Green Lunches And Snacks For School

[Karla]

My son started a new school so I now have to pack his lunch and snacks. Any ideas for snacks that are healthy and don't come with a ton of packaging? It is an eco-friendly school so I would like to encourage that. It is also peanut free. So far I have sent him with sandwiches, pasta salad, apples, grapes, crackers, sliced green peppers, and raisins. Unfortunately he doesn't like yogurt. Any ideas will be appreciated!

[CathyA]

Let's see......bummer about being peanut free, but its probably a good idea. My DD really liked cheese and summer sausage slices in her lunch sometimes. She really liked red/yellow/orange pepper slices. I know they can be expensive, but you can sometimes find them on sale. Sometimes I would make some tortilla roll-ups, with ham/shredded lettuce and whatever else you'd want to put in. You can use a mixture of mayo/cream cheese with some herbs to put on the tortilla before adding the other things, then roll it all up. Dry granola/trail mix is good for a snack (without peanuts). Orange slices. You can buy almond butter/cashew butter, etc., and maybe use that instead of peanut butter. Celery sticks with herbed cream cheese, carrots with dip. I'm getting hungry now.

[libby]

If the classrooms have microwaves you could send leftovers to be reheated. That was always a hit with my kids.

[Anne Lee]

Wraps.
- lentils and brown rice whirred up with green chilies and roasted red peppers and a drizzle of olive oil.
- mozzarella and roasted red peppers and spinach.
- roasted root veggies

You can pack the tortillas separately from the filling.

[Bastelmutti]

Our school is not peanut-free or particularly green, but I try to be green to the extent I can with my kids' lunches. We have invested in reusable containers for lunches plus metal water bottles. Of course, there is still packaging, but at least it's not the individual over-packaged stuff. I will cop to throw-away lunches for field trips (required) and occasional very busy times (like when I took a class last week that required me to drop them off at 7am).

For DD1, who is a vegetarian, I send a lunch thermos with some variety of chickpeas - rice & chickpeas, chickpea curry, etc. It's what she loves to eat. If not, then a cheese sandwich. DD2 usually gets a PB (obviously out in your case) sandwich or what we call "homemade Lunchables" - crackers, cheese, salami. Occasionally both of them will take a thermos of leftover pasta. Very occasionally leftover pizza.

For sides/snacks I send fruit (whole apple or orange, sometimes a pear or peaches/plums in season), crackers or pretzels (whatever's not too nasty & on sale - stuff like Goldfish), nuts, or occasionally a homemade muffin or cupcake. I sometimes buy cookies, but not often. Not too much variation on that!

They don't like vegetables in their lunches much - don't seem to travel that well in the containers we have - so I take care of that requirement at dinner.

HTH! I'll be reading with interest!

[Rosemary]

Here's a list of packable foods that I use as my reference:
http://rosemaryevergreen.blogspot.com/2009/07/packable-lunch-ideas.html

For a no-waste lunch, use an insulated, reusable lunch bag (PVC-free), cloth napkin, and reusable containers.

[NancyAnne]

I highly recommend one of these
http://www.thermos.com/product_details.aspx?ProdID=955&CatCode=FOOD&q=
I think they make them in a smaller size but the 16 oz holds a can of soup. If you preheat it with boiling water then add the cooked food it will stay hot for hours.

[Karla]

Wow, thank you everyone for such great ideas. I especially like the tortilla, the "homemade lunchables", and sending soup in a thermos. I will report back here on how my son likes all of them.

[Bastelmutti]

Rosemary, great list! Thx for reminding me about samosas and soba noodles. My veg likes those.