Our first “School Lunch Roundup” post quickly became one of the most popular pages on the blog so I thought I’d put together another one for you (2018 update: there are so many of these now that I’ve put together a School Lunch Roundup Series page where you can see them all)! For those who are newer to our site be sure to check out “My Favorite School Lunch Supplies” to see the details on all our containers, lunch boxes, thermos cups, etc. Also, if you see a recipe below that you may be interested in (like quesadillas, apple sandwich, refried beans, chicken noodle soup, etc.) just search for it using the search box at the top, right of the page. Most are on the blog, but unfortunately I’m not able to put a live link in photo captions.
Also, I’d like to make sure everyone knows about our meal planning sponsor, Plan to Eat. The start of school means getting back on a schedule and they can definitely help when it comes to the kitchen and grocery shopping. Plan to Eat is a web application that creates a categorized grocery list from recipes that you drag into an interactive meal planning calendar. You can easily import recipes from any website using their handy bookmark (similar to “pinning” in Pinterest), which helps to keep all of your favorite recipes in one place. They are currently offering a completely free 30-day trial, so you should definitely give it a try!
So without further ado, here is a summary of the school lunches that I’ve been sharing on my Facebook page:
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Please feel free to share your lunch packing ideas in the comments below!
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Food Allergies: Dairy (including recipes)
This isn’t the place that I first saw it, but I don’t know which page it was, and I had to send a THANK YOU comment. My son opted to go to the local school last month, after his entire school career being in a virtual school. So, I had to start packing lunches. And then, he threw me a loop today, and reminded me of a field trip tomorrow, and oh, the lunch has to be disposable. EEP! I would have been frantic, if i hadn’t read some of your ideas on that recently! Instead, I shrugged, said “ok”, and proceeded to pack the exact same planned lunch in disposable plastic containers (That I pulled out of my recycling from yesterday’s lunch and washed). I even refilled a cheap plastic water bottle that I had in the car, and turned it into lemonade. Real food, and everything from the plastic fork to the water bottle can go in the trash (if it has to… I wish they had the option to recycle).
Thanks, Lisa, for making my panic not appear. :)
Where do you get those cute little frozen smoothie holder pops?
:)
Hi Liz. You can find them here: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/03/19/real-food-tips-4-hints-for-using-freezie-pop-molds/.
Hey there! I’m in my first year of dental school and trying to find healthy lunches to bring with me to school (instead of getting on the bus back to my apartment every day) — I absolutely love your ideas, and plan on using many of them.. thank you for sharing. I wanted to know what brand/type of whole wheat pitas you are using? I’d love to find a healthy option! Thank you!
Hi there. Lisa usually gets her whole wheat pitas from Trader Joes. ~Amy
Sabrina, I hear ya! My son is 14 months old and would devour this yummy lunches and expect 3 more. Boys really eat a lot. My question is, how do you keep sliced apples from turning brown?
Hi Angelique. Lemon juice does the best job but lots of people prefer pineapple juice for the taste. :)
Great ideas! Most of these look like something my kids would eat or at least try.
Those all look good. But here’s the thing, not a one of them actually looks like enough food to keep my sons full til school’s over. THAT is the biggest issue I have when packing lunches is they’re hungry in another few hours… Lunch is at 11am, they don’t come home til 4. Ideas?
Hi Sabrina. Just pump up the serving sizes for lunch and see if you can sneak in a hearty afternoon snack. :)
Thank you so much for these ideas!!! I LOVE the smoothie pops and I know my kiddos will too!! Just curiously, do the smoothie pops stay frozen, become slushy, or what by lunchtime??? Do you have to send a cooler pack?? Can’t wait to try some of these ideas??
Hi Sandra. Lisa packs them with ice packs but they do not stay frozen and are like a slushy yogurt tube. ~Amy
I noticed a lot of plastic ziplock bags. Have you ever thought of reusable bags? I get compliments on mine. They’re an awesome Eco friendly solution to plastic bags. I linked my Facebook bag for you to check them out. http://Www.facebook.com/kaylasecochicboutique
Do you use a specific deviled egg recipe that you can recommend?
Hi Trista. Lisa uses a traditional deviled egg recipe but replaces the mayo with sourcream. ~Amy
I love your site – thank you!
I have a question about the apple peanut butter sandwich you show several times in the kids lunches section. How do you keep the apples from browning during the day (or do you)?
Thanks!
Hello Beth. Lisa doesn’t do anything. Her girls don’t mind the browning. Many readers use lemon or another acidic citrus to keep the brown away. ~Amy
Hi! This site is awesome. I’m trying to move my family towards whole foods, non gmo, organic and all that good stuff. Slowly but surely we are getting there. I see that you use whole wheat pitas from TJs. I’ve recently learned that we don’t know if the TJ products are non gmo as they are a private label. Do you have any thoughts on that? Is it best to just then get organic? Thanks again!!!
Hi there. I know it can be a difficult and confusing when trying to navigate this subject. I think it has to be a personal decision about how far to trust a store’s claims when they aren’t willing to be fully transparent. I shop TJ’s a lot and enjoy it but not without a little reservation because Con Agra does own one of there big suppliers. I do look for organic their products whenever possible. ~Amy
I just wanted to say thank you! I recently have become vegan due to the fact that I have Crohns disease and this seems to help me. I also eat mostly raw unprocessed foods as this helps too. I don’t make my kids eat this way, but I still didn’t want them to eat all processed foods either. I was overwhelmed about what to feed everyone. So your blog has helped me so much!! Now packing lunch isn’t a chore, it’s really fun! My girls are excited to help me at night. They were so excited about the freezer pops and the thermos for soup, thank you!!
Hello Stacy. Lisa doesn’t use anything. Her girls don’t mind the color. :) However, several readers have said that pineapple juice work well while others say a salt/water bath. Good luck. ~Amy
I like the apple rings idea for a sandwich. When I do apple wedges, I sprinkle them with cinnamon, which adds a flavor my daughter likes. I tell her that’s why the apples are brown, and she eats it all up.
What do you use to prevent the apple from turning brown. I have tried lemon squeezed but my kids say it tastes funny.