Anything but sandwiches - ideas for lunch boxes that are not sandwiches!

Back to school is fast approaching and with it, the return of the dreaded school lunch box. And this year, with no school lunches for the past 6 months as a result of the school closures, will be a bigger challenge than normal to get back on the bandwagon!

I’ve written a long blog about all the issues people encounter with lunch boxes which you can read here. For this blog, I will focus on what to give your child who turns their nose up at sandwiches, that handy, school lunch box staple!

There are many reasons your child might not like sandwiches :

they don’t like the taste/texture
they find them booooorrrriiiing
they may be coeliac or gluten intolerant
they might just fancy a change

The problem is, that schools allow such a short time for eating lunch, that in many ways, sandwiches are a great portable solution. They may or may not have the time to eat some of these options below depending on their school or teacher. I’d love to hear any ideas you might have for filling your child’s lunchbox with tasty, healthy food that’s not a sandwich!

Here’s my suggestions:

Leftovers – pasta with (nut-free) pesto or other sauce, rice with vegetables or beans, cous cous with meat and vegetables, cold pizza

Soup – buy a flask to keep it warm! Try the ones from Mummy Cooks here.

Savoury scone or muffin - great recipes from My Fussy Eater here .

Banana bread or healthy flapjacks

Porridge cake - a favourite in this house - check out the easy recipe here

Wholegrain crackers with cheese and veggies

Natural yoghurt (greek yoghurt has lots of protein) and berries in separate tubs.

Smoothies - yes, really! Try our new reusable food pouches here for bringing smoothies to school!

Breadsticks, carrot sticks or other raw vegetables with hummus, tzatziki or carrot dip

Frittata – great to eat cold. Throw lots of veggies in – spinach, pepper, mushrooms, cooked potatoes etc. Make mini ones for added portability - recipe here

Cold chicken nuggets - recipe here

Omlette wraps - use a thin omelette as a base to wrap up ham, cheese, lettuce or other toppings

Sushi

Quesadilla (olé!) – put a wholewheat tortilla wrap directly on a warm pan, add veggies like sweetcorn, spinach, tomato and ham or whatever you fancy – top with grated cheddar and a second tortilla wrap – cook on one side for about a minute then flip to cook on the other side. Cut into wedges and serve with avocado on the side.

Container of salad with salad potatoes, hard boiled egg and veggies with a small container of dressing. Include some toasted seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame) for an extra nutrition hit!