Summer is coming to an end and we understand the craziness that going back to school brings. It is, however, the best time to get your family on a healthy track for the school year. Aesthetically pleasing lunch boxes with cookie-cutter shaped vegetables are awesome but what really matters is the nutritional value of what you’re feeding your precious ones for lunch.
Kids from ages 4+ need to have a wholesome meal that’s saturated in proper amounts of the following:
- Protein source: 28g of meat or poultry, 28g cheese, 1 yogurt cup, or 1 egg.
- Complex carbohydrates source: 1 slice of whole wheat bread, 1 muffin, 5 whole grain crackers, or 3 cups popcorn.
- Fats source: 1 tablespoon peanut butter, 14g nuts, and seeds, or 1/2 an avocado.
- Fruit and vegetable source: 1 small apple, 1 cup grapes, 1 medium banana, 1 cup carrots, or 1 cup cucumbers.
It’s vital to get your children into the habit of eating healthy nutritious food at an early age. Kids spend most of their day at school, where their diet plays a tremendous role in determining how well they perform in class. A balanced diet has the power to highly influence students’ academic performance and their behavior at school, potentially affecting their focus, energy levels, and even their mood.
Most parents, who prepare their kids’ lunch boxes, work 8 hours a day and hardly have time in the morning to pack lunch and get the children ready for school. This is why we put together 5 quick and easy lunch box ideas that will ensure your children have healthy nutritious meals every day at school.
Sunday: Lunchbox 1
Carbs: Banana Peanut Butter Rolls in Pita Bread
Protein: The Peanut Butter
Calcium: Cheese Cubes
Fruit: Grapes + Peaches
Vegetable: Cherry tomatoes + Cucumber + Colored bell peppers
Treat: Homemade oatmeal cookies
Drink: Water + Fresh Orange juice
- You can find a recipe for super easy and amazing homemade cookies by Chef May Yacoubi here.
Monda: Lunchbox 2
Carbs: Pasta Salad with colored bell peppers and mushroom
Protein: Mushroom
Calcium: Hummus Dip
Fruit: Apples + Kiwi
Vegetable: Carrot sticks + Cucumber slices
Treat: Granola Mix
Drink: Water + Strawberry Fresh Juice
- Make sure to squeeze a lemon on the apple slices to keep them from browning.
Tuesday: Lunchbox 3
Carbs: Potato Wedges + Whole Wheat Crackers + Whole Wheat bread sticks
Protein: Hard boiled egg
Calcium: Tahini +Molasses
Fruit: Banana + Peaches
Vegetable: Cherry Tomatoes +Carrot sticks + Cucumber slices
Treat: Date Balls
Drink: Water + Orange juice
Wednesday: Lunchbox 4
Carbs: Whole wheat brown toast with cheese and bell pepper Overnight Oats
Protein: Overnight Oats in yogurt topped with nuts and honey
Calcium: Yoghurt + Chia seeds
Fruit: Grapes + Oranges
Vegetable: Cucumber + Carrot Sticks + Cherry tomatoes
Treat: Date energy balls
Drink: Water + Fresh Orange juice
Optional: Chia seeds on the yogurt
- Mix the overnight oats with the yogurt and chia seeds overnight and top it off with the fruit and nuts in the morning when you’re preparing the lunch box.
Thursday: Lunchbox 5
Carbs: Rice + Potato Wedges
Protein: Cooked Chicken Pieces + Mushroom
Calcium: Cheese cubes
Fruit: Peaches + Grapes
Vegetable: Cherry Tomatoes + Cucumber + Bell Peppers
Treat: Date Balls
Drink: Water + Strawberry juice
- Mix the rice, chicken pieces, mushroom and bell peppers to be served together in a bowl alongside the rest of the lunch box contents.
Tips
- You can do all the baking and vegetable cutting during the weekend and your kids can help out for some fun family bonding time. Just make sure to store the cut vegetables in the fridge in airtight sealed glass containers.
- It is important to offer nutritious lunch box choices in a variety of ways, as kids tend to eat what is familiar to them.
- It’s a good rule of thumb to avoid giving your child something in their lunch box that they have never seen or eaten before at home.
- Try to make it a habit to ask your child how they liked their lunch every day. Their feedback will help you give them nutritious food that they enjoy eating and get them excited about their lunch box.
- Perishable foods such as dairy and eggs should be stored in a cool place and eaten within four hours of preparation. These foods should not be packed when they have just been cooked. They first need to cool in the fridge overnight.
