Brain Food - Lunchboxes Lunchboxes seem to be the bane of many parents life. You want to provide a nutritious lunch which your child will eat, not bring home! They want something they can eat quickly before rushing out into the playground and don’t want anything that will be considered ‘weird’ by their friends. A healthy school lunchbox should contain some protein (e.g. meat, fish, eggs, cheese, beans, pulses or soya), slow-releasing carbohydrate (wholegrain or rye bread, wholemeal pasta, brown rice, oats or starchy vegetables such as sweet potato or pumpkin), fruit and vegetables, along with a drink (preferably water, milk or milk alternative rather than juice) and perhaps something else like a low-sugar yoghurt. When it comes to fruit children often prefer fresh fruit cut and ready to eat. Fruit salad is ideal for lunch boxes - it’s colourful, easy to eat and bursting with vitamins. Vary the fruit offered –apples, pears, berries, cherries, tangerines and kiwis are all lower sugar options than bananas. Dried fruit also has a high sugar content so I would only include that occasionally. When it comes to vegetables children often enjoy crunchy vegetables which they can eat with a dip. Try sticks of carrots, peppers, celery and cucumber with a dip such as hummus, guacamole, cottage cheese or salsa. Raw sugar snaps peas are lovely and sweet, as are raw cherry tomatoes. Cucumber and tomato can make sandwiches a bit soggy so try putting them into a separate pot for your child to add to their sandwich just before eating. Here are a few lunch ideas: * Left-over brown rice and turkey with peas and sweetcorn (can be eaten cold or kept warm in a thermos) * Wholegrain pasta salad with tuna, tomato and peppers * Avocado, cucumber & ham ‘Sushi’ Sandwiches – Mash ¼ avocado with a drizzle of lemon juice then spoon along centre of a wholegrain wrap. Top with cucumber sticks and pieces of ham. Roll up tightly, trim ends and cut into 2cm thick slices. (This also works well with sliced chicken or turkey.) * Egg, cress and tomato sandwich on wholegrain bread * Chicken drumstick with roasted butternut squash * Hummus, red pepper and grated carrot whole-grain wrap * Chicken, brown rice and vegetable soup in a thermos flask * Leftover brown rice with prawns and peas * Cold frittata or Spanish omelette with some cherry tomatoes * Wholegrain pitta pocket filled with chopped cold sausage and tomato * Falafel with hummus, pitta bread and vegetables * Mini portion of Greek salad with feta and olives * Tortilla wrap with cream cheese and grated carrot, rolled up and sliced into chunks * Buckwheat (soba) noodle salad with beef, stir-fried peppers, courgettes, onions and carrots * Cheese & marmite sandwich on wholegrain or 50/50 bread * Lentil and tomato soup in a thermos flask I would suggest making changes slowly over a few weeks – for example switch white bread to 50/50 and then to wholemeal. Swap savory snacks like Wotsits for plain crisps and then popcorn and eventually seeds (if allowed at your child’s school.) Allowing your child to include a ‘treat’ of their choice a couple of times a week makes them feel involved and may make them more willing to try a few new options. Please feel free to share any ideas you have for healthy lunchboxes here.
Posted on: Thu, 29 Aug 2013 11:50:00 +0000
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