Those of you who have school-age children or little ones in child care, know that keeping the lunchbox filled with healthy, economical items that they will actually eat is a huge challenge. I count the "lunchbox years" that I have left, and it fills me with dread. I can handle the never-ending loads of washing and every other aspect of taking care of my children until they reach adulthood, but the lunchbox is especially challenging for me.
It doesn't help that all 4 of my boys have different dislikes (and I often get in trouble for sending the wrong items with the wrong child) and then there are the regulations that the school has in place. Not only do we have to send what they consider healthy food, but we also have to refrain from sending foods that other children have allergies to. Now don't get me wrong, I'm more than happy to do that, but it does add to the challenge. For instance, my boys love having a boiled egg in their lunch, but now that there is 1 child at the school with an egg allergy, that needs to be crossed off the list.
I have lunchbox staples (which I always buy at Aldi, because they are so much better and cheaper than the other supermarkets - more praising of Aldi another time), which are good when you wake up at 6 in the morning and have to come up with 4 lunches in the least amount of time possible! Cheesesticks, yoghurt, fruit, sultanas, rice crackers and a vegemite sandwich (but of course to make it difficult, number 1 doesn't like the rice crackers and number 2 doesn't like cheesesticks, yoghurt, sultanas or rice crackers!). Other items I throw in to mix it up a bit are cans of tuna, cans of corn kernels,carrot sticks, avocado and cream cheese with crackers, cherry tomatoes and any leftovers that don't need reheating.
I always have a peek in other kid's lunchboxes to try and "steal" ideas. One interesting idea I found last week was precooked ravioli (no sauce) in a Tupperware container. I'm going to precook a whole packet, split it up and freeze it, ready to go. I'll tell you how it goes.
I checked out a few different sites that give lunchbox ideas and they were interesting, but everything I looked at was high in shopping and preparation time. If you are a mum who is lucky enough to have time to spend on amazing lunches, this is the website for you! http://www.freshforkids.com.au/lunch_box/lunch_box.html
I got a couple of ideas; like pikelets (I'm sure Aldi sells those too) and a recipe for sweetcorn and zucchini fritters which I am going to try.
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/16086/sweetcorn+and+zucchini+fritters
I occasionally make a slice or mini-muffins to freeze and put in the lunch box through the week, but honestly, I just don't have the time. I've gotten over feeling guilty about that, but I do feel like the world's best mum when I do! I sometimes put a note in there saying "I love you" or something cute like that; surely that makes up for the less-than-gourmet lunches!
If you have any ideas that you would like to share, please do!
Good post, Rach :-)
ReplyDeleteOur kindy has a 'nude food' policy, which means no packaging. One mum sent a muesli bar and got told off! I know it must be hard for working parents, but I honestly think it's great, because it forces parents to think about what they're sending, ahead of time, rather than slapping something together in the morning without really thinking about it. I often make a batch of muffins, replacing half of the flour with wholemeal flour, and any butter is replaced with the same volume of rice bran oil, to make it healthier (and cheaper, easier etc). I also usually reduce the sugar amount by about 20 - 30% and there have been no complaints so far. I've toyed with the idea of adding LSA in place of some of the flour, but I've not yet been proactive enough to find out where it fits in with the nut stuff that's going on around the place.
I'm loving your blog, good lady. Nearly as much as I love Funkees :-)
xox
Thanks Lotte xx I love rice bran oil, I don't buy olive oil anymore at all. It's so much cheaper and it has a great flavour and it's heat tolerant so we can use it on the BBQ. I don't think LSA would bring up any nut allergy concerns, almonds don't seem to be an issue.
ReplyDeleteOh, I can relate to this Rachel, so hard to put healthy things in the lunchbox that they actually eat! My youngest will eat anything (fruit and veg especially), but my eldest is a different story. Rice crackers and cheese is always a winner, Jatz and vegemite or yoghurt. Sometimes I bake - banana muffins or chocolate cake, but I'm a bit boring in the lunchbox area - I need inspiration!
ReplyDelete