Lunch Box Lunches

Sounds crazy - but we realized awhile back that my daugther absolutely loves shrimp. I buy bags of frozen cooked shrimp, thaw them in the morning and send them with her - no cocktail sauce just the shrimp. I feel it's much better for her than PB&J or mac and cheese. I usually send it with her once a week - she'd prefer it more often but that could get expensive (especially now with the oil spill in the Gulf - shrimp prices will probably go up).

my daughter loves crackers and cream cheese! Also quesadillas or hard boiled eggs. I agree with the person that said presentation is key...you can always cut sandwiches or even toast into interesting shapes. Does she like hummus? YOu could do veggies like carrots and celery to dip into the hummus. What about English muffin pizzas or pita pizzas?

My son attends a nut free school (which I also work at). He eats mainly soy-nut (not really nuts) butter or cream cheese with jelly. Other things I've seen are grilled cheese, tuna, mac and cheese in a thermos, hotdogs, chicken nuggets (are very popular), pizza, cold cut sandwiches, ect. There are other peanut butter subsitiutes as well, like Sun-nut butter (made from sunflower seeds, in case soy is not an option) Snacks are easy, just avoid any peanut butter (or other nut) flavored/filled crackers and cookies, and check the ingredients on granola and mixes. HTH

My daughter, at that age, liked a piece of salami or bologna wrapped around a pickle (cut length wise into small spears) and held together with a fancy toothpick. I'd make three or four of those and she would be happy.

Also, little cracker sandwiches with soy butter and jelly. She didn't mind the soy butter at all.

You could send turkey & cheese sandwiches with fresh fruit. Lunchables are always good too. They have many different kinds, and my daughter loves them!

my kids like tortilla roll-ups. They are not big fans of sandwiches, but if I roll it up in a tortilla, they eat it up! We put anything in there, mostly lunch meat and cheese- but have done jelly and cream cheese, a cheese spread, chicken- really anything.
My son loves yogurt covered raisin, dry cereal, apple sauce, cereal bars...

some of my son's favorites are "fruit salad" (strawberries, bananas, apples, grapes, etc) and some yogurt to dip them in
grilled cheese sandwiches (he likes them even if they've been sitting in his cubby)
cheese, cubed or string
hummus with pita bread or veggies
rice balls (look up "onigiri" for more info)
dry cereal
chicken nuggets (put them in a thermos)
soup (I usually take out most of the broth and just keep it in a thermos)
pasta salad with deli meat and steamed veggies

good luck!

There are quite a few not-peanut butter substitutes. Sunflower nut butter and almond butter are our favorites, but soynut butter isn't bad either. Try getting a little thermos and sending her to school with leftovers that she enjoyed the night before. I also have a 3 compartment container that we use for all sorts of anything goes lunch. Hummus, crackers, cheese, carrots, tomato's, olives - whatever your child is into. Containers of greek yogurt or cottage cheese with frozen berries stirred in (keeps it cold).
Also - my daughter had trouble handling sandwiches that don't stick together (initially) - so I would put it in a wrap (cheese and veggies mostly) and toast it closed. I folded it in - and found that if i melted a little cheese in the flap - it would glue it closed for her.

Really - accommodating allergies - isn't so hard. Just make sure to discuss lunch with your child - so they know what they are getting and if it "needs a stir" before eating.
Also, when I send my daughter with "cracker sandwiches" - i include a small plate and a kids knife and spoon. It makes her feel very grown up ;-)

try sunflower butter...it tastes like peanut butter. my son has many food allergies and i pack this for his lunches. it is completely nut free and allergy friendly.

We LOVE sunbutter! Apples or celery w/sunbutter is definitely one of my son's favorites! I've been packing my son's lunch for school for 6 years now! It can be overwhelming, but he doesn't mind taking his favorites over and over. Apples slices, bananas, always carrot sticks, yogurt, crackers just to name a few.
Hope this helps,
E. K:-)

http://www.laptoplunches.com/

This is a good site with lots of ideas.

Keep in mind, Preschool kids/kids don't eat a lot. Generally. So serving size wise, it doesn't have to be a lot. MOST times, the kids do not even eat everything that is in their box. I know, because I"ve volunteered at my daughter's Preschool and Kinder and 1st grade and sometimes now in her 2nd grade, and the kids do not often eat all their food.

Just pack what her favorites are.... that way, you can rest assured that she IS eating. Some kids don't even eat what their Mom packs. So bear that in mind.
Just keep to things you know she will eat and likes.
But stay away from junk food... or candy etc. Believe it or not, many kids go to school with just chips/candy/juice/cookies in their lunch box. I have seen it. Many times. The Teachers don't like that of course.

Go according to what is your daughter's favorite foods... not yours. Because otherwise, kids will not eat, at school, even if hungry. That has been my observation. Or they will give it away to the other kids.

You do NOT have to make "recipes" or fancy lunches. Just straight forward food or left overs from the previous night. No one is judging you about how good a "chef" you are. You just want your child to have something in their stomach, that they WILL eat... so they don't get too tired/over-hungry or fussy for lack of eating at school.

That has been the one thing... which I see ALL the time in kids, and in conjunction with their lunches they bring from home. And then their Moms complain that their kid NEVER eats what they pack for them.

all the best,
Susan

Avacado and cheese sandwiches w/a thin spread of mayo is tasty. You can add tomato and/or turkey to it if she'll eat it. Crackers with hummus would go well with it. We just discovered flavored hummus. So far we've tried toasted almond, maple and chocolate. The main ingredient is chick peas, it's just flavored with something sweet and more familiar to children, but many kids like regular hummus as well. You could try leftover chicken with salad dressing as a dip. My dd loves chicken salad with celery and raisins mixed in, same w/tuna salad; she eats it straight from the bowl w/out bread. Fruit & yogurt is usually well-received as well.

Check this website out: www.weelicious.com

She is a mommy blogger who started out doing baby food but moved on to toddler food including preschool lunches. If you are on facebook, you can fan her page and get stuff in your newsfeed every day with different ideas. Lots of them are lunch box ideas. Some of the stuff is definitely NOT in my toddler's tastes, but there are still good ideas on there.

My lunch staples are fruits and cheeses. Good luck!

Hi S.,

Cutting cheese & lunch meat into shapes, (shape of the day), then adding small crackers would be fun and different. You could cut fruit in shapes, like mellon.

I don't think variety of food is important, just the presentation.

R. Magby

We bought a sandwich press called a Party Grill by Sunbeam. Made in the 70's, we found one on eBay... totally worth tracking down. It takes regular bread, put whatever you want inside, and presses it into 4 sections that look like ravioli. It actually makes 3 of those at a time. Inside I put diced chicken sausage, cheese, and tomato sauce, but you could put anything you want. Very easy for kids to eat.

If she likes yogurt thats one, cheese sticks, crackers/bread w tuna. Veggies with some sort of dip (a small dipping container). Boiled eggs, or eggsalad sandwich if she will eat it. Fruit, apple cut up for her, banana, whatever she likes in fruit. Pepperoni sticks, you can buy quite a few in a pkg. Bagel with cream cheese. These are alot of things that my daughter sends with my grandaughter to school. I hope this helps you out some. Theres' no need to use what I say but at least it gives you options. Good luck and take care!!
All schools' in Ontario, Canada won't allow peanuts in the school. So goodbye peanut butter that I know they love.
Good luck mom!!

All good suggestions.

Our daughter also liked chicken legs, watermelon, Raisin bread with cream cheese, Salads, pasta with sauce, Chinese dumplings.

well my daughter (not sure for your age) eats a bag of chips a nutella sandwhich a yogurt and maybe a chopped up apple that looks like apple fries well hope this helped please check the question i put up thnx

Finger foods and dipping "sauces". anything stick like (pretzels, carrot, celery, breadsticks etc.) soft cheeses and jellies, pasta salad (use fun shaped pastas, shred hard veggies and add her favorite dressing.), hard boiled eggs or egg salad, creamed cheese and jelly used to be one of my favs. I have a hard time figuring out lunches and my daughter doesn't go to daycare so I feel your frustration. Also you could ask your daughter to show you what she likes at the grocery store and see if it's something that could be worked into a lunch. Good Luck

we do sunbutter sandwich with jelly. Also I do rolled up meat & cheese. some time just fruit & veggies. Hope this works.

mac & cheese, leftovers from dinner (pizza, roasted chicken), frozen peas (great finger food - sweet and healthy, she loves them even though they're good for her) and frozen mangos (both are thawed by the time she eats them and i don't have to worry about them going bad if i don't use them right away), lunchables or chicken nuggets.... and it's true what someone said below - i send her with things i know she likes and sometimes she just doesn't eat them - i don't get alarmed - kids eat when their hungry and don't if they're not. it doesn't mean she doesn't like the lunch. the trick is whether to send what she loves or mix it up a little b/c maybe she doesn't eat because she's bored or she doesn't eat because it's less familiar...just keep trying : )