Healthy School Lunch Ideas

Healthy School Lunch Ideas

Nutrition is particularly important for young kids. The meals they eat are a vital part of their growing and developing. If your families have older kids who get a lunch to school or have meals served in their program, as providers you should ask them these questions:

• Are the lunches meeting the nutritional demands of the children.

• Are the children taking the lunches packed for them?

• Are the meals that the older children are taking at school nutrient and do they offer a variety of options?

If these are some of the questions that your homes have been concerned about, share these sample lunch ideas to enhance children’s lunches and meet their nutritional needs.

• Pack carrot and zucchini sticks, broccoli “trees,” celery “boats” and pepper rings or sticks that are soft cooked (to prevent choking in children under 4 years of age).

• Pack sprouts, tomato cuts and lettuce mixed with red cabbage, spinach and jicama cuts to add variety to your child’s lunches.

• Supply good sources of fiber and vitamins A and C such as apples (unpeeled), oranges, kiwi and pineapple cuts, berries, bananas and sugarless 100 percent juices (not a fruit drink).
  

• Try other calcium sources like hummous, beans, corn tortillas, low fat milk cheese, and yogurt, tofu, or cottage cheese with fruit. Be sure to pack tightly; apply freezer packs to keep the nutrient cold and to keep spoilage.

• For variety, try replacing whole wheat bread with whole wheat bagels, corn or flour tortillas, or pita bread for making sandwiches.

• Other bread products that add spice to lunches are dry unsugared cereals, flavored rice or corn cakes, muffins and bread sticks.
  

• Cooked starches like casseroles made from rice, pasta, couscous or bulghur are great mixed with a variety of vegetables and meats like turkey, chicken, cheese, tuna fish, lean roast beef or beans. Keep in mind that these nutrients need to be stored in an air-tight container to keep their freshness. Make sure there is a microwave oven close by unless your kid likes cold casseroles.

• Good, easy-to-pack protein ideas are string cheese and creamy peanut butter and jelly.

• New and exciting protein minds are vegetable bur- gers, salmon burgers, tempeh (tofu) fingers, beans or bean soup, and ground turkey. Again, be sure to store properly to keep spoilage.