Let’s talk school packed lunches with Twinings Kids Cold In‘fuse

[AbbiCMumsnet]

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From wacky lunchboxes to inventive snacks designed to get your kids to eat well, school packed lunches are a key part of the back to school preparation. It can take a lot of trial and error to make nutritious packed lunches that are also fun and appealing, and anything that makes life easier in this department is often welcomed.

Here’s what Twining’s have to say:
“We all know how difficult it can be to get children to eat well without compromising on fun or filling their lunch boxes with boring meals! That’s why we’ve produced our new Kids Cold In’fuse range, made by using natural ingredients only. Developed in partnership with children, the product offers a fun way to encourage kids to consume more water and is a sugar free alternative to fruit juices and cordials, which can have a high sugar content. By simply adding the infusion bags to their water bottles and giving it a quick shake, children can enhance their water with delicious flavours including; Strawberry Lemonade, Mango & Orange and Blackcurrant & Apple. Not only that, but all the products in the range have been specially developed to ensure that the acidity level is safe for children’s tooth enamel.

As part of the launch, we are supporting Public Health England’s Change4Life campaign, which encourages families to cut back on sugar by making a few simple swaps to everyday food and drink. With children heading back to school this September, we encourage everyone to make the simple swap in their packed lunches and let us know what you think!”

What is your child’s favourite part of their packed lunch? Have you created a fun twist on an otherwise boring snack? Maybe you put a fun note into their lunchbox every so often as a surprise?

Share the fun ways you make your children’s packed lunches appealing on the post below and all who do so will be entered into a prize draw where 1 MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

[BristolMum96]

I try not to give sandwiches, I hated them as a kid and my daughter does too as they're quite boring. I try to give her different things like pastas, salads or crackers etc. Something different every week.

[sharond101]

I gave my Son a packed lunch the other day only so I could put a note in it to say I loved him. Both my children love dried fruit and the ones which look like sweets go down well. They miss peanut butter sandwiches but it's so important not to have nuts in school so they always ask for that at the weekends.

[ifigoup]

Pre-peeled / cutted-up fruit always looks more appealing and helps them to eat quicker too.

[zofloraexplora]

Afternoon. I have three girls, they all have different views on food and what they want to eat. They all like fruit so fruit skewers go down a treat and they're fun to make!

[mumsbe]

We do wraps with chicken with yoghurt and mint sauce then sprinkled with raisin. My kids have a sweet tooth so turning even the savoury sweet helps them to eat them.
For dessert we wrap strawberry in tin foil to keep them fresh then put them in a container. The kids can then add them to their fromage frais or eat seperate.
They have bread sticks with a honey and yougart dip home made smoothie made by themself ( they tend to be more interested if they choose their own flavours. Lastly some pom bear crisps. We never have any complaints 😊

[Caillou]

i give my 4 years old a massive Chuck of cucumber, apparently it is more fun than slices or sticks

[hedgehoglurker]

I try to vary the carb and protein in their lunches every day - hot pasta in a flask/ sandwich cut in cute shapes/ small crackers with cheese and ham slices/ breadsticks with a dip, etc.

Also include a yoghurt, a selection of fruit/ raw vegetables and water to drink as we prefer to avoid sweeteners (artificial or added sugar). These Twinings Cold Infuse drinks could work really well for our family!

[DrDiva]

It’s a bit of a military operation here! We have a list with a selection of sandwich fillings and other stuff like chicken and chorizo rolls, tortilla wraps, soups etc and they can choose what they want as the main protein item. Then I will add bits and bobs such as veg, fruit, crackers etc.
I like making veg shapes!

[JC4PMPLZ]

I like to include a little surprise, an unusual fruit, a weird little sweet I bring back from my many trips abroad for work. Mostly though I give the meals I know she loves and sometimes do little twists on them, a but of ginger, or sone Japanese seasoning, to keep it interesting.

[DisgruntledGuineaPig]

My eldest doesn't like variation, which is good as we dont do packed lunches often! He wants a ham and salad sandwich, a babybel, a small pot of fruit (another who thinks cut fruit is far superior to whole!) And something snacky. Done. Its never 2 days on a run so I donr mind it's always the same.

Youngest also has school lunches most days, dc2 is harder to cater for as doesn't really like sandwiches, pasta salad, hummus and pitta bread strips, with cold cooked chicken.

I'm not sure the infusions would be allowed at school, we are only supposed to send in plain water. A lot of local schools have similar rules.

[GooodMythicalMorning]

Having an autistic child and nt child one likes the same every day and the other needs variety. I try to just put in what I know they will like and ask for (obviously within reason!) as I know it wont be eaten. Sometimes it's whatever is on offer at Tesco or wherever I've shopped that week.

[Butternutsqoosh]

I score a message into DSs banana with a cocktail stick so by lunchtime he can see it in the skin "have a nice day" or "have fun" or a picture of a rocket or something 😀

[wellingtonsandwaffles]

Obviously the favourite will be any crisps or treats but our joint fave for taste and health is a wrap packed full of hummus, avocado, tomato and cucumber, and some form of protein.

[Thiswayorthatway]

Eldest DC gets involved and helps make pack lunch, prefers wraps to sandwiches, loves a raw carrot or two too!

[PashleyB]

The current amusement is that the children have reusable sandwich wraps. It turns out your sandwich is much more interesting when wrapped in unicorns

[MrsLJ2014]

We try to do lots of alternatives to sandwiches like savoury scones, pitta, wraps, boiled eggs, etc. If we do put sandwiches in, we cut them up in different ways. Also make sure he doesn't get the same treat twice in a row!

[Beach11]

Mine like vegetable and cheese skewers and fruit salad.
Neither like sandwiches, which can be bit of a pain. Now I make them lunches of chopped up foods such as veg, olives, meat etc and give crackers or pita instead, sometimes with hummus. They enjoy their lunches more.
I do give some choices if wheat goes in their lunch boxs

[chibsortig]

I try not to give sandwiches every day i alternate with wraps/sandwich thins or pitta breads. Sometimes i do crackers and spread or breadsticks and dips with vegetable sticks. I try and have a variety of food they like in rotation

[Heaviestdirtyestsoul]

I make 'baby' wraps by taking a full sized one and using a cutter to make 6 small circles, then in a little tub I put little bits of cooked chicken, grated carrot, matchstick-ed cucumber and a little grated cheese. He makes his own wraps and feels very grown up for doing so - he says. Just try to keep things different really- I find some great ideas online.

[del2929]

i like to add in random funny notes in their packed luches,especially on birthdays. (much to my kids dismay)
i also like to add stickers and special small treats that they 'find' at the bottom of their lunch bags (usually something small like a starburst sweet)
i try to spruce up how i make the sandwiches using cutters.

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

I made wax wraps with their favourite fabric.

My youngest really likes the infusion things. Strawberry lemonade is going down well.

[fergusthefrog]

Let them choose the lunch box and encourage them to choose their snacks when you do your shop and definitely mix things up. Frozen frubes with a little ice pack in the summer term honestly worked so well.

[MrsFrTedCrilly]

My children are obviously strange and delight in having the same packed lunch every day, fortunately it’s a sandwich and a piece of fruit (banana). I’m actually relieved that I don’t need to faff about with anything inventive

[Asuwere]

My DC are like MrsFrTedCrilly's as they are quite happy with pretty much the same lunch every day. I've never thought to make it overly fun; it's food, not entertainment. I don't make my lunch fun either.

[InvernessAdventure]

Everyone makes much more effort than me! My lunchmaking days are nearly done, but my fascinating sandwich and fruit combos never failed to delight, mainly because my children always found school lunches so pobby and unappetising that almost anything would have been preferable. I did draw smily faces on their mid-morning bananas with laundry marker though. And I made a bit more effort on school trip days (crisps, chocolate bar, not very Mumsnet). I must say I don't see the point of fruity 'infusers' for your water bottle. I think it's probably better for children to get in the habit of having plain water and liking it, which is weirdly healthy of me, considering all the other stuff.