Do you remember when you were at school, and the lunchbox trial by fire that followed those first years; the contents of your culinary treasure trove marked you as a dominant player in the free playground trade, lending you a degree of influence over what foods were hot and which were not, attributing street cred and coolness without trading off on classroom identity. Sandwiches are dead, most kids will turn their nose and tastebuds up at the faithful cheese and vegemite on two pieces of sliced white (or light rye), leaving parents at loose ends on how to provide a healthy and sustainable lunch and morning snack. Forget the expensive packaged snack (although one or two every now and then shouldn’t be an issue), here are a list of easy lunch box ideas that not only taste good, but look great!
Rice Paper Rolls
You’ve probably spotted these during a visit to your favourite sushi bar; inside each roll is a veritable salad bar of vegetables and crispy stalks, providing a texture variation and satisfying crunch to little mouths. They’re quite often colourful too! Cut cucumber, carrot, avocado and snow peas into strips, add red capsicum if the little ones can stand it, and garnish with avocado and mint leaves. Before you wrap it all up, sprinkle a few drops of sesame oil and lime juice over each mini salad, finishing with a dash of soy to give it an extra kick. Healthy, yummy and very trendy.
Let Them Have Cake
No, seriously, let them. A small piece of coconut cake will lend an unrivalled sweetness to their lunch box without the trans-fats of chocolate bars or store-bought treats. Not a large piece, mind you. Open your cupboard and take out one cup of coconut, one cup of sugar, two cups of self-raising flour and one cup of milk to combine them all. Mix all of the ingredients together until you have a smooth batter and pour it into a load tin, baking for 40 minutes on around 180 degrees. Quick, easy, and a little wicked.
Trail Mix
This one requires a lot of buying on your behalf and a few minutes extra in the health food aisle; next time you’re scouring the supermarket for ideas and considering a ream of Continental recipes, abandon ideas of dinner for a minute and pick up a trolley of raw almonds, raw cashews, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, dark chocolate bits, sultanas, cranberries and plain cereal. When you return home, simply mix it all together in an air-sealed container and refrigerate, ready to dish out when school swings around or their little bellies growl for an afternoon snack.
Don’t be afraid to get creative! Keep in mind, kids routinely share food, often ignoring the implications of allergies. Impress upon them the importance of eating their own snacks; not only will you know (hopefully) they are getting the nutrition they need, you may avoid the increasingly stringent limitations placed on parents by some schools in regards to the lunchbox. No matter how old you are, school is still a war zone!
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