5 Top Lunches to Finish Strong

In the hierarchy of the “three square meals a day” thing, lunch has to be the squarest. (Most square?) I’m not talking about being balanced — I’m talking about being dull. Now, I can get really excited about breakfast, because after all, it’s the most important meal of the day. (Also, bacon.) I like dinner, too — it’s fun to try new recipes and experiment a little.

But fixing lunch? It’s just that it’s so … routine. So … daily. So … first thing in the morning. At this time of year it’s easy to lose our creativity and start tossing packaged snacks in the lunchbox just to make sure everyone gets to school on time. Of course, I want my children to have a healthy, well-balanced lunch to keep them going strong during the second half of the day. I want them to know how much I love them, and that I cared enough to put together a thoughtful meal. But let’s just be honest: Lunch is tiresome.

There are only 10 days left in the school year, so I thought I might share a few a lunch ideas with you to help you finish strong. Now, this is no time to be judge-y. I like for my family to make healthy choices just as much as you do, but we’re all just hoping to cross that finish line in the best way we can so we’re able to get a start on Summer! These ideas can be tweaked to fit your family’s preferences. They aren’t rocket science and some of you may already make them. If not, give them a try! Some take only slightly longer than throwing together a PB&J, but your kids will thank you for the variety.

 

1. Quesadilla

So versatile! Put anything you want on this work horse and hear all about it when your child gets home from school. To make it easy, grate the cheese the night before, and pull it out in the morning. (We quit using that pre-grated stuff because it’s covered in sawdust! Also, it takes about 5 seconds to grate cheese and the taste is sooo much better.) Let cool, slice, and wrap in foil.

 

2. Apples and Peanut Butter

Easy and delicious! Slice up the apple, but not all the way through. Then, wrap the apple in saran wrap so it still looks like a whole apple, but this way it doesn’t turn brown! If you prefer to send the apple in a baggie, squeeze lemon juice over it to prevent browning. You can even soak the slices in Sprite for the same effect.

 

3. Grilled cheese

Mmm, grilled cheese. It travels surprisingly well, we’ve found. I use the panini press to make ours, but a skillet works great, too. I use a little olive oil on the bread so it doesn’t stick. Very important – cool your grilled cheese on a cooling rack so the air can circulate and it doesn’t get sweaty! No one wants a sweaty grilled cheese in their lunch.

 

4. Waffle sandwiches

These little guys are a fun twist on a regular PB sandwich. Just toast up some mini-waffles, spread with peanut butter (or whatever kind of nut butter you like) and voila! Lunch.

 

5. Turkey roll-ups 

Sometimes A lot of times my kids don’t want a sandwich, but they’ll eat the sandwich innards if presented in a different way. (This is a relief if you’ve just purchased lunch meat at the store, and you don’t want to see it go to waste.) Turkey roll-ups are nothing new, but sometimes we forget about them. Lay the turkey slice out, grab whatever flavor of cheese they like, and roll it up!

 

I hope you have found at least one new thing to try for lunch during the next 10 days! Also, I would love to hear your suggestions, because I know my family would love a little variety, too. Let’s finish this year strong, at least in the lunch department.