Well, to say that things have changed quite a bit in these years would be an understatement. And for obvious reasons. Decades have passed and we have grown. Money has lost its value and so has trust. Time has taken that place so everything has to be fast. Faster cars, shorter movies, crisper messages and quicker food. So for someone like me who grew up eating piping hot parathas and dal chawal (steamed rice with lentil soup) for school lunch, it was tough to adjust to the fact that my daughter will eat microwavable hot pockets and cold pizza for her lunch. So I promised myself not to fall in that trap. Its not always easy but trust me, not as difficult as they say it is! Just a little homework and preparation is all it takes. Here’s what I do to keep myself on track and to keep it “fast”:
Plan ahead and make a list: Every Friday night just 10 minutes before going to bed, I make a list of five dishes I plan to send in her lunchbox the coming week. I try to keep the dishes simple that do not ask for a lot of prep work. Like me if you like bookmarking or “pinning” great recipe ideas, when running short, just go back to those recipes and try something new.
Shop for the week: Weekend is when we get time to shop for groceries. Just like lunchbox food, I also plan my meals for the whole week and shop for everything during weekend.
Do major prep the night before: I usually pick recipes that do not ask for a lot of prep work but if there is any, I finish it off the night before.
Wake up before them: Set up the alarm and get out of bed at least 30 minutes before the rest of the crew to save yourself the chaos of having to run to the bathroom when tea is on the stove or when the little one spilled her milk. Extra points if you can squeeze in your morning yoga or run in there too!
Don’t skip breakfast. Just keep it simple and quick: Milk and cereal, granola fruit parfait, pre-boiled eggs and toast or just a banana. This will save you time to concentrate on the hot lunch you are cooking instead of juggling between breakfast and lunch.
Assemble and put things together in the morning: If time consuming work is done the night before, then in the morning all you need to do is put it all together. Pack in the lunchbox and send them off.
Below is a list of things I sent in her lunchbox this week:
Monday: Avocado Paratha with lemon pickle Night prep: Mash avocado. Add salt and lemon juice. Knead with whole wheat flour. Refrigerate.
Roll and cook paratha in the morning.
Tuesday: Tuna cakes with rice cakes for lunch. Mini bagel with honey almond smear for snack: Night prep: Drain canned tuna. Mash with boiled potatoes (add vegetables of choice), dried mint, salt and panko. I make shapes using ongiri mold, just for cuteness factor. You can roll into little patties. Refrigerate.
In the morning pan fry tuna cakes. Cook rice and make shapes using ongiri molds. Assemble bagel.
Wednesday: Grilled veggie cheese pita for lunch. Apple and cheese for snack: Night prep: Frozen steamed veggie medley. Thaw at night. Use choice of meat if you like. Refrigerate.
In the morning, toss veggies with cheese. Adjust salt. Fill into pita halves. Wrap in aluminum foil. Cook like grilled cheese sandwich. Cut into quarters.
Thursday: Sausage fried rice for lunch. Apple sauce, cherry tomatoes and cheese for snack: Night prep: Chop sausage and choice of vegetables. Cook rice. Refrigerate.
In the morning, saute vegetables and sausage. Toss with rice.
Friday: Mini Idly with honey for lunch. Olives, cucumber and cheese for snack: I prepare my own idly batter a day in advance using this recipe. You can also use store bought batter.
In the morning, cook idly.
Hope this list gives you some ideas on what to pack as a healthy lunch for your kiddo. I am always looking for new, interesting ideas because there’s just not enough of them. So please feel free to share yours with a possible link in the comment section. I will come back with another plan next week!
Hi Prerna- I cant seem to find the “In her lunch box” section that you had on your website (i think you had it in the old version of the site) . It was one of my favourite posts on the site. Can you please, please bring it back?? My little one started school and i am in need of some inspiration. 🙂
Hello Shweta,
I am sorry! The recipes are under “Lunch Box Ideas” in the blog. Please let me know if you still cannot find them. I will definitely get to sharing more lunchbox recipe on the blog soon 🙂
Standard kid’s Mon-Thu menu: lunch – leftovers from last night’s dinner; Thu: sandwich with filling, apple, yoghurt. Morning/afternoon tea – 2-3 fresh fruit, 1-3 serves biscuits or similar, 1-2 serves dried fruit.
Best idea I’ve appropriated: spend one afternoon baking mini fruit-vege muffins (makes about 24 + 10 standard sized), and freeze 12-15 of them; dole out the muffins 3 at a time. In the first week, the kid ODs; then when lunchbox gets boring, the frozen muffins is portioned out once a week.
One afternoon baking = 5-6 weeks of food options.
hi Prerna,
could u tell me what kind of lunch box u use. My sons lunch always gets cold by the lunch time.
Thanks,
Saj
Hi Prerna,
Where did u get those stainless steel lunchbox?. Every morning, while packing lunch for my kids, a guilt feeling takes over, ’cause of plastic box. Pls let me know. Also, that was really good and healthy lunch options for kids..
You can buy from Indian Grocery from GroceryBabu.com Like, Snacks, Chutneys, Sauces, Pickles,
Papad, Sweets, Canned foods, Instant Foods, Biscuits, Bakery Products, Jaggery, Mukhwas, Beverages, Dry Fruits, Tea, Coffee, Beans, Spices, Masalas, Flours, Rice, Health & Beauty, Household Items, Incense & Pooja Supplies.
The kids seems to love egg chapathi with cheese in them. make the omelet separately with the cheese and place on chapathi which has been cooked on both sides and cheese sprinkled on so the omelet can stick, fold over. Or use 2 slices of bread and do the same thing.
That is one of our favorite luchbox dishes too. We call it anda roll 🙂
love this post. i am going to start sending lunch boxes for the husband starting next week and it’s going to need a lot of planning and prep work. to this week has been all about getting inspired and this helped!
lovely…. keep posting.
Avocado parantha sound amazing! Do the avocado retain their colour? Great job x
Guess a bit of planning can save lots of time and bring in peace of mind. Love those tuna cakes. The cute factor works for me!
I’ll take Thursday’s lunch every day of the week!
Hi Prerna…can u tell me what kind of lunch boxes you use to send in those hot lunches… I use a soup thermos for pasta and soups…but have no idea what to do for the roti roll ups and things like that…
thanks
I make my daughter’s lunch but I don’t cook in the mornings. Once I sent a turkey pepperoni/cheese quesadilla which we assembled and cooked that night then packaged up in her lunch tote. Leftover bbq’d chicken became a chicken roll-up with cheese and a bit of mayo. I always include a fresh fruit (mini orange, strawberries, or banana), a fresh veggie (baby tomatoes, carrots, or cucumbers) an organic shelf-stable flavored milk, and either cheese stick or yogurt tube. 🙂
Love!!!�� I have started giving them more homemade lunches…. As I said earlier Thank you babe for inspiring me n many many more moms n reminding us that it is possible all we need is some planning n loads of love
Very nice post. These days with everything precooked, pre-made…..i hope this doesn’t lead to pre-chwed one day.
I have definitely fallen into the trap. I try to crawl out on weekends to make sure my family can sit at the table enjoyed a really good family meal. Week days it can be pretty sad around here.
Thanks for the gentle reminder that is indeed possible to serve good food made with love, everyday.
Indeed, life has changed… Lovely lunch boxes.
Cheers.
Rosa
Planning a menu is a great peace of mind. Need to save your kid’s menu plan for for future 😉