Up Your Packed Lunch Game

What do you think makes a good packed lunch? Sandwiches (potentially soggy), crisps, apple, carton of juice? Or is it hearty leftovers from the night before, food art, a slice of something homemade and a fresh smoothie to drink? Yeah – now we’re talking, am I right?

As the return to school after the summer holidays draws ever nearer, it’s time to get upping your kids’ packed lunch game. When you’re planning your big supermarket shop this week, forget about the usual sliced bread and multipacks of crisps. Instead, take inspiration from some of the ideas we’ve compiled below.

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And hey, you could even turn yourself into a packed lunch-based Instagram star if you keep up your efforts throughout term. No one’s very likely to be interested in a snap of a tuna butty and an apple, but a star-shaped sarnie and a homemade flapjack? That stuff looks good –  #parentpoints.

Of course, that’s not really the most important priority – you need to make sure your kids are eating healthy, nutritious grub at lunchtime that’ll provide them with plenty of energy to keep learning throughout their day too. So, with all that in mind, get your creative hat on and try out some of these ideas:

Who says sandwiches have to be square, rectangle, or – at a push – triangle? Absolutely no one. Cutting a simple ham or cheese sarnie into a fun shape will instantly make it more appealing to fussy eaters – with no fancier equipment than just a sharp knife and a little creative flair, the possibilities are endless.

We think these train-shaped sandwiches from Eats Amazing are particularly fun, and the cucumber wheels are a frankly genius idea. Kids are guaranteed to love chewing (choo-ing?) their way through these at lunchtime.

Chopped circles of veg like this don’t just make great wheels, but also eyes and noses, so get experimenting with making some fun character faces out of the kids’ butties too.

It naturally makes the most sense to prepare a packed lunch the night before, so there isn’t a mad scramble in the morning when you need to get out of the door, but this can increase the risk of a soggy sandwich, and no one wants that.

However, preparing a different type of bread-based snack, like these pitta bread pizzas from Not Your Average could prevent the dreaded sogginess. Pitta is a bit more robust than your standard white-sliced loaf, so topping it with some tomato puree and a few other bits, cooking it and leaving it to cool overnight shouldn’t lead to a soggy bottom.

Having cold pizza in their lunchbox will instantly make your kid the coolest.

A spiral, pinwheel, or snail – if the animal character theme seems to stop fussy eating in your house – sandwich also makes for a fun addition to a lunchbox, and they really couldn’t be much simpler to make.

Day Out With the Kids has a blog all about how to make them from tortilla wraps, using a variety of fillings from hummus and grated carrot to egg mayonnaise, and even peanut butter and jam. Play around with different colours – yes, it is okay to play with your food, just don’t let the kids hear us saying that – and see if you can even make a rainbow-effect pinwheel.

Sandwiches day after day can get dull pretty fast, so try to mix up what’s going in the lunchbox from time to time with a portion of last night’s leftovers, or cook up a special pasta salad one evening to serve up over a few days.

Take this butternut squash, courgette and goat’s cheese pasta salad from Little Miss Katy, for example; it’s colourful, full of different, interesting textures, it’s cheesy and it’s packed with goodness to provide little ones with plenty of brain power for a busy afternoon of sums.

Another good alternative to a sandwich would be some savoury muffins, like these spinach and cheese ones from My Fussy Eater.

Kids’ll feel like they’re eating cake, or having a real picnic-style treat, but you’ll actually sneakily be getting some extra veggies into them – the recipe suggests adding onion and pepper too for even more added goodness and flavour.

Flapjacks are fab for filling little ones up. They’re packed with oats, which are a slow-release carb, and you can add whatever dried fruit you like to them for a little extra goodness, making them the perfect lunchbox snack.

These flapjacks that can be quickly made in a saucepan from Saucepan Kids are an excellent option, and one batch will keep for around a week, so you’ll only need to go to one lot of effort for several days’ worth of filled lunchboxes and happy, full tummies.

Banana bread is another handy make-ahead packed lunch recipe to have under your belt. Bananas are really filling too, so just a small slice of this cake can provide little ones with plenty of energy.

Bake Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary’s classic banana bread on a Sunday night to give you lunchbox snacks for the week, and to start Monday morning with your house smelling absolutely beautiful.

You should always try to send your child off to school with at least one piece of fruit, or a carton of fruit juice, but if you want to up their intake without them making a massive fuss, putting a homemade smoothie in their lunchbox could be the idea you’re looking for.

This clementine sunshine smoothie from Cookie and Kate is packed with vitamin C, making it perfect for those first few weeks back when kids’ immune systems are getting used to all those germs again, and you can easily whizz it up using a Tefal Blender.

Pour the smoothie into a recycled plastic water bottle to make sure it survives the journey to school, while doing your bit for the planet too – Sir David Attenborough would be proud.