An American Bento

Have you seen those tradition Japanese Bentos?  They look exquisite, filled with all sorts of exotic goodies.  My girls get a little squeamish when I suggest the possibility of making one of those...but I think they'll enjoy this bento lunch.  It takes some of the food finds of a traditional bento box and mixes them with things that are a favorite of my kids.   And since this is one busy, work filled weekend for me I made some Bento lunches for Daddy-O to pull out of the fridge and serve. 
I know the girls will love them, but I'm willing to bet he makes himself something different!

This lunch has some salmon, jasmin rice, cucumber salad, carrot sticks, cashews, some mandarin oranges, and some crenshaw melon.  This is local salmon (we live in the Pacific NW, and man is our salmon yummy!) and the cucumber salad is similar to what you'd find in a sushi restaurant.   As always I used our easylunchboxes...not only can I pack a ton, but they stack in the fridge so nicely!

Picnic at the Park

I asked what you wanted to see and a Picnic lunch was the winner, and well frankly, a picnic is really a great way to go!  I packed the girls up today to hit a local park to burn off some extra energy, and threw together a few lunches which not only saved money, but saved us from needing to make a trip through a drive through.  When I was packing the lunches I kept thinking about what Ma might have packed the Ingall's family for a picnic after church (I am such a product of the 70's).  I decided she would have packed chicken, potato salad, berries, maybe a chocolate cake or an apple pie, probably some season veggies and some fresh baked bread.  Since I had 30 minutes the fresh bread and pie were out.  Also the veggies picked from my garden will have to wait, since the plants aren't yet producing... lucky for me the 10 plus local grocery stores have all sorts of lovely produce!

This picnic lunch has some grilled chicken drumsticks, homemade potato salad (yum), an apricot, watermelon, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, some Tillimook cheese and a cupcake! (The cupcake was leftover from a birthday celebration this weekend, but if I hadn't have had it I would have made some brownies.)  Since it's a picnic I'm going to go a little crazy and pack some Hansen's soda!    I'm willing to bet this picnic lunch that Pa and Half Pint would have gobbled it up.
And this easy, yummy picnic lunch is packed in my favorite easylunchboxes. 

Breakfast for Lunch

My family loves the novelty of breakfast for dinner and I love just how easy it is to prepare, so it got me to thinking.  Wouldn't breakfast for lunch be really fun too?  Or how about to bring on an early morning flight (when you fly from the West Coast, flights are almost always early);  if your rounding up the troops at 4 a.m. no one feels like eating a bagel; it never fails as soon as you board the plane everyone is starving and pretzels and ginger ail just won't cut it.  In this case, we had a busy morning of real estate and drop offs at Nama and Papa's...so this little lunch is really a little brunch.

Brunch includes a hard boiled egg, apple and orange slices, greek yogurt with some blackberry jam, white cheddar and colby jack cheese flowers, and a cinnamon muffin.  I threw in an organic milk box to bulk up the protein.  As always I packed these lunches in my favorite Easylunchboxes!

Snack Pack

Today was a long day, with a lot of time in the car; in my free time I'm a real estate agent;  and I wanted to  make sure that while I drug the girls all over God's creation we wouldn't need to make a pit stop at McD's.  Our schedule inspired todays snack packs, I channeled the Lunchables concept when I packed the lunches.  (On a side note, lunchables might be the worst thing you could feed your child.)  And tried to give the girls tons to chose from, by food items that would hold up to a day on the road, not be messy and keep them feeling full.
LiLi was far more impressed with the idea then GiGi, but they both loved the idea of digging into their snackpacks anytime they felt the urge to have a nibble!

The lunches have mini blueberry muffins, apple slices, carrot sticks, cashews and raisins, cheese flowers (string cheese and colby jack) and some gummy bears.  I think the little treat is always the pull for those Lunchables.  They also had water bottles and a can of V8. 

As always, I packed these little cuties in our easylunchboxes...seriously, have I mentioned how much I love these lunch boxes!

Pantry Lunch

You know those weeks where you seem to never get to the grocery store?  That's how it's been at our house, we've been digging in the freezer and the pantry to make meals, which is not such a bad thing...we have a lot of stuff to chose from! 

The two lunches are pretty different, GiGi is so picky and LiLi has become little Miss. Bossy Boots. 

GiGi's lunch has some ham, mini carrots, a granola bar, string cheese, a handful of almonds and some pineapple chunks.  Seriously not inspired but basically a pretty healthy lunch.

LiLi has a salad with tomatoes, cucumber and cheese, some pineapple chunks (not her favorite), a granola bar, and some raw pecans. 

I threw in organic milk to round out lunch and give a punch of calcium and protein.   And as always packed them in my favorite Easy Lunch Boxes!

Wish Upon A Star

I'm wishing and saying a little prayer that this week no one is sick! And that I get a whole week of packing lunches.  I've added a few wishes and prayers for some non-rainy weather (We're getting pounded here in the NW, 200 days of rain! I drew up some ark plans, just in case!).    But the true inspiration of today's lunches is a planning session for our Fall trip to Disneyland. I love the excitement as you near the gates, the sites and sounds as soon as you hit Main Street and then you see Sleeping Beauty's Castle!  I'm humming as I type, and it's awfully easy to imagine a Fairy Godmother swirling some sparkly dust around me and creating the most glorious dress to dance the night away with my Prince Charming; actually I have my Prince; maybe she could just clean the house and tackle the laundry!
http://youtu.be/0-Q-IFzL0wg
I've created a little magic with today's lunches, it's all about the star and making a wish! Hope the girls love their little lunches and maybe they'll be inspired to make a wish.

Today's lunches have Ham cut into stars, star cucumbers, little star shaped cheddar and mozzarella cheese bits, star shaped crackers and cookies,  some orange wedges (I wish I had thought to grab some star fruit!) and bell pepper slices and a little granola bar to keep everything from moving.

I've packed our lunches in our easylunchbox containers! Love them!  Hope your wishes are coming true!

Lunches for a Picky Eater

You asked for it and I'll continue to feature some lunch ideas for kids who may not be as adventurous in the food department.  I don't think this is the healthiest lunch ever, but really you've got to get food into your kiddo's so they have fuel to do their job, learning and playing!   If you have a really picky kid you know that nothing gets by them, there's no sneaking grated carrots into their spaghetti sauce and your probably feeling a little desperate to get some variety into them. 
I've got a few ideas and they may not work right away, you'll have to keep introducing healthy foods to them and eventually their palate will expand.   If you have a kid that like some fruits, but really dislikes others try blending them in a smoothie.  Most kids like bananas and coupled with yogurt you've got a great base for smoothies or freezer pops.  Then throw in some berries that your little one might not be crazy about to boost the nutrients.   The same with a transition from white bread to wheat, sneak in some white wheat, then some honey oat...until they accept the consistency and taste of whole wheat breads. 
Give your kids a shopping list that lets them help pick out new foods to try, ask them to get one new fruit and veggie.  They will be more apt to try a new food when they have control over it.  If they are old enough to help with prepping the meal they'll be even more adventurous in trying.   Also try preparing those cooked veggies in different ways.  Maybe your kids won't touch broccoli just plain, but if you roast it in olive oil and top it with a little Parmesan cheese it takes on a lovely nutty flavor that might earn just one bite (which hopefully will be followed by lots of bites!). 

GiGi's lunch has a half a hazelnut butter and jelly sandwich, a string cheese, some raisins, a few slices of watermelon, cucumber and carrot sticks and a few animal crackers.  She also has an organic chocolate milk to boost the calcium and protein!
LiLi's lunch has a bagel and cream cheese, a piece of fruit leather, cheddar cheese, watermelon slices, cucumber and carrot sticks and a handful of animal crackers.  She has an organic vanilla milk to boost her calcium and protein intake.

Some other easy ideas:
*Make a lunch of dippers.  Kids love finger foods and you can get plenty of nutrients in this way.  Give them a nut butter (or sunflower) and a ranch dip made with Greek yogurt, add plenty of crisp veggies.  Make an easy fruit dip with yogurt and cream cheese and provide some yummy favorite fruits to dip away!  
*If your kids like re-fried beans send them to school with a homemade lunchable, pack it with beans, cheese and tortillas or chips.  Add in guac and sour cream and some chopped tomatoes and olives.  Throw in a little mango for a treat.  (Try dried fruits or freeze dried for a different consistency)
*Breakfast for lunch, take leftover waffles, smear with a nut butter or nutella, top with sliced bananas or strawberries,  Add a hard boiled egg and some orange slices.

Hope this helps a few Momma's out.  Just remember to give yourself a break, and your kids too,  If all your child will eat is a pb&j, thats ok...try and stretch their food list by adding fun things to those sandwiches!