Lunchbox Overhaul
Get kids involved (and eating healthier) with these brown-bag updates.
Find better ways to fill that lunchbox (and get your child to help too).
If your child's idea of the perfect school lunch consists of chips and candy, your assignment is to upgrade those brown-bag meals so they merit an A-plus for nutrition. Getting your kids involved is a great place to start.
"As soon as your child can open the refrigerator and make a sandwich, she can make her own lunch for school," says Andrea Giancoli, RD, a Los Angeles–based spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. "Encourage her from a young age to make healthy choices." She recommends keeping nutritious options within arm's reach — on a low shelf in the refrigerator or pantry, for instance. This way, your child will be more likely to reach for trail mix, string cheese, and low-fat yogurt when she packs her lunch.
Even if he's too young to prepare it himself, engage your child in planning what he'll bring for lunch, "Take him grocery shopping with you and ask what he would like to eat," says Tara Gidus, RD, a nutritionist in Orlando. Variety, too, is your friend. "Don't pack the same thing over and over. When you try different things, you may be surprised at what your kids end up liking."
A New Twist on PB&J
Sandwiches are the central component in most lunchboxes, and some kids will happily tote peanut butter and jelly day after day for years. That's perfectly okay, says Giancoli, since peanut butter contains both protein and healthy fats. To sneak in some extra fiber, use whole wheat bread, pita, or rolls. If your child is resistant to whole wheat, try a few different brands — sometimes kids are turned off by the color and consistency of one brand but will like another. If they still don't like whole wheat, try making the sandwich with one slice of white and one of whole wheat.
Moving beyond PBJs, which are quick to make and don't need to be refrigerated, consider sandwiches made with lean ham, turkey, and roast beef. "These are all pretty much the same in terms of nutritional value," Gidus says. "They're a good source of protein, which is important to have in the lunchbox." Avoid bologna, salami, and other processed meats, she says, since they're high in fat. Do tuck some lettuce into the sandwich for color and crunch. If your child likes tomato, pack it separately in a small plastic bag. (This helps avoid SBS — soggy bread syndrome.) Adding a little mayo is okay. "Not only does it help preserve the sandwich and keep in the filling, but it also provides some healthy fat and vitamin E," says Elisa Zeid, RD, mother of Spencer, 9, and Eli, 5, and the author of Feed Your Family Right. If you have time and your kids are young enough to appreciate this, use cookie cutters to cut the sandwiches into fun shapes.
For a nice variation from the usual sandwich, try pinwheels, made by tightly rolling up a filling (roast beef, turkey, tuna salad) in a whole wheat tortilla, then cutting the roll with a sharp knife into three-quarter-inch rounds. Your child can also make veggie pinwheels by spreading a tortilla with low-fat cream cheese, arranging thinly sliced cucumber, tomato and grated carrot on top, then rolling up. Cut the roll into thin slices.
Or try making an "inside out" sandwich: first, spread slices of turkey or ham with low-fat cream cheese. At one edge, arrange a breadstick and some thin carrot sticks. Roll the meat around the breadstick, and roll some lettuce around the turkey if you like.
Another of my kids' faves is PBJ sushi, which take less than five minutes to make. Flatten slices of whole wheat bread and spread them with peanut butter and jelly. Roll up tightly and cut into "sushi."
If your child gets bored with sandwiches, try a pasta salad that contains diced ham, hard cooked egg, and finely chopped vegetables. Substitute wagon wheels or bowties for the elbow macaroni, and moisten with a little low-fat mayonnaise. For a slightly different take on chicken salad, toss shredded cooked chicken, chopped celery, a little mayo, some salsa, and a little shredded cheese. Serve with scoop-style taco chips for dipping. Or pack a small container of hummus and baggies of cut-up vegetables and whole wheat pita crisps for dipping. Supermarkets carry so many brands of hummus now that there's no need to make your own if you're pressed for time. Try some of the new flavors, like sundried tomato or lemon and garlic. You may be surprised to see which one your child likes best.
Super Sides
To go with the "main course," pack some fruit or vegetables. Fill a small plastic bag of baby-cut carrots, edamame, cucumber slices, green pepper rings, or broccoli or cauliflower florets. Rather than whole apples and oranges, slice oranges into segments and apples into wedges. Dip the apple slices into water mixed with lemon juice (to prevent browning; orange slices don't need this treatment). Pack individually sized cans of diced peaches, pineapple chunks, or mandarin orange slices in juice or light syrup, or mini containers of no-sugar-added applesauce. (Be sure to add a plastic spoon or fork.)
No lunch is complete without dessert, but don't hand your child the bag of cookies and let him put a stack into the bag. Instead, include two or three small cookies, or maybe a little piece of chocolate.
Timesaving Tips
If you're like most parents, time is of the essence and you're best off making lunches (or supervising their making) the night before. No matter when or what you and your child pack for his lunch, keep it safe to eat by making sure it's well chilled. Insulated lunch bags or boxes with a reusable ice pack work well, but you can go more low-tech than that if you want. Fill a water bottle half full and freeze overnight. The next morning, fill the rest with water. It will keep your child's lunch cold, and the water will melt and be ready to drink by lunchtime. Or freeze a juice box and put that into the lunchbox. It doubles as an icepack and a beverage once it thaws.
And finally, don't forget about leftovers. There's no rule that says a school lunch can't consist of cold pizza. In fact, it may turn out to be such a cool lunch the other kids will be begging him to trade. Chances are he'll stick with the pizza — and resist the chips and candy!
