Tips for Healthy School Lunches

It’s back-to-school time for kids, and that means back-to-school-lunch time for parents. Brace yourselves: packing school lunches can be oddly tricky even for confident cooks, given the conflicting pieces of the lunch puzzle.

School lunches need to be portable, compact, convenient, appealing, and — maybe most significant– something kids can eat fast. They also need to be nutritious, a goal that’s not always compatible with “fast” and “convenient.”

Don’t forget that school lunches need to be tasty at room temperature and also safe to eat after a few hours *at* room temperature (or whatever temperatures they reach squashed in the depths of a backpack), since most kids don’t have access to a refrigerator or microwave. Also: Some schools ban nuts from lunches, given the prevalence and severity of nut allergies.

It can be a challenge, especially when set on repeat every weekday. But we can rise to it! Here are some tips from ace cooking class instructors, nutritionists, and other food fans:

Get curious: Arianna Garella, PCC’s culinary education manager, says “Ask your kiddos what their friends are eating!

“Whether you have run out of creative steam after packing lunch for the 200th day in a row or your kid has stopped eating what you’re packing — sometimes a simple investigation into what others are eating can provide inspiration. Plus — we all know that when it comes to packed lunch, we always want what we don’t have. Rather than letting your kids complain about what’s in their lunch, ask them to tell you about the snacks that other kids are having that look delicious.” That also, she notes, lets them be part of the solution.

Curiosity also runs the other way: It’s good to know if your kid is the type that doesn’t want creative options! Author and kid-food champion Matthew Amster-Burton once said that school lunch was an unusually tricky challenge: “It’s hard for me as a food guy, because I would not be happy having the same lunch every day.  I like to take myself out for lunch, I like to try new things at lunch. It’s my least conservative meal. And that’s not true for kids; it’s their most conservative meal. They have other things they want to be doing at lunch, like talking to their friends.”

Get creative: While your mileage may vary, even kids who love PB&Js might get sick of them eventually. (Ask how we know.) In this still-solid advice, former PCC nutrition educator Leika Suzumura once recommended variations on pasta for school lunches — think cooked raviolis, leftover lasagna, pasta salad with veggies, or (her own kid’s favorite at the time), easy mac and cheese with peas.  Her other “Beyond the PB&J” recommendations include: Leftover fried rice with some added protein and veggies, tuna or egg salad on a croissant or pita, whole grain bagel with cream cheese (and maybe smoked salmon and avocado slices or lettuce, depending on your kid), tortilla wraps featuring lunch meats and/or spreads.

Get cute: You don’t need to cut sandwiches into animal shapes (more power to you if this is your thing), but kids often appreciate stacks or compartments of assemble-it-yourself meals. Popular commercial versions with stacks of crackers, cheese and deli meats tend to include highly processed ingredients that are high in sodium and saturated fats, but you can make your own at home with minimal effort and a better nutrition panel. Snacky bites are also great: Provide cut-up veggies with dips (hummus is a nutritional powerhouse with a good amount of protein) or dressing, or even a taco version with little tortilla rounds and fillings like shredded cheese and lettuce. Even standard lunch items can get a warm reception when separated out into a bento box — anything from onigiri to the aforementioned PB&J is somehow more appealing when dividers separate the entree from other small snacks.

This tactic is more than just cosmetic: Given the limited time available to eat, smaller bites of food are easier on the eater. It can also be helpful (from this time-challenged perspective) to take steps like peeling oranges in advance and cutting apples into nibble-able slices. Our resident summer camp counselor also suggests cutting open pre-sealed items like cheese sticks or trail mix packets, within food safety guidelines, so the youngest set doesn’t waste valuable minutes getting the attention of an adult to help open them.

Get prep out of the way: Garella recommends taking lunch prep out of the morning rush and getting ready at a quieter time of day. “When possible, prepack snacks for the week, make meals that will serve for multiple days of leftovers. Meal prep doesn’t just need to be saved for dinners.”

Get the kids involved: Older kids can prepare their own lunches, of course, but even youngsters are more likely to eat a lunch they’ve helped prepare and are invested in. This could include having them join you to shop for lunch supplies, having them help brainstorm what they want to eat, having them help make their meal, or even having them help decorate their lunch bag, Garella notes. (Ahem — want to get them extra-excited and confident? Try PCC’s “Back to School Cooking Class” for kids ages 8-12.)

Get fun: Don’t be afraid to throw in a surprise treat now and then, Garella says. “What a delight to open a lunch box and see an extra special snack, note, or sticker.”

Get a few ideas: 

• Try this PCC recipe for fruit-and-yogurt lunch parfaits.
• Make mini-muffins ahead and freeze them, then pop a few frozen muffins in the lunch bag. They’ll defrost in time.
• Egg bites (try this recipe), or slices of leftover frittata or quiche, can be filling and nutritious.
• Getting around that room temperature requirement, a thermos can be your (kid’s) friend for every warm lunch from soups to leftover spaghetti to pan-fried pot stickers from the freezer case.