A Week of Healthy School Lunches

Sending children off to school with nutritious foods which not only taste good, but are portable enough to survive the trek and time out of refrigeration can be a challenge.

Parents who have the best intentions often reluctantly fall back on the ubiquitous white breaded sandwich, bag of chips or cookies and muesli bar.

Children need their food to be interesting retain their crunch and texture and if it doesn’t look appealing and fun to them, they are not going to eat it.

The first step is to invest in a quality lunchbox set.

The best have smaller moisture proof compartments or containers which fit inside and have space dedicated for a frozen brick or water bottle and are robust enough to last the entire year.

Most schools do not have the facilities for children to store their lunches in a fridge or even in a place which has consistent shade.

A fair rule of thumb would be to avoid including any meat products ( if you eat them normally), adding dairy products which are frozen when they leave home and fish products if they sealed or are in their factory produced cans.

Lunches need to be packed so that they remain cool in the summer so that the fresh ingredients you have packed don’t wilt, attract nasty bacteria or become soggy rubbish bin material by lunchtime.

Keep lunches simple.

Lunchtimes are used to expend the energy children have pent up inside them; so packing a lunch that needs assembling or has multiple steps may be discarded simply because they can’t be bothered.

Small servings in plastic wrap or in tiny containers will appeal to childrens need to eat quickly.  Whilst small plastic containers are reusable it is easy for these expensive items to be lost or dropped in the rubbish bin. Plastic wrap, though unenvironmentally sound is a trade off for fresh individualistic food items in a lunchbox.

Water is the best drink for children, but drinks can be invigorated by a splash ( no more than 1/8th of a cup to every cup of water) of fresh lemon or lime, unsweetened cranberry or apple juice. These can be frozen overnight so that they are cool during the day.

Wraps tightly rolled and cut in half are perfect size for smaller hands. Stuff these with fillings which don’t have too much moisture in them - no tomato.  very thin vege strips (carrot, celery, snow pea sprouts and cucumber) or roasted veges such as pumpkin, capsicum or eggplant.

Carrot strips, apple slices, celery, broccoli, capsicum strips or cucumber wedges accompanied with a small tub of low fat yogurt, sour cream or cottage cheese.

Air popped corn in tiny bags.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese or celtic salt and mixed herbs for something tasty and different.

Dried fruit is nutritionally packed with natural sugars and need to be given out in small amounts.  Make your own mix of dried apricots, raisins, goju berries, cranberries, cherries, peppitas, sunflower seeds and pine nuts.  

Depending on the policies within your school, you might like to add in cashews, walnuts and almonds.  These types of nuts are far less likely to cause an allergic reaction than macadamia or peanuts ( which are a legume rather than a tree nut) but care and consideration must be maintained.

Rice cakes ( the large round ones) come in a variety of mixtures now with corn, seeds and other grains.  There are also a variety of flavoured ones which can be included as a special treat from time to time. (Be wary of the additives which are used to coat and flavour these). 

Crunched on their own or accompanied by butter, a protein spread or thinly sliced cheese.

Fill small plastic containers with vanilla yoghurt ( home made is wonderful not only for the lessons it can teach your children, but you are comfortable with the knowledge of its origins and ingredients).

Pop in frozen fruits or a swirl of organic honey and put them into the freezer over night. By placing one of these in your childs lunch box, not only will it keep the rest of their lunch cool, but provide a healthy and delightfully chill treat.

Fill plastic containers with frozen green beans, peas and corn. These thaw to a cool crunchiness by lunchtime, also providing a cooling effect for the rest of the lunch.

Sadly, most fruit added to lunchboxes end up in the rubbish bin as they become bruised, soft or too hot to eat.

Make up a fruit salad - melons, citrus, grapes berries and store in the lunch box beside the frozen brick or water bottle; instructing your child to eat this at the first break.

With the variety of tiny bites of fruit, picked up by a fork or a toothpick, a child is more likely  to consume the contents rather than eating a solitary apple or orange.

As an alternative to bread and sandwiches, try making savoury muffins or scones.

Fresh cheese and pickle scones are a favourite in our household, often not making it to the lunchbox after they are retrieved from the oven.

Pack small cubes or slices of cheese with a separate container of crispbread or crackers. Its far cheaper (and gives the parent more control over the contents) to do this yourself rather than purchase the dippy packs commercially made.

Take your children to shop at a natural foods store for items to include in their lunches.  This way you will know that the things you purchase are ones that they have chosen and are free of preservatives and additives or unnecessary salts and sugars.

Include your children in making lunches.

This will allow dialogue about their choices and preferences and as they get older, give them responsibility in preparing their own lunches.

Choose organic produce where possible as its an investment into your child's health.  

School lunches are the first step in teaching your children a lifetime of healthy food choices, so pack with love and care.

Attention Parents: Healthy Snacks Means Healthy Kids

 Note from the editor:

If your children are a bit hyperactive or hard to handle, then look no further than what they are snacking on. Often snack choices for kids and adults give short bursts of energy followed by "crashes". 

Yet healthier options should supply long lasting benefits to keep our energy high for longer and in a good mood naturally. 

As a mother myself, I find being prepared makes all the difference; stocking up with Sunbars means we never have to settle for an inferior snack on the go when hungry or when we just need to get the teeth into something at home but not quite sure what that is! 

Even my 21 month old daughter loves them and needs no convincing of their benefits. She is one of the few kids her age whose taste buds have not yet been polluted with sugary snacks (I am proud to say the sweetest thing she has ever eaten is dried fruit) yet she just loves the Sunbar! 

In fact she often raids my handbag when I am not looking and finds them by herself! If you have children, don't give in to the junk food snacks that are mass marketed to kids. Once they acquire a taste for those ‘foods’, they're less likely to appreciate natural foods.

It’s up to you to lead by your healthy example and they will follow.

For big kids, not only is this a completely guilt-free snack, you can actually feel good about doing your body a favour every time you indulge in a Sunbar!