A healthy lunch box for little ones

It was 1990 that the World Health Organisation told us that we should be eating 5 portions of fruit and veg a day, but as with most things, research has moved things forward and we now know that isn’t enough. By eating 6,7,8,9 or even 10 portions a day, we’re reducing our risk of heart disease and numerous cancers compared to those that stick to the dated 5 a day advice. Oh, and you’ll cut the chance of dying prematurely by up to 42%.

Pink Lining asked me to design a lunch box for children that includes at least 3 portions of fruit and veg, and although I don’t have children myself, feeding kids well is something I feel strongly about. I’ve managed to cram 5 portions of fruit and veg in to this fun little pack up. Hopefully it will provide some inspiration to brighten up both big and little lunches.

Left to right (click to jump to recipe):

1. Cucumber, cream cheese and ham spirals
2. Tomato and spinach omelette
3. Celery ‘boats’, two with pure nut butter, one with cream cheese
4. Raspberry and blueberry pure fruit roll.

I really wanted this lunch to be easy to prepare ahead and provide some simple snack ideas too. As such, the recipes are pretty much one liners.

Cucumber, cream cheese and ham spirals.

Take a tortilla wrap, spread with cream cheese and add strips of cucumber (a veggie peeler works well for this) and ham. Roll up and slice in to spirals for little hands. For extra goodness points, choose a wholemeal tortilla and keep your eye out for non formed ham with no added salt.

Tomato and spinach omelette

These are often my breakfast. I make a big batch and put them in the fridge once cool where they’ll happily keep for three days. They’re good to eat cold but you can also zap them in the microwave for a minute if you prefer. Each cup cake case takes 1 whole egg. I like to add spinach and tomato to mine but ham, bacon, mushrooms, garden peas, spring onions and cheese also work well.

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Whisk up the egg with a splash of milk and add your chosen goodies. If you’re using silicone cases, line a muffin tray, if not wipe the tray with a little oil on a paper towel then pour in the mixture. Bake for around fifteen minutes or until firm.

Celery boats

These are the easiest of the pack and probably require no explanation, but here we go anyway. Cut celery in to easy to handle lengths, fill with your choice of tasty things. I’ve used the same pure nut butter that I used for my Reese’s cups and some cream cheese, but humous or cottage cheese would be great too.

Raspberry and blueberry pure fruit roll up

To me, the pure fruit roll up is the star of this pack up. Have you ever had fruit winders? These taste exactly the same, just without all the added sugar and flavourings.

Preheat your oven to 75 degrees Celsius. Take a cup of blueberries and a cup of raspberries and puree in a blender. If you’d like to remove the raspberry seeds, you can sieve them out now, I left mine in for texture.

Line a baking tray with a non stick sheet or greaseproof paper. Pour on the puree and spread until around 3mm thick.

Leave to dehydrate in the oven for around 3 hours. Check on them around the 2 hour mark, if the outside edge is drying faster than the inside, brush on a little water to that area. They’re done when a gentle touch on the surface doesn’t leave a dent.

When they’re ready, flip over on to some greaseproof or baking paper and carefully peel away from the sheet they were dried on. Cut the paper and the fruit in to long strips and roll up.

This makes eight to ten rolls ups and they’ll store in an air tight container for at least a week. You can try this out with anything; mango, strawberry, pear. But bear in mind that water content affects drying time and some juicy fruits might be best paired with something more robust to get a good texture. If you’re using something tart, you can add a little honey or agave nectar to the puree to sweeten it up.

So, that’s my first ever kids lunch box. I hope you try out some of the ideas, it would be great to get the kids involved in making their own lunch, they’re always more enthusiastic if they’ve played a part. Is this something you’d like me to do regularly? A monthly ideas post maybe?