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packed lunch for a child who won't eat sandwiches

20 replies

TheMysticMasseuse · 15/06/2010 08:48

We never eat sandwiches at home (not british, you see, so not used to it) and I never thought this to be a problem until now.

On friday dd (4 and a bit) is going for a school trip and needs to bring a packed lunch. We talked about it and she says she won't eat a sandwich, she requested pasta with pesto instead .

So... not sure how to proceed. Do I just make her a sandwich and rely on peer pressure as a motivating factor? or should I give her something else which I know she'll eat? I was thinking boiled eggs, meatballs, vegetable chunks etc.

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Tortington · 15/06/2010 08:51

give her the pasta.

i would try and give hersomething non smelly

LadyintheRadiator · 15/06/2010 08:51

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ChuckBartowski · 15/06/2010 08:51

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Magalyxyz · 15/06/2010 08:54

Would she eat a 'cornish pasty'? I used to make about 20 small ones of those at a time. My kids love them. Never thought to send them in to school though. When cold they hold together really well.

ChuckBartowski · 15/06/2010 08:56

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Mum72 · 15/06/2010 09:01

My DD used to have pasta salad in a tupperware. I used disposable tubs and plastic forks for school trips.
Some days she would have tuna, sweecorn and chopped cucumber, again in a tupperware.
Or how about bagels,malt loaf, fruit bun, wraps or how about cold sausage, scotch egg type nibbles?

racingheart · 15/06/2010 11:23

Pasta and pesto in a little pot is fine. Good on her for asking for something so easy and tasty. I'd give her that plusl fruit, frubes, juice or smoothie carton and a wrapped biscuit, cake or bag of crisps so that if anyone does think it's funny, she has lots of other stuff similar to theirs. But theyre will be other kids with different foods - they don't all live on sandwiches. I went on a school trip recently and a few of them (including teachers) had little pasta or salad boxes instead of bread.

They all do swopsies even if it's not allowed, so maybe give her some goodies to swap.

biglips · 15/06/2010 11:24

ham and cheese mini wraps. (And other fillings too)

TheMysticMasseuse · 15/06/2010 11:26

thank you for all the good ideas. Also for reassuring me that she can have a packed lunch without sandwiches

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Blu · 15/06/2010 11:29

Today DS has a tupperware container of Dolmades.

Consider:
samosas / pakora
cheese and spinach filo pastries, available from mediterranean and turkish bakers
Little snack packs of sushi (£1 from M&S)
a slice of tortilla
a slice of quiche, or a small individual quiche
What would you eat fo a picnic / packed lunch in place of sandwiches?

Things they can eat with fingers will be easier to manage for a 4 yo on a school trip than tubs of things and a fork.

migola · 15/06/2010 17:27

be careful with pesto for packed lunch - we aren't allowed because some of the kids in DD's nursery have nut allergies

Smash09 · 16/06/2010 22:46

My dds don't like sarnies everyday but luckily like lots of other things, which means I've been able to experiment - i suggest you do the same and find out what things go down well with your little ones. Some stuff we have regularly:

Proteins:

Leftover sausages, cut up in to chunks with something to dip like ketchup or relish

Quiche - they like ones with bacon and cheese, broccoli cheese, onion cheese, mushroom, roast veg, spinach, and ham.

Leftover dahl (lentil curry) with bread or chappatti to dunk

Pieces of ham, different cheeses, roast chicken, roast pork or beef... or a mix, with salady bits

Bean salad - chickpeas usually, mixed with mayo or pesto

Falafels (leftovers)

Tuna mayo a la tupperwear, but very very tightly wrapped over so it doesn't smell!

Don't often bother with eggs as they really smell no matter what I do

Carbs:

Pasta!! Deffo the staple - we have it with tomato and cheese, pesto, roast veg, ham, mayo, tuna, whatever!

Pitta breads
breadsticks
Rice cakes
oat cakes
melba toast
cream crackers
poppyseed crackers

Rice - leftovers mixed with some kind of dressing or just plain, they like it!

Sometimes fruit loaf with butter/jam as a treat

Fats:

Hummus to dip
nut/seed butters (obvi check for allergy policy)
I don't usually put whole nuts or seed in as they are little, so choking etc scares me.

Fruit/veg

Cut up raw veggies with a dip, such as cherry toms, celery, carrots, cucumber, pepper.
Fruit salad with whatever we've got
Little smoothie packets
Dried fruits
Fruit bars

If we've baked anything like flapjacks, scones etc, I might put one in. Hope that helps! x

BertieBotts · 16/06/2010 22:55

How about mini samosas? DS loves these and just devours them. You can buy them from the supermarket or make them in bulk.

TheMysticMasseuse · 17/06/2010 12:35

Wow! So many creative ideas!

I think we have settled for boiled egg, vegetable sticks, and pbj sandwich (which she loves). I am just so paranoid she won't eat a thing, she's suchj as light eater anyway...

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weegiemum · 17/06/2010 12:41

If pbj means Peanut Butter then you might want to check with the school - we're not allowed to send any peanut butter due to a severely allergic child.

TheMysticMasseuse · 17/06/2010 12:49

good point weegie! Will check today. We live in Switzerland and they are generally incredibly laid-back about everything, although I would hope they would have mentioned nut allergy at some point during the year... better double check

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CantSleepWontSleep · 17/06/2010 12:54

My dd is also 4 and a bit, and takes a packed lunch to nursery school 3 days a week. Most days she has (at her request) some cooked plain pasta, a pot of cucumber, a pot of beetroot (occasionally swaps this for a corn on the cob), a humzinger and some water. Sometimes she'll get a boiled egg or a leftover sausage or minted lamb kebab too.

Francagoestohollywood · 17/06/2010 12:59

True, no one mentions allergies here in Italy too. It's like no one suffers from food allergies here

HopeForTheBestExpectTheWorst · 18/06/2010 20:48

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TheMysticMasseuse · 21/06/2010 15:37

i don't know whether it's significant or not, but when i ask the teacher if Peanut butter was ok she had trouble comprehending the question!

As with many, many things, I suspect the right way is someway in the middle between total lack of awareness and banning school picnics altogether

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