Mums share the BEST lunchbox hacks
- Survey reveals a third of parents struggle to find a healthy lunchbox balance
- Mumsnet parents have created a list of clever and time-saving lunchbox tricks
- Freeze a juice carton to keep a child’s lunch cold without the dripping ice pack
- Cut out sandwiches with fun cookie cutter shapes to encourage fussy eaters
Imogen Blake For Mailonline
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More and more schools are cracking down on children’s lunchboxes to make sure they are filled with healthy choices instead of junk food.
But as many as a third of parents admit they struggle to find a balance between giving their kids a range of healthy items – and what their youngsters actually want to eat.
To help them, parents on Mumsnet have shared the clever lunchbox hacks they use to get their children eating healthily, that will also save busy mothers and fathers time and money.
From turning vegetables into easy homemade crisps to making your own ice pack by freezing a child’s juice carton, these are the very useful tricks to use when the kids go back to school.
Forty-five per cent of parents say they seek help for new lunchbox ideas, according to a new survey by Kingsmill
With 85 per cent of parents having to make a lunchbox for their children at least two or three times a week, it can be a struggle to find the time to make sure their lunches are full of healthy choices.
In fact, nearly half of all parents in a survey commissioned by Kingsmill found that parents struggle to keep lunches exciting enough for their children to eat.
But parents on Mumsnet say these tips will shave seconds off your morning routine, and take the stress out of the packed lunch ritual.
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MAKE FOOD FUN
Turning sandwiches into fun shapes, such as hearts, could entice fussy eaters to eat their lunches
Use different shaped cookie cutters to make sandwiches more appealing. The kids love it when they open their lunch box and there’s an edible dinosaur with a cheesy eye staring back at them.
STOP APPLES BROWNING: The hack we all wish we’d known before! Pre-slice an apple, reconstruct it, and wrap a rubber band around it. This keeps in the juices and prevents it from going brown before lunchtime.
KEEP IT MINI
Pinwheels are a popular – and time-saving – way of encouraging children to eat their lunch as they can be frozen easily and will defrost by the lunchtime
The little ones love miniatures, whether it’s toys or food items. Roll out your bread until it’s nice and thin and twice the size, spread with homemade pate or cheese spread, sprinkle with sweetcorn or a topping of your choice and roll-up. Wrap in foil, chill for a couple of hours, slice into bite-size pinwheels, a couple of centimetres thick. Try to make them colourful so that they tempt the appetite. You can freeze these in bulk, so that you can simply throw a handful in the lunchbox in the morning – they’ll then be the perfect temperature for lunch.
For extra appeal, spear with a savoury breadstick to make pinwheel lollies. Serve with cheese slice shapes cut out with cookie cutters – again, make these in bulk and then freeze.
SKEWERS
You could try skewering pieces of different coloured peppers, raw onion, cherry tomatoes and pineapple to get your kids eating their five-a-day in one sitting
For a nutrient boosting hack, put sandwiches, fruits and vegetables on skewers.
It really is very quick and kids are much more likely to eat the whole lot.
INSTANT ICE PACK
Freeze their juice cartons for an instant ice pack.
By the time the kids eat lunch, the juice is thawed, their food is fresh, and there isn’t a dripping ice pack to deal with when they get home.
DISGUISE VEG
For really fussy eaters, you can try making vegetable muffins such as carrot or beetroot muffins so they are eating one of their five-a-day without even realising it
Put vegetables such as grated carrot or beetroot into homemade muffins which will add sweetness without the use of extra sugar.
PLAN AHEAD
Make up all the sandwiches or rolls on a Sunday, wrap in clingfilm and then freeze enough for each day of the week in bags. Each morning it’s easy to just grab a bag for each lunchbox for no hassle in the mornings.
HEALTHY CRISPS
Slice sweet potatoes, beetroot, parsnips or any root vegetable and dry out in the oven until they become crispy to make vegetable crisps
Pre-make vegetable crisps in the oven out of sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, turnips, beetroot or any other root vegetables you have lying around.
Kept air tight and they will last days. Pack a small tub of them with their lunch.
TURN ONE MEAL INTO TWO
Peel or slice extra vegetables like carrots or peppers when making dinner in the evening and pop them into a bag in the fridge ready for the lunchboxes in the morning.
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