches. Grilled veggies, melted cheese, and pesto on a baguette (and yes, my 6yo will eat that) I can throw together while making dinner, wrap in plastic, and it's ready to go the next morning.

Does she like peanut butter or tuna if it's not on a sandwich? If so, send a little tub of it with a spoon, and maybe with veggie sticks (or fruit for the pb) for dipping.

[amykw33]

Thanks for the ideas so far! We don't have school lunches (they have pizza day once a week, and all the other days it's pack your own), so I don't even have school lunch to fall back on... You gave me a lot of ideas that I didn't even think of packing -- thanks! :) More ideas are welcomed! :)

[Raven]

has she been introduced to sushi yet? it can be made very healthy and m toddlers love it, not the raw stuff BTW. ;) It can be made with veggies, a form of scrambled egg, or my favorite the clifornia roll (has avacado, cucumber, and immitation crab meat).

for lunch safe sushi you could do just veggies for the filling and they will last until lunch.
It's kind of a brain fart. My mom wasn't the most creative lunch packer so while I was in school I got the same things over and over.

[Lisa Jo]

Like Hunter, I tend to do dinner leftovers for lunch. One of our standby dinners is a big pan of baked chicken drumsticks. They are just the right size for slipping into a baggie for lunch, and my son is happy eating them cold. He will also eat soups and chili cold, so I just pack them in a plastic container with a good seal, rather than a thermos. Another sort of weird thing that my son likes is ground beef or turkey mixed with refried beans and salsa, packed in a tupperware. He just eats it with a spoon. He can't have dairy or wheat, but you could sprinkle cheese on it and roll up a burrito. Hardboiled eggs were a staple until we discovered he is allergic to eggs.

Other thoughts:

Peanut butter on celery with raisins pressed in
Trail mix
Tortilla chips with homemade bean dip (refried beans mixed with sour cream and mild salsa)
Try another nut butter, such as almond or cashew for a sandwich