Kids Lunchbox Ideas

It is school time again! Back to the routine of preparing lunches for the kids every day. I have noticed in the last few years that I start out really well with lunch box ideas, but as the weeks go on variety begins to lack and lunches start looking the same from one day to the next! This year I hope to vary it more and to keep it interesting and tasty for them. A typical school lunch for my 6 year old boy would usually consist of an almond butter sandwich, cut up cucumber, carrot, apple, some berries or olives, and a few dates or raisins.

Fruit and vegetables are a good way to get lots of colour in to kids lunchboxes. Go with the seasons and pack lots of berries at the beginning of the school year, then moving on to mandarins, apples and pears over winter, and peaches, plums and apricots at the end of the school year. Cucumber, peppers, olives, carrots and mangetout all work well in lunchboxes too.

Growing kids need carbohydrates to fuel their brains, but they also need healthy fats and protein to keep their energy steady during the day. Good fats improve brain health and proteins form the building blocks of many structures in the body.

Here are two recipes that use oats, fruit and seeds to make a balanced healthy snack to include in lunchboxes. Hemp seeds are available in supermarkets and health shops. They are a great source of easily digested protein and essential fats, minerals and vitamins - great for kids and adults.