You want your kids to eat healthy. And you try your best. But along the way you find your child’s lunchbox has remained un-opened (food UN-eaten!) and Instead he/she has been eating from the school cafeteria. Where did you go wrong? Or better yet, what made the cafeteria so appealing?
First of all – if your child has just started school, this is new, and exciting. Just the idea of selecting their food from the counter. Secondly, have you noticed how everything is so neatly packaged into small, easy to open containers. ***[Light Bulb]: the packaging! Kids enjoy opening containers – in various sizes, shapes, textures. A package is fun to open. So give it a try. Select some durable, easy-to-open containers to divide their lunch box items. Think bento or a variety of separate “packages” to contain their healthy, yummy options.
And speaking of packing: How do you pack your kids food items? (Do you have any small, medium and varied shaped containers – that SEAL well?) If your preparation is great, then why did it end up soggy by the time your kid sat down for lunch? Well perhaps it wasn’t sealed well and in a container that is too large or not accommodating. And likely your child has dragged his/her backpack up and down the hallways, turned or dropped it sideways and thus, what do you know — the nicely packed lunch you thought it was – becomes a sack of mush. (The same is true for your on-the-go snack/meal options – you want your food to stay fresh and remain appealing).
Don’t feel you have to pack everything in. Better to keep it simple. Don’t overwhelm. As long as you a food item: one of each category PVFV. Many lunch containers keep things within reasonable portions. Remember you can always serve up a healthy snack to get in more healthy nutrients.
If you haven’t read Lunch Box Builders: Part 1, you can read it here.
Check out some of my favorite containers for packing in their lunch boxes and storing meals/snacks for the week ahead. Some great Ukonserve products are available at www.kidskonserve.com
Ukonserve is a brand I can trust:
• Seals tightly for freshness
• Attractive containers – both in metal (kid-friendly) and glass storage – even suitable for serving
• Comes in kid-friendly sizes
• Convenient tupperware for food prep/storage – love this Glass rectangular with Silicon sleeve.
These tight-sealing, leak-proof containers are great for packing fresh fruit, veggies, dips, yogurt, side salads, crackers & cheese!
This butternut squash salad fits nicely into any size Ukonserve container, whether it is a snack size portion or a dish for a party (choose from small rounds snack/lunch tote-able sizes to square/rectangular metal or glass).
One of the many items I’ve packed in the small metal rounds Ukonserves for myself on-the-go and my kids lunch boxes.
Wanna tip for cutting up kiwi (although you really can eat the skin): Simply use a spoon to scoop out of skin and then chop as desired.
This is a great container for storing salads, stews or even sweet treats such as these homemade spiced muffins (8 fit nicely).
This square metal, tight-sealing containing is also great for storing hearty kale salads (the leaves are strong enough not to wilt or degrade overnight – in fact some kale salads are much better the next day as they absorb all the great marinade) and showcasing them at the dinner table!!
Filed under: Nutri-Savvy