How to Pack a School Lunch Your Picky Eater Will Actually Eat

INSIDE: LEARN HOW TO PACK A SCHOOL LUNCH EVEN A PICKY EATER WILL EAT AND ENJOY!

Do you have a picky eater??

I have a picky eater. And when I say picky, I mean she only eats McDonald’s chicken nuggets, does not eat peanut butter, and barely touches meat. She will eat the heck out of some pasta though!

So when Kindergarten started, we had to figure out how we were going to feed the beast! Because we know she won’t eat what the school offers…..Back to Target we go.

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1 – Lunchbox

They HAVE to have the matching lunchbox with the backpack. YES, this is essential. Gone are the days of brown paper bags….lunchboxes are washable, sturdy, and can hold heavy things…..

You will need to pick a large enough bag to hold all the necessities, so read on to make sure you pick the right bag!

2 – Cold and Warm Food Storage

Thermos – remember these wonderful things? Your Dad would take his coffee to work in these babies!!

Well, they moved onto bigger and BETTER things! These amazing little contraptions hold a child’s lunch. And keep it warm!!

That means peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are not the ONLY option for school lunches. The thermos‘ even come with a folding spoon in the top of them. I have 2 for each child – in case I don’t run the dishwasher every night (HAHAHA).

3 – Meals

My picky eater gets:

• Spaghetti-o’s
• Soup
• Pasta with butter
• Macaroni and cheese
• Chicken nuggets

****Update – we figured out how to put Ramen noodles in these bad boys! Cook the noodles (I put them in the microwave for 3 minutes), drain the water, add the seasoning with some butter – VOILA!

BUT — she also loves Lunchables pizza (cheese or pepperoni). Lunchables are a GREAT idea. Fabulous invention and someone is now rich because of them. But for $4 each, I am NOT trying to spend hundreds of dollars each week on groceries…so I decided to try to make our own.

At first, picky eater was not having any of it. Then I made one for her to try at home BEFORE sending her to school with it. SHE LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!

• Store brand pizza sauce ($.99)
• Pepperoni ($3)
• Store brand shredded cheese (on sale $2)
• Thin sandwich rounds (8 for $1.50)

I will admit figuring out what to use as the pizza dough was a challenge. But sandwich rounds fit the bill. Of course they only have wheat because they are supposed to be the healthy alternative for a sandwich but picky eater liked it.

I used my 21 day fix container (because I clearly do not use those anymore but you can use these) to store the sauce. Then I used a meal prep container for the rest. All those ingredients made 8 lunches (spread out over 2 weeks) for 2 kids. So my $9 vs $32 name brand (YAY ME!).

Two sandwich rounds fit perfect in the large space, pepperoni and the cheese fit perfectly the medium space. This contraption fits in her lunchbox, along with the little “jar” of sauce, a Capri-Sun, and one or two other snack items. 

4 – Snacks

Sure chips and fruit snacks are easy options, but are they healthy??? Probably not the best choice in shaping a child’s future eating habits…….

When thinking of healthier options, I was riddled with a series of small problems – prep and preservation.

My kids love cut up apples. Have you ever noticed they get brown in about 5 minutes? Well, the same is true if you put them in lunches, therefore the children will not eat them…….these days grocery stores have pre-bagged, pre-cut apple pouches, BUY them!

You might be saying, “but convenience sometimes gets in the way of being healthy”….Enter the bag of chips. One small bag of Doritos is not going to make your child OBESE!!! 12 of them will…..so one per day is the limit.

All other snacks must be healthy

• Healthy versions of chips – baked chips, pretzels, popcorn
• Raisins, aforementioned pre-sliced apple bags
• Using different meal prep containers – grapes, cheese cubes, carrots, celery, and dressing if needed
• Applesauce – gosh I love the pouches!

5 – MOST IMPORTANT PART – Planning –

NOW – you will need to develop a system where packing a lunch does not slow you down in the morning.

1. Heating – needs to be done right BEFORE school not the night before. Make sure to heat it about one minute longer than recommended (so it will stay warm in the Thermos).
2. Pre-pack – the night before, start the packing. Add the snacks, drink, and utensils to the lunchbox.
3. Keep it cool – freeze yogurt, use cold packs, and put cold things together.

Somehow all of this has kept my picky eater happy. Do you have any ideas? How do you feed your picky kid when they are at school?

Happy Planning,