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After years of sharing the school lunches I pack for my kids on Facebook, I decided to combine all the pictures together below in one easy-to-reference place for inspiration.
I know some readers love to sit down and look at these pics with their kids so they can point out what they want (and, more importantly, what they’ll actually eat!), which I think is a great idea.
If you find it helpful as well, please consider bookmarking this page, sharing it using the social buttons, or leaving a comment with star rating (at the bottom of the page) to help others find this guide. 🙂
Check out these Easy Lunch Ideas and these High Protein Lunch Ideas too!
Table of Contents
360+ Healthy School Lunch Ideas
Narrow results with the drop down filter or search box. Note some of these lunch ideas incorporate real food leftovers, which can be a real time saver. Most recipes can be found here on the blog via the included links, but a few are from my best-selling cookbooks.
- Homemade White Bean Dip (from #100dayscookbook ) with blue tortilla chips
- Apple sandwiches
- Oatmeal Cookie Energy Bites (from #100daysonabudget cookbook)
School Lunch Ideas Packing Chart
See my School Lunch Packing Chart post for more details and how to get your free printable copy (a reusable version is also included in my Meal Planner Workbook). Basically you have your kids fill out the chart with all the ingredients they'd like in their lunches for the week, and then take the chart with you on your grocery run so you know what to buy. You'll have all the fixings on hand, plus buy-in from your kids!
School Lunch Ideas "Recipe"
This is similar to the packing chart in that you can get inspiration and buy-in from kids for new lunch combinations.
School Lunch Ideas
Ingredients
Main
- Sandwich (☐Whole wheat bread ☐Whole wheat pita ☐PB & J ☐PB & honey ☐Cheese ☐Hummus ☐Organic ham ☐Organic turkey ☐Lettuce ☐Sliced pickle ☐Sliced cucumber ☐Mustard ☐Mayo )
- Bagel and cream cheese (☐With cucumber slices)
- Cheese and crackers
- Cheese quesadilla (Cold)
- Deviled eggs
- Egg salad
- Grilled cheese (Cold)
- Oatmeal (☐Hot ☐Cold)
- Pasta salad
- Smoothie
- Waffle and cream cheese sandwich
- Whole wheat pita pizza
- Whole wheat pita triangles and hummus
- Other (Write in:_________________________ )
Fruits and Veggies
- Apple (Red)
- Apple (Green)
- Applesauce
- Avocado half
- Bananan half (☐With peanut butter or other nut butter)
- Bell peppers (Sliced)
- Blueberries
- Broccoli (Raw or cooked)
- Cantaloupe
- Carrots
- Celery (☐With peanut or other nut butter ☐With raisins)
- Cherries*
- Cherry tomatoes
- Cucumber
- Dried fruit (Raisins, apricots, apple, or other)
- Frozen peas
- Grapefruit
- Grapes*
- Honeydew melon
- Kiwi
- Mango*
- Olives
- Oranges (☐Big ☐Small)
- Papaya*
- Peach*
- Pear
- Pickles
- Pineapple
- Plum*
- Pomegranate seeds (Fresh or frozen)
- Radish slices
- Raspberries
- Star fruit*
- Strawberries*
- Sugar snap peas
- Watermelon*
- Other (Write in:_________________________ )
Grain or Snack
- Brown Rice Cakes (☐With peanut or other nut butter ☐With raisins)
- Cheese cubes/slices
- Chickpeas
- Crackers
- Dip (☐White bean ☐Other, write in:____________________)
- Edamame
- Granola chunks
- Hard-boiled egg
- Muffin
- Popcorn
- Powerballs (homemade)
- Snack bar
- String cheese
- Trail mix
- Whole wheat noodles
- Whole wheat pretzels
- Yogurt
Instructions
- Choose an ingredient from each category to create new lunch combinations (I recommend doing this with your kids).
- Jot your ideas down as you go for a quick school lunch meal plan.
Notes
School Lunch Meal Plans
Get our uber-popular packed lunch meal plans! Our Real Lunches, Real Easy ebooks are each a complete system that tells you what to buy, what to prep, and what to pack (including colorful pictures) so you're not stressing out at the last minute. Grab one version, or all four, and even have your kiddos help pack their new wholesome, hearty, real food lunches. See samples of each week and learn more here.
More School Lunch Resources
To learn more about the lunches I pack, here are some helpful links…
- Our favorite school lunch supplies including the commonly pictured plastic Ziploc divided containers (each compartment is leak-proof).
- Everything you could ever want to know about those colorful smoothie pop molds used in some lunches.
- Why we don’t track protein or worry about getting “enough.”
- My cookbooks all contain more lunch box ideas as well.
- You can also find more school lunch resources (among others) in our free member’s area.
School Lunch Ideas FAQ
I've get a lot of comments/questions/etc. when I share my kids' lunches on Facebook, so I’d like to address a few of the more common questions below. Read more in the full FAQ.
I’ve written a post that includes everything you could ever want to know about the colorful “freezie pop molds” that I use frequently to add smoothies to their lunches.
Many of the school lunch supplies we use, including the divided lunchbox containers, thermos cups, and freezie pop molds, are detailed in the My Favorite School Lunch Supplies post and my Amazon Favorites page. The lunchbox containers fit nicely (with a drink cup) in both Lands End and Old Navy cloth rectangular lunch boxes.
Some readers ask if these lunches provide enough food for my children, and while I am probably not spot-on with portion size 100% of the time, the short answer is “yes.” First of all, “real food” is a lot more filling than highly processed food (especially the refined grain stuff like white flour). Secondly, portion sizes are getting out of control in America and have unfortunately skewed the public’s view of what is appropriate. Thirdly, my children were 7 and almost 5 when I started photographing their lunches. Lastly, both my children eat after-school snacks. Okay, got that off my chest. :)
A few occasionally ask if these lunches have enough protein. First of all, part of eating a “real food” diet means you no longer have to count calories, fat grams, protein, carbs, etc. You simply eat a variety of whole foods (including lots of veggies) without “overeating” and the rest will just fall into place. It’s kind of nice not to have to worry about that stuff anymore. But, if you aren’t quite ready to forget about your daily protein intake please know there are MANY sources high in protein aside from just meat products such as yogurt, eggs, cheese, cream cheese, nuts (including peanut butter), seeds (including sunflower butter), and beans. When we switched to a "real food" diet we purposely reduced our meat consumption.
My daughters used to go to a peanut/tree nut-free school, so I often used sunflower butter and cream cheese as an alternative to peanut butter. You can filter the lunches above or visit my Nut-Free Lunch Ideas post for more ideas.
What Do Packed Lunches Look Like by Lunchtime?
I've gotten quite a few questions asking what these carefully prepared lunches actually look like come lunchtime—especially after they've been tossed all around while in my kids' backpacks and since "liquidy" foods like yogurt or applesauce are involved. Let's face it, no child keeps their lunch bag or box in one perfect position all day, and that is certainly something I would never expect of my own children.
So when I was having lunch with my daughter at school (and risking looking like a lunatic), I took a bunch of pictures for you! :)
So that's all there is to it! And since I know some will be wondering :) ....
- Those are Ziploc brand divided lunch containers - super cheap, lightweight, BPA-free, and available online. I have no relationship with Ziploc whatsoever. We just really like these lunch boxes.
- I got the muffin cups here. Here are the Thermos cup, the flexible ice blanket, and the fun character ice pack.
- I bought the fun toothpicks at Party City, although I've found cute ones at several different places including Martha Stewart Crafts, and cute Meri Meri Toot Sweet Cupcake Picks.
- The lunch bag is by Lands End and we have the matching backpack that goes with it. This is the brand my older daughter has been using for almost 3 years now and it is still holding up great.
I hope these lunch ideas have been helpful. Please feel free to share your “real food” school lunch ideas in the comments below…
Patricia says
Just to note that your protein sources are fine, but also add leafy greens as a protein source. North America doesn't seem to know that there is protein in leafy greens as well, otherwise how to deer and moose get so big, hey?
And no kidding on the portions sizes, hey?
Suzanne says
WOW!!! I LOVE your ideas!! Thanks so much for sharing these! I will share it with my friends.
Anna says
I love seeing that you send water along to school rather than juice boxes. Every other school lunch blog I have seen includes some type of juice as if children can't live without it!
Kylie Horn says
As a mom of a child with a Severe Peanut Allergy, I want everyone to understand how awesome it is to have a school that takes so seriously allergies! There CANNOT be an "accident" with these kids. If they eat a peanut product, some if they even touch it, can DIE! I had an incident happen at my son's school where he was served a peanut butter cookie. Thankfully his older brother noticed and removed it from his plate before he had time to eat it! It is scary and very hard to let my son go to school, knowing I am in not completely in control of what he might eat. Please understand how serious this is. If you are concerned with your child not being able to eat "nut" products at school, give her all she wants while at home. Understand that this "rule" may have saved many lives!
Courtney says
I hate that for your son, our school is peanut free but they do allow peanut things with packed lunches they just set at a different table and wash their hands and mouth afterwards. I have been looking for a tasty alternative for pb for my oldest son who loves taking pb and apples to school, could you recommend a good pb alternative that we could try?
Nicole says
Sunbutter is a great peanut free alternative to peanut butter. My son is allergic to peanuts too and on behalf of all allergic kids, a huge THANK YOU to everyone who follows a "no peanuts" rule. I know it's an inconvenience, and we thank you for your willingness to help.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Courtney...I know a lot of people use sunbutter and say they like it. Good luck. Jill
Megan says
I have recently (the past year or so) become OBSESSED with being healthy and eating a lot of organic, whole, non-processed foods. So, I love these meal ideas! And I'm a teacher, so these will be perfect to make for myself!
Deanna says
Love your blog!! Keep up the good work!! The meals you provide for your children are so awesome! I would love to have that for lunches!!! My kids aren't little anymore but these ideas are good for any age! So much better than fast or processed food!
Christie Bowdle says
I have what may seem like a silly question... Frozen Peas? These are just peas taken out of the freezer, not cooked? We are not huge pea lovers, but I am thinking this may be a cool concept. Same question with the corn. Do you cook it first, then freeze? Also, what kind of cream cheese do you use?
Thank you for your help! Excellent post!
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Christie. I use organic valley cream cheese. Yes, just frozen from the freezer. By the time they get to the lunch, the veggies are defrosted. Jill
Michele says
This is just a FABULOUS resource! Love the pictures and all your ideas are wonderful. My kids would eat most of this, I just needed the inspiration. Love the homemade pizza "lunchable". I almost can't wait for lunch packing!
Liza says
Hi --I have an 11 year old who is over weight. I am starting your suggestions this summer. BUT, do you have lunch ideas for her age group?
Shannon says
I agree with you. I think these are great ideas but the portion sizes are more attuned to a four year old not a 9-12 year old boy. Wish there were more ideas posted.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Shannon. Of course, you could always just increase the portion sizes. Or, also consider including a few extra things with each meal. Jill
Lisa Ann says
I have a 9 year old son and these size portions are more than enough for him. I've noticed most of my friends are surprised when they see how much my children eat. They ask are you sure that's enough? Of course it is! We need to teach our children portion control. You eat until you're satisfied not until you are ready to burst! You are teaching them to stuff themselves at every meal and expanding their stomachs. What an injustice to do that to a child! Then these same friends wonder why their kids are overweight. My friends son is ten and is embarrassed to wear a swimsuit when we take him swimming because he doesn't want to show his belly. How horrible for a child to even have to worry about that and not just think about having fun! His mother sends him to swim for exercise, that's great but then let's him eat three hot dogs! It's 20% exercise 80% what you eat.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Liza. You should just be able to utilize the ideas on the school lunch roundup post. Jill
Kim says
I love your ideas. I just want to say, as a teacher, I think your portions are ideal. If you have ever walked through a cafeteria, so much food ends up in the garbage. Kids don't want their parents seeing what they DON'T eat.
Stephany says
This was SO helpful~~THANKS so much!! I am curious where did you buy the raw nut/raisin trail mix packets?
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Stephany. Are you referring to the mix in the tray? You can just simply make that yourself with whatever your kids like. Jill
Stephany says
I was looking at the 4th picture from the top and I thought that was a store bought package of trail mix in with the pita sandwich. Now that I look closely, I guess it is just a ziptop baggie. Sorry! I will pay closer attention next time! :-)
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Stephany. You can just make it with some cashews, pistachios and raisins. Jill
Elizabeth says
How do you keep the fruit from browning? My kids love it, but haven't found a good way to keep it from browning.
Thanks!!!
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Elizabeth. Just squeeze a little bit of lemon juice on them. It works every time. Jill
Megan says
Love this! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
kersten says
how do the smoothie pops stay cold all day
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Kersten - I usually pack them frozen so they are pretty much thawed (and cold) by lunchtime. Jill
Serena says
What I would do to be able to send my child with any peanut or nut item! These are great except for the fact that the schools here are nut free. I hate not being able to send peanut butter
Amber says
I love the divided trays, but found they were too large for most lunch boxes. I finally found one that works great, so I wanted to pass it along for anyone else who might be having trouble. The "Munch & Lunch" bags by Wildkin are large enough to accommodate the container, a water bottle, and a few ice packs. They come in lots of cute designs. I got them from ebags.com, but I also saw them on WalMart's website and a few designs on Amazon as well.
Mandy says
I'm sorry if this has been mentioned, I didnt read over all the comments. Have you ever heard of Planetbox? We have them for school lunches and LOVE them! They are well worth every penny!
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Mandy. I had not heard of them but will take a look. Thanks for the tip. Jill
Tina I. says
One of my favorite blog posts....ever! How do you get the apple slices in the apple sandwich to not brown? Lemon juice? Working slowly to transition our family to Real Food and while we ate healthy food before, the Pollan books and related documentaries changed our outlook entirely. Breakfast is still a struggle and may take us awhile to get completely off the cereal. We don't do school lunches...too processed......so this post just gave me about 300 great ideas for school lunches for my 5 kids. Thanks.
Jane says
Add lemon juice if you want to but it's not necessary. My kids don't like sour lemon juice on their apples so I just let them turn brown. They have been eating them this way since they were old enough to eat apples so they don't know any difference. There's nothing wrong with brown apples - it's just natural oxidation from reacting with the air. It doesn't hurt to eat it (assuming you kept them cold until eaten) and it doesn't change the taste.
Jenna says
Awesome! My daughter is only 2 but I might use some of these ideas to pack my own lunches. :) And I don't know how anyone could think you were not sending enough food, I think it looks like plenty! Thanks for posting.
michelle says
I agree! I'm not sure how anyone could think these lunches are not of adequate size! I'm a second-yr college student, but when I was in HS and bringing my lunches, mine were of the same size!
Jodi Snyder says
My kids are grown now, wish I could do it all over again. I hope you are an inspiration to a million people so that we can feed our children properly. It is our job! You've done a really good thing here and I hope your children love how much you are doing to take good care of them!! very creative, beautiful to look at and so tasty too. Thank you.
Betina J says
You must be Danish, having whole-wheat ebleskiver in your lunches, kudos, it all looks good. I did some of these things as well when my children were young too, that's awesome that you can share.
Jennifer says
Hey, Miss Lisa-- Just found your blog last night and am LOVING all of the fantastic ideas and helpful information you provide here. It seems that meal planning has become the bane of my existence, but you've given me a ray of hope. My youngest daughter is highly allergic to chicken, turkey, eggs, and nuts, so as a family, our consumption of NON-chicken and NON-eggy foods is essential. I mean, why should I make a completely separate meal for Lila than what the rest of us are eating? It's twice the work. Couple that and the allergies with the fact that my two toddlers are frightfully picky eaters and you can start to understand why trying to make enjoyable, well-rounded and nutritious meals for our family of 5 has begun to weigh me down.
Your kids' lunch round-up was nothing short of FANTASTIC! I was wondering what you use (in place of/in addition to) the smoothie pops to keep refrigeratables cold. I'm weirded out by cold food warming to room temperature, but I don't want to weigh the kids down with the frozen blocks-o-blue-gel we call "Freezy Things."
Thanks so much for the inspiration! Can't wait to read and learn more from you!
~Jennifer
Lisa says
So glad you are enjoying the blog! I can't imagine working around so many allergies...I don't know how moms do it! Anyway, I put 3 - 4 ice packs in my daughters' lunchboxes, but I use smaller and lighter weight ones kind of like this (that you can cut to any size you'd like): http://tinyurl.com/75etswe I hope that helps.
Jessica H says
You can also buy organic fruit juice!! The stuff that's 100% juice and not full of sugar. Dilute it with water so it's not so strong. The color will make it look like Capri sun bit without all the processed nastiness!! Also try freezing the juice in ice trays. I used to love having "homemade" Popsicles or colored water when the ice melted!!! Hope this helps :)
Heather says
Ohhh...Thank you! Thank you!! Thank you!!! This is exactly what I've been looking for :)
Selina@CreativeJuicesDecor says
All I can say is THANK YOU for writing this post! I am SOOOO motivated to change my kids lunches this year.
Leah says
Thank you so much for all these creative ideas. I work full time outside the home and am often in a quandry about what to leave my toddler for lunch. I'm going to have to give some of these a try.
I love being in my kitchen too, and pride myself on making just about everything from scratch including bread. If you haven't checked it out yet you should look for a copy of Healthy Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a day. I use their technique for 100% whole wheat bread (pitas and naan from the same dough). As a working mom it has revolutionized my life in the kitchen in the best of ways. Happy July 4th!
RDmom says
Thank you so much for this website! As a dietitian and as a mom of a 2 year old, you have really inspired me and made me rethink the recommendations that I give my patients. You are right in saying that "fat free" is not always the best option. I am all about prevention rather than treating diseases after they occur. If our society ate like this, we would have much lower rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc.
I also appreciate you taking into consideration the need to stick to a budget. I have always wanted to be an awesome couponer that saves 100s of dollars a month but have found most of the couponing websites encourage stocking up on packaged/canned products. I love your approach. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Martha McNeely says
Genius! I have been eating only real food for 25 plus years now but still have a hard time planning lunches to take with me! These are PERFECT!
Allyson says
I work as a substitute teacher. I see so many kids throw healthy food like this in the trash. It's sad and I sometimes wonder if the parents have any idea the kids toss the sandwich and eat the dessert.
Stacie says
Do you have some good receipes for the smoothie pops. I have ordered them, but wan some ideas of what to put inside? I would lobe to make him some homemade smoothies or anything else. Email them if possible. [email protected]
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Stacie. Take a look at this post for some ideas:https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/03/19/real-food-tips-4-hints-for-using-freezie-pop-molds/. You may also be interested in this one: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/06/07/cool-summer-treat-makeover/. Good luck. Jill
Jude says
This lunch food is so inspiring to me! It all looks delicious and wow, do you deliver? Yummo ideas, thank you!
Tammy says
OK, I'm in shock...I love these examples of lunch ideas that I have found lately on blogs/Pintrest of what to pack in my kids' lunches because I'm in a major rut and love to steal ideas from other inventive, creative moms who are generous enough to share ideas. Are you really serious that people leave commments busting your chops about what you feed your kids or how much you feed them or tell you that you aren't giving them enough protein??? I am assuming that is why there were all the disclaimers at the beginning of your entry! UNBELIEVABLE!! You are a kind woman, I wouldn't have even justified these statements with a response. You are awesome in my opinion, and if people can't post something nice, they should just move along! Keep on doing what you are doing, and thank you for sharing your wisdom with those of us who appreciate it!!
Mel says
I'm not trying to be mean or rude or anything but I wanted to let you know that "BPA-Free" means they use a sister chemical called "BPS" which is the same thing.
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/is-bpa-free-plastic-safe.html
Judy says
Thanks so much for posting this!!!! I would love to be able to share your posting on our blog (with proper citation) via Pinterest! So glad I found this! :)
Amanda says
I just found your site via pinterest and I am astounded that people would think this was NOT enough food for your children! I agree with the portion sizes here completely. I have the popsicle molds that you use for the smoothies, but to be honest, I never thought to use them the way you do...I always made popsicles in them! Great source of inspiration. TY!!
Saskia says
This is fantastic and very inspiring. Love the shaped sandwiches. My boys love mini hamburgers (with lots of hidden grated vegies and oat bran included) served in wholewheat dinner rolls. They scoff them cold!
Nilla says
My daughter goes to an all day kindergarten an I pack a lunch and an afternoon snack for her everyday. We do not use any store bought snacks or juices and she complains from time to time about that. She shares with me what other children bring to school to eat and it is scary to say the least! She comes home and says that so and so had this ( now she even know what it is cheetos,goldfish, fruit roll ups, etc) and I try to make it as good as a can. Last week she wanted me to buy a bag of goldfish crackers, empty them out, make my own, and put them in the bag. Since we never buy packaged snacks, she thinks they are the greatest. Do you ever run in to that dilema or does your oldest not complain about wanting something that other children have?
100 Days of Real Food says
I am actually going through something similar with my 7-year-old so I recently bought organic pop tarts (still totally junk food and not something I've ever bought before), and I let her take it as her snack 1 time. I try not to be too terribly restrictive at times like that so they don't end up "binging" at a friend's house later, but I still stick to my guns as far as what I'd like them to eat. It's hard to ignore the social impact of junk food! (I also showed her in teaspoons of sugar how much is actually in the pop start so she could understand it's more like a dessert than a snack). I hope that helps!
Rachel says
I'm not much of a blogger, but I keep getting pointed to your blog from Pinterest or Facebook. LOVE IT!! I teach, so I'm enjoying a little extra time this summer. As for Poptarts... have you tried making your own? Maybe you have - sorry I haven't thoroughly explored your blog yet. My daughter (3 at the time) was begging for one to take to daycare since so many other kids were bringing them in. I told her no because it was a dessert, not a breakfast... Then one of the few blogs I do visit frequently put up a recipe for homemade PBJ poptarts! Yay!! Now my girl can take her own homemade poptart for morning snack... though I have to leave off the pb for "school". Maybe next time I'll try to sub it with sunbutter.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Rachel. Here is a recipe for Pop Tarts. https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/05/30/recipe-whole-wheat-toaster-pastries-a-k-a-pop-tarts/. Jill
Charlotte says
Thank you for putting all of the lunch ideas in one spot. We will be testing these out this summer so I will know who will eat what. I will be making three lunches a day next year for my 7 and 4 year old and one for myself as I will also be in school. Thank you again!!
Danielle says
I just found your blog and LOVE it! Thanks for the all great ideas...can't wait to many of them out!! :)
Christy says
I love your ideas!!! I am in the process of switching our family to a more whole foods diet. The processed foods just turn me off so much now! And the more I learn, the more I'm excited to switch. I just have one problem... my family is full of incredibly picky eaters!!! I am transitioning them over the summer so that lunches for school look much better next year than this year! :-) Thanks for the ideas!
Sheree says
So, these lunches are fantastic. I try to send similar lunches, but I run out of ideas. You have some fantastic new things I am going to try. We, too, have always used the divided ziploc containers, and they fit nicely into our PBK rectangular lunchbox with a small, skinny bottled water and a small "ice thing". However, I was at Target this morning, and I found these new lunchbox containers called "Lunch Blox", and they all stack together. I bought this (http://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-1806231-Lunch-Blox-Sandwich/dp/B0078K416Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1337023449&sr=8-3) sandwich pack that has several containers and an "ice thingy" that also stacks with it. This is on sale at Target right now for $9.99 which seemed like a super deal for all you get with it. They also had a rectangular one that was divided, and I am kicking myself that I will have to go back and get that one. Anyway, I thought you may want to check them out. Thanks for all your wonderful ideas and recipes. I refer to your site a lot.