After the novelty of going back to school, reconnecting with friends and seeing who their new teacher is, kids can start to find school boring, stressful and downright uninspiring. One of the first signs of school boredom or stress is the uneaten lunch. If your kid is not bored or stressed, an uneaten lunch can also be a sign that we’re getting too predictable with what we pack. We’ve got some ideas that will help you help your kids clear the plate.
Freshly Baked Goods
There are lots of children who simply don’t like sandwiches, but because they’re easy to assemble we tend to insist on packing them. If you’re looking for something dense and sandwich-ish, consider baking savoury muffins or scones, mini quiches or individual-sized pizzas. These can be baked in bulk, frozen, and thawed as needed. You can also cut down on garbage by packing everything in reusable containers.
Go the Extra Mile with Homemade
There’s pre-packed macaroni and cheese and then there’s homemade macaroni and cheese. Neither of which are anything like the other. Making food from scratch has a lot of side benefits because you get to control the ingredients and the flavour. Some people like one type of cheese, some people like four, and others still like it baked best like a lasagna. Make once a week and freeze, and you’ll have a delicious hearty meal for weeks. The best way to pack this delicious mini entrée is in a wide mouth thermos to keep it nice and warm.
À la Carte
With some kids, packing lunches becomes more like a restaurant experience. They never want the same thing twice, and they want to be able to customize their order. Lucky for you, fall is the perfect time to get your crockpot, pressure cooker and oversized pots out to make batches of soups, chilis and homemade lasagna. If you invest some time to batch cook on a consistent weekly basis, your freezer will always be stocked, and your little gourmand will always lick the platter clean.
Spend more time exploring new and interesting seasonal recipes that will keep the kids satisfied while we handle the housekeeping. Don’t hesitate to contact your local MOLLY MAID schedule a free, no-obligation estimate of your home’s cleaning needs.
