For the last several years, my favorite question for moms has been…”What do you give your child for lunch?” I think, by now, I’ve asked every family member and every friend. When we were little, my brothers and I got the same few items for lunch: a juice box, and a burger with shami kabob, pickles and ketchup (the simpler version of a Pakistani bun kabob). Occasionally, she would switch it up by replacing the burger with a hot dog (once halal hot dogs became available). By the time I got to high school, I no longer wanted to eat the “burger”. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve had a few nightmares where that burger was chasing me. It took me 15 years to finally touch anything that remotely resembles THAT burger. In my mother’s defense, she’s a creature of habit and if you tell her “its good” she’ll NEVER change it.
Having gone through that experience, I always find myself hunting for new ideas for kids lunches. I’ve also found that like me, my kids need some variety to stay interested. After several years of trying different things, and getting inspired by Pinterest photos and google searches, I finally came up with a menu.
Inspired by @thefamilyfudge (on YouTube), the kids and I sat down this past summer and created a menu. The items contained in the menu are both healthy options that the kids (or at least one kid) likes, and are easy for me as a parent to put together in the mornings. We came up with enough things to last us one whole month of school lunches. The kids have pizza day at school on Fridays so we only need four meal ideas each week. The kids don’t particularly enjoy pizza day, but it gives me a break so I’ve asked them to continue participating in pizza day for the next few months.
The menu is still fairly new and we are trying out the combinations to see if it works. In my weekly posts about our school lunches, I will share the recipes, and how I packed their lunch as well as what the kids enjoyed.
Here’s what we had this week
MONDAY
Chicken Salad* with a side of salad dressing (ranch for my older daughter, blueberry vinaigrette for the little one, and Italian for my son – since they fill their own containers, they are free to choose whichever dressing they want) and a blueberry & strawberry fruit salad
*Store bought organic Spring Mix with cucumbers, grape tomatoes, left-over breaded chicken tikka and crumbs of pita chips
⚠️⚠️⚠️All three kids complained that the pita chips had gotten soggy, and requested that next time it (or croutons) be given separately to add in at lunch time.
TUESDAY
Tuna Sandwich** and a side of corn and broccoli with ranch dressing (for dipping).
**mix a can of tuna with mayo, add a dash of salt pepper, slather the mixture in between two pieces of bread, and voila!
✅✅✅No complaints today.
WEDNESDAY
Yellow rice and ground beef *** with grapes & strawberries, and a yogurt pouch.
***cooked Indian/Pakistani style with sautéed onion, ginger-garlic paste, tomatoes and spices
⚠️✅✅My daughter requested to lay the rice and meat in several layers as it was difficult to mix in the thermos.
THURSDAY
Macaroni & cheese**** with a side of apples and carrots, and ranch dressing for dipping.
****a simple recipe- boil pasta, drain the liquid and add in a couple of tablespoons of butter, a whole lot of shredded cheese and a splash of milk. Let it all melt together, then add in a dash of salt and pepper
✅✅✅No complaints today.
Linked below, you will find all the containers and picks I used for this week’s lunch.
Two section stainless steel container
Sauce Container for Salad Dressing
Stainless Steel Food Container for the Salad and Fruits
