35 Healthy School Lunch Ideas

Are your kids getting tired of being sent to school with the same lunch every day? Try some of these healthy lunch/snack ideas to bring back some delicious variety into their day. (These ideas work for adults, too!):

Sandwiches/Wraps

1. Small Portions for Small Hands – Cutting sandwiches into smaller pieces can help grow small appetites. Cut sandwiches in half, or even in quarters to make them easier to eat. For younger children, use cookie cutters to cut the sandwiches into fun shapes. Wraps can be sliced into “pinwheels”, which also make great snacks!
2. Keep Things Separate – Consider packing the sandwich filling (particularly vegetables like tomato and cucumber) separate from the bread to keep the bread from getting soggy. If you’re using an ice pack, it will only need to cool the filling, not the bread!
3. Spread it out – Try using new sandwich spreads, like hummus, tzatziki, guacamole or pesto, to perk up your next sandwich!
4. PB & A Sandwich (if nuts allowed) – Spread peanut butter on whole grain bread and top with thin slices of apple. You can also try this with almond butter, or any other nut butters you like.
5. “Devilled Egg” Salad Sandwich – Instead of the typical hard-boiled eggs and mayo, add in mustard, minced onion, celery and sprinkle on some paprika. Spread between two slices of whole grain bread and top with alfalfa sprouts for some crunch and fresh flavour.
6. Healthy Tuna Salad Sandwich – To lighten the calories in your tuna salad, try using low-fat plain yogurt in place of half or all of the mayonnaise. Add in lots of fresh vegetables, like celery, cucumber and green onion. Spread between two slices of whole grain bread, or roll up in a wrap or pita.
7. Salmon Salad Sandwich with Dill – Mix together canned, flaked salmon, low-fat mayonnaise (or plain yogurt), chopped onion, chopped fresh dill and freshly ground pepper. Use it to fill a whole wheat pita pocket lined with lettuce, or do away with the pita and just wrap it in an extra-large leaf of lettuce.
8. Curried Chicken Apple Salad Wrap – Chop up leftover, cooked chicken and mix with low-fat mayonnaise (or plain yogurt). Stir in diced apple, celery, and a teaspoon of curry powder (or garam masala). Wrap in a whole-grain tortilla, or if you can find it, whole wheat roti or naan (split it in half and fill the pocket if you can – it is very dense!)
9. Vegetarian Sandwich – Place thinly sliced avocado, baby spinach, tomato slices, cucumber slices, sprouts and sliced cheese (an herbed or spiced Gouda or Havarti would work well here) between two slices of whole grain bread. Make it vegan by using soy cheese, or if you’re feeling particularly daring, try grilled marinated tofu.
10. Roast Beef on a Bun – Split a whole wheat roll in half, and spread on horseradish or mustard on one half. Add thinly sliced leftover roast beef and your favourite veggies.
11. Bulgur and Vegetable Lettuce Wraps – Try our recipe of the month and let us know what you think!

Salads

12. The filling for our recipe of the month can double as a hearty grain salad on its own!
13. A garden salad is easy to prepare, but may not be enough for a growing, energetic child. Be sure to add a source of protein, like canned beans, canned fish, cooked chicken breast, hard boiled eggs, shredded cheese, cottage cheese, and/or nuts/seeds to fill their appetites and give them adequate energy to learn and grow.
14. Make your own salad dressing – combine 1-2 parts oil (olive oil is a popular choice; canola oil is great because it’s neutral. Try sesame oil for some “Asian” flavour.) to 1 part vinegar/acid (try balsamic, red wine, white wine, cider or rice vinegars. Citrus juices work great too.) Add in your favourite dried herbs and spices, or other flavourings, like mustard or honey. Pack it in a separate, small container so that the salad doesn’t get soggy.
15. “Heavier” salads, like bean salad, pasta salad, potato salad or grain salad can be more filling than a green salad. Search online or flip through your favourite cookbooks for some recipes to try.
16. Don’t forget a fresh fruit salad can make a great dessert! You can use yogurt as a “salad dressing” for extra protein and calcium.
17. We have lots of delicious salads in our recipe archives. Try the Chickpea and Cranberry Couscous Salad…
18. …Lentil Tabbouleh Salad…
19. …Moroccan Couscous Salad…
20. …Salmon, Potato and Green Bean Salad…
21. …or White Bean and Tuna Salad

Hot Foods

22. Although many schools now have microwaves, the line is usually long and/or many children are heating up their lunches at the same time, making for a long wait. Make the insulated food container your best friend. As mentioned in our safe lunches article, dishes that have a lot of liquid or sauce work best. Make a big batch of your favourite soup, stew or chili recipe for a weekend supper, and pack the leftovers with some whole grain crackers or a whole wheat roll.
23. If you are not much for making your own soups, you can buy canned or packaged varieties. Look for ones that are low in sodium. Use the 5/15 Rule – avoid soups that have more than 15% of the Daily Value Percentage (%DV) of sodium, and go for soups that have less than 5%. Be aware of the portion size on the nutrition label! Add extra nutrition by tossing in frozenveggies, canned beans, leftover meat or whole wheat pasta before packing it into the food container.
24. There are a few insulated food container-friendly recipes in our recipe archives, like the Crowd-Pleasing Vegetarian Chili…
25. …or Chana Masala.

Snacks

26. If your child is more of a “grazer”, put together a few different snacks to make a meal. Pack some whole grain crackers for the starch, raw vegetable sticks, a spread to use on the crackers or as a dip, cheese slices, cottage cheese and/or a boiled egg for protein and fruit and yogurt for dessert.
27. Make your own trail mix by mixing your favourite dried fruit, nuts (if allowed), seeds, cereal and (maybe) chocolate chips. Let your kids “make their own” by letting them choose their favourite ingredients at the bulk bins at the grocery store.
28. Raw veggies and dip make an easy, healthy snack. Cut up some vegetables before you put them away after a grocery trip, or while making dinner so that they are always available. Obviously, vegetables like baby carrots and cherry tomatoes just require a quick wash! You can make them more interesting by buying colourful vegetables, like different coloured bell peppers, or purple or yellow cauliflower. Try dips like hummus, plain yogurt, tzatziki, guacamole or cottage cheese, which are healthier than traditional ranch dips.
29. Try edamame or young green soybeans, an excellent source of protein. You may have tried them as an appetizer at a Japanese restaurant. They are available frozen, both shelled or in their pods, at the Asian supermarket – simply boil and sprinkle with a bit of salt.
30. Make ants on a log – spread peanut butter (if nuts allowed, if not, try cream cheese or serve as after-school snack) in the groove of a celery stalk (“log”), then put raisins on top as the “ants”.
31. Tuna salad doesn’t have to be just for sandwiches! For a snack, you can pack a small container to be spread on some whole grain crackers. For something a little different, cut a few hard-boiled eggs in half lengthwise and remove the yolk. Spoon tuna salad into the hollow you have created. You can also spread tuna salad in the groove of celery stalks.
32. Fruit makes a healthy, sweet treat. Grapes, berries and cherries are bite-sized and easy to eat. For younger children (especially those who are missing a few teeth!), you may want to wash and slice the fruit instead of packing into their lunch bag whole.
33. Dry cereal can be a fun finger food on its own, or used to top yogurt, fresh cheese (i.e. Minigo) or cottage cheese. Try our Nutritious Granola recipe from the archives.
34. Wraps can be turned into snacks by slicing them into “pinwheels”. For savoury bites, try making a wrap using lettuce, cheese and a spread like hummus or guacamole. For a sweet treat, use ingredients like nut butter (if allowed, or as an after-school snack), honey and dried fruit – one example is the Chunky Peanut Butter Twisters from our recipe archives.
35. Homemade baked goods can be a healthy dessert because you are in control of how much sugar and how much fat goes into them. We have a few healthy recipes in our archives, like the Erslentil Apple Muffins, Garden Patch Muffins, Triple B Health Muffins or Healthy Banana Bread.