Please help me to organise nutritious and filling pack-lunches… It's taking over my life!

[somuchtosortout]

So, we live abroad and DDs go to International school with no option of school dinners.

DD1 is at school from 7.15 until 2.00 (+bus ride home so home about 2.30/3.00)

DD2 at school until 12.30

They both need a morning snack, which is not too hard (fruit, popcorn, yoghurt)

But I would like to organise my fridge so there is always something to put in DD1 lunch.

The food stays in her lunch bag until 1.00 and it's quite hot here, but a small ice pack helps.

Can't buy any nice cold meats for sandwiches and she can't live on bacon sandwiches!

Totally gone off tuna sandwiches which she lived on last school year.

Does it need to be different every day? Am I making my life impossible by trying to achieve this?

Am thinking mini burgers for one option. Home made pizza. I'd like things that can be made in the day and keep in the fridge.

Pasta/couscous/potato etc salads? Hummus and veg sticks?

fritatta, wraps with hummus, falafel in pitta,l peanut butter sandwiches/bagels, mini sausages with tomato sauce, pasta/cous cous/rice salad

Thanks guys! Falafel good idea, just need to learn to make them (can't buy anything like that here).
I'll try with frittata - she used to love eggs but then they made her sick once and she has not been able to eat them since.
But actually there is a version of frittata with spaghetti in it (a bit like tortilla) that may not taste too eggy.

Thanks for the replies!

It feels like I spend my whole time in the kitchen planning a varied diet. Anything at all here needs to be made from scratch, and I have never had an interest in cooking or baking, so it's quite a challenge for me!

What do you put in your rice salad? do you need some sort of dressing so it doesn't go all grainy and hard?

Yes put a vinaigrette dressing in the salad then it doesn't go dry. Tuna and cucumber is nice but there's also some ideas on delia online - search for brown rice salad. Or another recipe I found has tuna, beans, peppers, salsa, sounds nice and easy.

Pasta is generally whatever is left in fridge - cheese/ham/tomatoes etc chopped up and mixed in.

Rice salad - I have done one similar to this (serves 2)

1.5 cups cooked rice
2 tbsp cooked peas or sweetcorn
1 thinly sliced spring onion
1/2 diced red pepper
diced chicken/ham (optional)
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp lime juice

Mix all the liquids together and then add the veg and dressing to the rice.

That sounds quite nice Sharond, would not have thought of sesame oil and soy sauce. DD loves Soy sauce.

Thanks for sharing!

Cheese scones.

Brazil nut bread.

Carrot cake made with very little sweetener.

Chick pea flour crackers.

I'd be focusing on baking. That way you can freeze some, and rotate.