Brown Bag School Lunches

My eldest daughter starts kindergarten on Monday and will be taking her lunch - one look at the school menu and the decision was made. So I have been researching what to give her so the other kids will be jealous and she won't be eying-off their hot-dogs.

Ideas for the actual food:

• My first thought - Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches - but most schools ban this because of peanut allergies.
• Sandwiches made with cheese, sliced vegetables and/or deli meats.  Vary this with tortillas or pita bread.
• Crackers.
• Mini bagels with hummus.
• Cheese - either cut slices or cheese sticks.
• Vegetables - carrots, celery, broccoli, cheery tomatoes - with dipping sauce like Hummus or the less healthy option, Ranch dressing.
• Celery sticks filled with cream cheese and topped with raisins.
• Pasta salad - cook the tubular pastas the night before and toss in olive oil.  Add bell peppers, snap peas and cheese.
• Chicken or pork souvlaki - after these have cooled, put them in a container with some dipping sauce.
• Rice salad - cold rice with fillers like raisins.
• Hard Boiled Eggs - yes they do smell a bit.
• Fruit - grapes, watermelon, strawberries, bananas, peaches etc.  Soak things like apple pieces in orange or lemon juice to prevent them going brown.
• Yogurt - freeze it the night before so it is nice a cold by lunch-time.  I like Greek yogurt - Fage is the best I have found (my husband is Greek descent).
• "Clif Kid Twisted Fuit" - these are twisted fruit snacks that are organic, made from real fruit without all the added sugar.  They are a bit expensive but nice as a treat occasionally.
• Bran or fruit muffins.
• Banana bread.
• Cereal bars - we like the Nutri-Grain Fruit Bars.  They are made with whole grain but contain 12 g of sugar - could be worse.
• Drinks - my kids only drink milk and water so this is easy.  Flavored milks are full of sugar and banned in many schools.

Other ideas:

• A really nice lunch bag - we got ours from Pottery Barn Kids.
• Get a decent ice-pack to keep things fresh.
• Use a cookie cutter to make the sandwich look interesting. 
• Pack a small suprise - a note, cute drawing or sticker.
• Freeze sandwiches and pack in plastic bags or wax paper.