Packed lunches for 4yo - creative suggestions please!

[Sheila]

DS has decided to go on sandwich strike. He has to take a packed lunch to nursery every day (they don't have a kitchen) and I'm concerned because he's leaving his sandwiches and only eating his yoghurt at the moment. I'm all out of ideas about what to put in that's healthy and that he'll enjoy - anyone got any ideas?

Can anyone recommend the Annabel Carmel book on this subject?

Grateful for any help - save my son from starvation!

[bundle]

sometimes it's spelled hummus. it's basically chick peas, tahini, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice, v cheap to make yourself in food processor too.

[lemonice]

chick pea lemon juice garlicky dip or pate/chill cabinet

[Nutcracker]

O.k at the risk of sounding thick, what on earth is Houmous ??? and where can i get it ???

I here it menrtioned so often on here, i'm dying to try some.

[bundle]

marthamoo, sorry wasn't suggesting branston with fishfingers, ketchup preferred but could have mayo on other slice to create a sort of pink gunge not dissimilar to prawn cocktail dressing

[marthamoo]

Yes but fishfinger sandwiches HAVE to have Hellmann's mayonnaise and black pepper on them...noooo to Branstons!

[bundle]

(we have the tiny pieces, special sandwich version)

[Fio2]

Oh and I just love fishfinger snadwiches

[Fio2]

wheres the branston?

[bundle]

fio, i have developed a passion for cheese/branston and fishfinger/ketchup sarnies. maybe i'm regressing..

[bundle]

absolutely sheila. dds have nursery food, but i've been doing my own packed lunches to try & save money recently and it only works if i get up super-early or pack leftovers the night before.

[Fio2]

mmm but I can eat anything now, have a fiiiiiine palate bundle

[Sheila]

Love the simple fishcake idea Bundle - DS loves fish, oddly. Has to have ketchup on the side tho!It all just means a lot more planning ahead I guess - not my greatest strength. I tend to get his lunch ready before work in the morning when I'm at my most frantic and just slap butter and marmite between 2 slices of bread, bung in a yoghurt and an apple and leave it at that! No wonder the poor lad isn't keen.

[bundle]

agree, fio! i think the young palate is v sophisticated these days. imo it's all about variety, so not too much of one thing (makes v fiddly though)

[Fio2]

posh packed lunches here!

I used to get chees and branston soggy sarnies every day, I hated cheese

[bundle]

cook corn on the cob (preferably chargrilled, rather than just boiled/steamed) & give him a large chunk (say a third) with a dip eg hummus, tomato chutney.
small fishcakes to dip too (cold mash mixed with tinned tuna, capers if liked, then chuck them into beaten egg & cover with breadcrumbs & fry in a little butter)

[Kayleigh]

LOL dino. My ds2 would sit for a week looking at that lot. He'd probably manage the cake/bun part though !

[waitinggame]

Do they have a microwave????

My dd also has the little tins of sausage in spagetti, macaroni cheese, and spag bol etc etc etc.

They are so quick and easy

[Sheila]

Fantastic ideas - keep them coming! I will have a go at these. Many, many thanks.

[waitinggame]

I agree with the tortilla wrap thing martha - My daughter thinks they are pancakes - the type you get with chinese crispy duck - she thinks it's a real treat to have them.

[Kayleigh]

dino think that link gives packed lunches for older children - it says "The table below gives the nutritional guidelines per lunch for 9 to 12 year olds."
But probably okay to use some of the ideas. Just need to adapt portion sizes for younger ones.

[Blu]

Breadsticks and some hummous
Those soft tortilla wraps with fillings (tuna etc)
A pie or pasty?
Chunky slice of Spanish Omlette?
Cold fish fingers
Cold sausage
Scotch egg
Mini-quiche
slice of cold pizza

[marthamoo]

My eldest ds always liked "pocket bread" (that's pitta bread to the uninitiated!). I would fill it with the same kind of stuff I would put in a sandwich: tuna mayo and sweetcorn, grated cheese and ham. He also liked to have a tortilla wrap - these are best with a damp filling like tuna mayo: spread all over then roll up and cut into slices - like swiss roll.

Another firm favourite was houmous in a small lidded tub, with batons of carrot, cucumber, celery and baby sweetcorns.

Would he eat pasta salad or rice salad - in a small sandwich tub, with a plastic fork? Ds1 always refused this as it was too different to what the other kids were having ("no-one takes a fork!"

Btw, all this is past tense because (despite my best eforts at imaginative lunch boxes) he now has school dinners

[waitinggame]

Have you tried things like carrot, cucumber sticks etc etc

When my dd gets fed up of sandwiches I find giving her picnic type food for a few days help - she loves savory mini eggs and cocktail sausages for lunch.

With the vegtable sticks to make it a bit more healthy of course

[Kayleigh]

will he eat a small roll instead of a sandwich ?

pitta bread stuffed with something ?