Who out there struggles to know what to put in their childrens lunchbox’s?
I know that over the years that iv’e really had to think about how to provide lots of variety in a nutritious way. And at the same time keep my children happy and not feeling like they’re deprived because they don’t have a lunch box full of packaged items!
I mean, when we walk through the supermarket, we are bombarded with a hundred items at least that are marketed directly to children, for their lunch box’s or for easy convenient snacks. And if you have made the mistake of taking your children shopping with you, my goodness then you’ll really know about it if you don’t stop and buy every item they want!
So how do you avoid all the packages of sugar, fat, salt, processed rubbish, disguised as food? Or how do you teach your children to know that they’re bad for them, and have them wanting healthier choices?
There are so many things that you can do to start creating healthier options for their lunch boxs, and step away from the standard sandwich, muesuli bar, packet of chips and piece of fruit.
Start of by teaching your children about the environment, and how wasteful packaged items are. Especially when there is only a few items in each package. You may not be changing the kinds of food they’re eating yet, but you’re starting to teach them about how to reduce waste.
Things that you can start to make changes with
Packets of raisins – conatiner of raisins
Pottle of yogurt – buy a big pot and put into small containers with fresh fruit on top.
Small packets of chips or crackers inside a big bag – Buy a big bag and break down into your own small bags
Small packets of biscuits inside a big bag – Buy a big bag and put just a few in their lunch box
Hopefully you’re starting to get the picture. This in itself may not be changing the foods, but it’s starting to change how the child will look at all the packets as unnecessary.
From there, start to change some of the things you might currently buy, for home made items of equal if not better value. Swap shop bought baking for home made items. Its the easiest way to start changing some of the ingredients slightly. Swap half of the white flour for wholemeal flour, reduce the sugar content by 1/4 of a cup, use whole milk over milk powders or reduced fat milks. And there are also so many healthy recipies out there. Try some of my oat muffins for a great healthy snack for the children.
Ingredients
1 cup white spelt flour
1 cup wholemeal spelt flour
¼ cup cacao powder
1 tsp baking soda
¾ cup rolled oats
100g butter
½ cup honey
½ cup milk
1 egg lightly whisked
1 cup plain unsweetened yogurt
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 medium or 3 small ripe bananas mashed
Preheat oven to 200 degrees
Line a 12 muffin tin with paper patty cases and set aside.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flours, cacao powder and baking soda, before adding the rolled oats and mixing well.
Melt butter and honey together in a medium pot.
Add milk, yogurt, egg, and vanilla essence, and stir well, before adding bananas and mixing again.
Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, then add the liquid ingredients. Fold together carefully until the dry ingredients are just mixed.
Spoon into your muffin tin, and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave in tins for 5 muffins before cooling on a wire rack.
Some of the other things i like to do for my childrens lunch boxs are
Left overs from dinner the night before, especially roast chicken and roast vegetables, sushi, chicken wraps, rice and meat or soups in their thermos.
Nuts and bliss balls for their brain food.
Chop up a variety of fruit PLUS vegetable sticks, like carrott, celery and cucumber. (and they know if they dont eat it, then they miss out on their baking the following day!)
Cheese and crackers, along with cucumber and tomato slices.
Vegetable fritters
Plain greek yogurt with fresh fruit and coconut shavings on top.
Sausages from the deli that are 85% meat.
Plain crackers.
Refined sugar free baking, usually made from wholemeal flours.
Toasted sandwich wraps.
Self crusting quiches.
Little chicken and vegetable pies.
And as a treat they have been allowed to have a bought yogurt 2 times a week. But they only get the one brand that has been sweetened using a fruit puree.
Hopefully this gives you lots of ideas to get started with, and you find the transition to healtier lunch boxs simple, as it should be 🙂 And your children will thank you in the long run i’m sure!!
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