Lunch Box Tips:
- Incorporate as many healthy items as you can
- KEEP IT SIMPLE
- Small portions e.g. sushi-sized wraps, small packs of cherry tomatoes
- VARIETY
- Make it fun
- Add a dip with vegetables
- Cookie cutters for different shaped sandwiches
- Draw a face on a banana with a veld-tipped pen
- Stickers
- Add a little note
- Avoid foods that spoil – milk drinks, yoghurt, cheese
- Freeze a small bottle of water and pack into lunch box to keep food cool
Lunch Box Ideas:
Select one item from each compartment
| Fruits or Vegetables |
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Protein Side Snack |
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Any fruit in season
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AND/ OR Chopped raw vegetables e.g. carrot, cucumber, peppers, celery sticks, celery, cherry tomatoes, baby corn, sugar-snap peas, radishes, broccoli/ cauliflower, mushroom, green peas |
|
- Vegetables can be packed along with a small container of dip (hummus, avocado mash, tahini, cottage cheese or cream cheese) to make them more appealing and to provide a more sustaining low GL snack
- Nuts (almonds, cashew, pistachio, macadamia). Unroasted, unsalted. Natural peanuts and raisins
- Seeds (e.g. sunflower or pumpkin)
|
| Main Lunch Item |
- Sandwich made with wholegrain bread or rye bread with a protein filling such as chicken, turkey, eggs, tuna, salmon, hummus, cream cheese, cottage cheese, nut butter (e.g. sugar-free peanut butter), unprocessed ham, turkey and some lettuce/ tomato/ sprouts/ any veg. A small amount of good quality mayonnaise can be used or a little butter for drier fillings.
- Wholemeal pitta fingers with hummus.
- Pitta bread with cottage cheese and chicken strips/ soya and sesame seeds and tuna with lettuce and cherry tomatoes
- Healthy wholegrain pastries with healthy fillings. Fresh Earth makes great healthy savory pastries.
- Oat cakes/ corn cakes with hummus dip, cottage cheese dip or nut butters
Wholewheat tortilla wraps (with hummus and vegetables or shredded chicken) cut into bite-sized “sushi” pieces.
- Meat options: chicken breast/ drumstick, mini kebabs, chicken nuggets, chickpea marbles, tofu bites, salmon dumplings with some oat cakes.
- Can add savory snacks such as olives/ chickpeas/ mini pretzels or wholegrain crackers or bread sticks
- 1-2 boiled eggs and some rice cakes
- Salad – e.g. bean/ wholewheat pasta/tomato and mozarella or brown rice/ beans/ olive oil and vegetables
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| Treats |
|
Drinks |
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Dates, raisins, dried cranberries or other dried fruits. OR Healthy fruit/ seed bar/ nut bar
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OR Home-made, naturally sweetened cookies or muffins
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OR 2 blocks dark chocolate
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OR healthy, no added-sugar breakfast cereal (dry)
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OR some homemade popcorn |
|
- Water
- Diluted fruit juice (optional)
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