Back to School, Back to Lunch Packing

Now that the boys are back in school, I'm back to lunch packing. I thought I would share a few of my lunch packing tips I've developed over the past few years.  I pack lunches for my boys every day for school.  One of my goals when I pack a lunch is to make them as trash free as possible.  All the supplies I normally use for lunch packing is re-usable.

Menu
I have a weekly lunch packing schedule that I follow to make things easier on myself but to avoid packing the same old lunch every day.  Sometimes I mix the days up a bit if it would be easier to pack a hot lunch another day or we're out of bread on Monday, but generally I keep to the schedule.  Sides could be fruit, veggies with dip, pretzels, crackers, cheddar bunnies, a muffin, granola bars.

Monday:  sandwich (Nice and easy for a Monday!)
Tuesday:  tossed salad with dressing in a small container
Wednesday:  hot lunch in a Thermos (Nine times out of ten, I make my kids' favorite pasta the night before to have leftovers for lunch)
Thursday:  creative lunch. Ideas include sandwich sushi, waffles with cream cheese, cold meatballs with marinara dip, cold pizza, cold quesadilla, mini quiches, corn dog muffins pitas wedges with hummus.
Friday:  lunchables style "snacky" lunch

Supplies
We have two types of lunch boxes.  Both of them are divided containers so that once the lid is opened, the child can have access to everything at once and just dig right in.  I have visited school during lunch period and witnessed many other kids having trouble opening parts of their lunches, which really wastes valuable eating time.

The ones that I use the most are Ziploc divided containers that I bought at Target.  These are not perfect as a package of them usually only lasts for about one school year before they start to fall apart.  I really like them though because each compartment seals completely, keeping everything separate.

We also have two of the Pottery Barn Spencer Bento Boxes.  These are nice because there are a lot of compartments and they can fit more variety of food.   These are big boxes and require a big lunch bag to fit them and a drink.  The latch is a little questionable and seems like it could break, but both of ours have held up for now.  

For drinks, I usually send a reusable juice box container filled with water and a little squirt of Dasani Drops.

Other supplies I use are silicone cupcake liners, Thermos brand food jars, re-usable food picks, and small cloth napkins.  

When the kids are done eating, they know to stick everything back in their lunch bag and not to throw anything in the trash at school.  This helps prevent losing supplies that are not disposable.

Some Lunch Examples

Lunchables lunch Friday: ham, a pumpkin muffin, granola balls, cheese squares, fruit,  crackers, and a treat

Lunchables lunch Friday: 3 sour bears, crackers, cheese, pepperonis, strawberries, and a Trader Joes granola bar

Salad lunch Tuesday:  Salad, dressing, a leftover rhubarb bar, and a hard boiled egg with a tiny container of salt

Sandwich lunch Monday:  Sandwich, muffin, fruit, and Southwestern Quinoa Salad

Creative lunch Thursday:  pitas with hummus, raspberries stuffed with chocolate chips, watermelon, and crackers

 For more ideas, visit my favorite lunch packing blog, Wendolonia.

Our Visit to Barn Brasserie in Muncie for Lunch

Yesterday a new local restaurant opened in downtown Muncie, Barn Brasserie.  Being the curious diners that we are, the boys and I hurried down today to check it out.  We love non-chain restaurants and this one sounded pretty intriguing.  The menu is described as American style food with French influences.  Many of the ingredients are locally sourced and everything is made from scratch.  

The restaurant is located in the spot where White River Landing used to be.  The new restaurant is quite a bit different from the former fishing/outdoor theme.  The wood paneling on the walls is about the only aspect of the old decor that remains the same.  Even the layout is a bit different.  

Our verdict is that all really LOVED the food and can't wait to go back again!  

Andrew tries out some mandarin key lime soda.  When he finished that one, he chose strawberry rhubarb soda for the refill.

Robby decides to start with a watermelon cream soda

While waiting for our food, I grabbed a crayon and started drawing on the butcher paper coving the table.  The kids freaked out at first - they've never eaten anywhere that had coloring paper covering the tables.  I'm a terrible artist, but this is my attempt at drawing the meal I ordered 

Robby ordered the special of the day, gyro panini with tzatziki and fries.  Included with each meal is choice of one house-made sauce.  Robby selects the ketchup.

Andrew ordered the kids' fish fingers plate.  He refused to wait until I photographed his meal before he started eating.  His fish was all gone faster than I could believe!  He also selected the ketchup for his sauce.

I ordered the brasserie burger and fries.  For my sauce, I chose the ranch.

For dessert, we shared a slice of lemon chess pie.

Robby says this is the "best pie in the world!"

I attempted to take some photos of the menu, but I see now that they didn't turn out very clear.  I recommend visiting and seeing the menu in person.

Fancy After School Snack

Last Saturday I went with a group for lunch at The Ruby Pear, a tea room in a historic home in Noblesville.  I really enjoyed the experience and I look forward to taking the boys sometime for an extra-special outing.  The tea I had there was the best tea I've ever had in my life!  One of my favorite parts of the lunch were the cucumber tea sandwiches.  They had an herbed cream cheese on them that made them much more delicious than any other cucumber sandwiches I've tried before.

Since we had leftover cream cheese, plus a cucumber on hand from a previous produce delivery from The Downtown Farm Stand, I thought today would be a great day to re-create that cucumber sandwich for my lunch.

In my mini food processor, I blended 4 oz of cream cheese with some fresh dill, a few chives, and a couple shakes of garlic powder.  That herbed cream cheese spread on some bread with some thin slices of cucumbers really hit the spot on this warm day.

After school I turned the remaining herbed cream cheese, cucumber slices, the dill, and some whole wheat crackers over to the boys and they had a great time making little after school hors d'oeuvres with them.

Today's Lunch for School

I pack lunches every day for my two boys to eat at school.  This is a decision we made based on the facts that my kids don't particularly like any of the food served at school, the school lunches produce a lot of trash (including the tray they are served on, and other packaging), and the school lunches include a lot more highly processed foods than we typically eat.  

Recently I decided to make myself a lunch menu that would be the same every week, just to make it easier to figure out what to pack each day.  I also always include fruit and another side.

Here's the schedule:

Mondays - sandwich

Tuesdays  - salad

Wednesdays - something hot in the Thermos (they prefer it to be leftover pasta)

Thursdays - creative lunch

Fridays - mom-made lunchable

So, today was creative food day and I decided to give the boys Little Smokies with BBQ sauce as a very special treat.  They also have the Biscoff banana muffins I baked yesterday topped with candy eyes and sitting in a silicone muffin wrapper, as well as strawberries and apples.  I think they will really like this lunch!  

These bento-style lunch containers are Ziploc brand from Target, the round dip containers are from Cost Plus World Market, and the clear rectangle boxes are from The Container Store.

Thai Peanut Sauce

Earlier this week, I mixed up half a batch of Thai Peanut Sauce and put it in a jar in the fridge.  This has made it it really easy for me to quickly prepare myself healthy and delicious lunches at home several days this week.  I've been cooking up one serving of linguini or sobe noodles and then tossing the noodles with some of the sauce and some fresh spinach and then topping it all with chopped cilantro and green onions.  With a side of fruit, this is a fantastic meal!

If you make this sauce, I recommend doubling the coconut milk.