Healthy School Lunches: 1 week of Bento Box lunches

back to school is in full swing. make packing lunches a breeze. kid-tested healthy bento box school lunches

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One of the most stressful parts about back to school prep is worrying about what to pack my daughter for lunch. She is now in Senior Kindergarten and has suddenly become the worlds pickiest eater. She has very few favourites, and changes up her likes and dislikes weekly.
Using a Bento box for her lunch has made lunch time prep so much easier. Her healthy school lunches are now separated into what I like to call “food groups” for quick prep and easy eating.

The “food groups” that I created for her bento box go something like this;

Main course – Carbs and proteins. Such as sandwiches, tortilla roll ups and waffles and deli meats.

Fruits/Veggies – As my daughter likes to change her food likes and dislikes so often, her fruits/veggies usually vary for the week. Whatever fruit she decides she wants to eat when we go to the grocery store.

Snack – Goldfish crackers, pretzels or something crunchy. Again, whatever she fancies that week.

Dessert/Treat – Something sweet. Cookies, mini nut-free chocolate bars, gummy candies.

Of course you can add whatever foods your child(ren) prefer. Try different foods to see which lunch options are the new favourites.

I try my best to make healthy school lunches everyday, but sometimes I do slack a little and throw some unhealthy foods in there for a quick lunch.
For easier morning lunch prep, I pack the non-perishable lunch items into her Bento lunch box and her insulated lunch bag.

Feel free to copy or alter any of these healthy school lunches for kids. Here’s what my daughter ate for the first week of school;

Day 1:
Main Course: Sandwich rollups – oven roasted chicken breast slices with Kraft cheese slices rolled into a tortilla. I then cut that tortilla into 4 and stick a food skewer to keep them rolled.
Fruits/Veggies: Strawberries + blueberries.
Snack: Goldfish crackers + Ritz sandwich crackers.
Dessert/Treat: 3 gummy candies.

Day 2:
Main Course: Make your own pizza! Mini naan bites (less than $6 at Walmart!) + disposable condiment cups with pizza sauce/tomato sauce + shredded cheese.
Fruits/Veggies: Apple slices.
Snack: Teddy graham crackers – this weeks favourite snack.
Dessert/Treat: Mini Oreo cookies.

Day 3:
Main Course: Breakfast for lunch – Waffles (or pancakes) + a boiled egg + disposable condiment cup of pancake syrup.
Fruits/Veggies: Cucumbers + strawberries.
Snack: Goldfish crackers + Teddy graham crackers.
Dessert/Treat: Gummy candies

Day 4:
Main Course: Homemade lunchables – Ritz crackers + sliced kielbasa (less than $6 at Walmart!) + Babybel cheese sliced.
Fruits/Veggies: Strawberries + apple slices.
Snack: Popcorn – my daughter loves the extra butter flavour.
Dessert/Treat: Mini Oreo cookies.

Day 5:
Main Course: Cream cheese bagel (half) + oven roasted chicken breast sliced.
Fruits/Veggies: Cucumbers + apple slices.
Snack: Ritz crackers + Babybel cheese.
Dessert/Treat: Mini KitKat bar