Tell Soreen about your healthy snacks that pass lunchbox police scrutiny- £300 to be won! NOW CLOSED

[EmmaMumsnet]

Most Mumsnetters are probably familiar with the concept of the lunchbox police - those whose job it is at your child’s school to ensure pupil’s lunchboxes meet a certain standard. The fact is, whether you like them or not, if there are lunchbox police at your DC’s school, you have to make sure your snacks comply with their rules. This being the case, Soreen want to know about your go-to recipes for healthy snacking that get past the beady eyes of even the toughest lunchbox police officer.

Here’s what Soreen have to say about their Lunchbox Loaves: "We know how hard it is to find a snack for school lunchboxes that’s both nutritious and tasty but Soreen Lunchbox Loaves strike that perfect balance. Available in Malt and Banana flavours with a satisfyingly squidgy texture, Lunchbox Loaves are individually wrapped, low in fat, contain only 95 calories and provide a source of fibre.

If that wasn’t enough, Soreen Lunchbox Loaves are also suitable for vegetarians and meet guidelines set by the Children’s Food Trust for ‘School Foods Standards’ - so you should have no problem getting them past the lunchbox police."

To help other Mumsnetters branch out beyond bread sticks and yoghurt, tell us about your best lunch box recipes for the ultimate police-proof snacks. Post on the thread with your healthy alternatives to chocolate, crisps and cakes and you could be in with a chance of winning a £300 voucher of your choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

We have very limited chioce on what can be put in my sons lunchbox - a sandwich and a piece of fruit, no crisps, yoghurt, cakes or anything. My son absolutely loves it when i give him a roast chicken wrap, filled with salad vegetables and a squidge of mayo. Plus i always give him 2 pieces of fruit and a bit of brocoli or carrot in a pot too

My DS's school doesn't seem too bothered by what goes into the lunch boxes but for mid morning snack they insist on healthy. But it does depend on your definition of healthy. They recommend fruit yogurt tubes but personally I feel that these can contain a lot of sugar. Anyway, mostly my DS has crackers with butter and marmite and a box of salad (tomatoes, cucumber, carrot and pickled onions) - If I put anything else in the box it comes home uneaten.

Small raisin box, banana, apple. My DS loves his fruit!

My DC's love my mini tuna tarts that I make, I make them in a muffin tin, so they are perfect lunchbox size.

I uploaded the recipe to the recip section ages ago, and it's a great budget option too

We have multiple allergies to deal with so I make a lot for my children's packed lunches. Homemade bliss balls are always a favorite as even the chocolate or caramel ones are mostly fruit, nuts and seeds. I also like to make cakes with fruit in or flapjacks. These treats go in along with a piece of fruit and carrot sticks. A sandwich or homemade potato scones.

Carrot sticks and hummus
Vegetable crisps
Cucumber sticks and cream cheese
Banana muffins

Flapjack
Cheese scones with marmite
Homemade cornish pasties

Mine love exotic fruit so the shopping bill gets expensive - mangoes, cherries, raspberries. I also send in plain popcorn popped at home and biltong which is a airdried South African beef slices. All kids I know who have tasted it go nuts for this and it's a lean, protein snack straight from the local butcher.

I show no fear with the lunch box police! We like dried fruit, apricot, raisins, cranberries what ever. I buy in separate bags, then make various dried fruit salads up in an envelope made of foil. Sick of spending money on tubs that get lost.

Banana cake made from very ripe bananas.

Muesli muffins, robust, can stand being slung around the lunch box.

Stuffed cold jacket potatoes, with veg sticks. My son's favourite counted beef hash style (corned beef and onion mixed up in it)

Omlette wraps cut up into pin wheels

(And for supper, malt bread, sliced Length ways, sliced banana on top, sprinkle brown sugar on, grill till sugar melts on bananas. Divine)

Apple slices, banana cake and yoghurts with berries or nuts are popular here. We like making fruit kebabs as they're healthy but really easy and quick to prepare.

IME it's more about what you call things than what they actually contain.
I gave homemade stuff acceptable names to get it past the lunchbox police:
Apple cake = "Apple bread"
Flapjacks = "Oat flips"
Fruit pie = "compote slice"
Jam Roly poly = "fruit roulade"
Chocolate chips = "carob nibs"

As long as DCs either don't know the real name of the items, or are willing to play along with the charade, you're fine with the lunchbox police!

Disclaimer: I am clearly a bad mother -but DCs think I'm awesome-

I make the kids mini eton mess, but a healthy version of course! Mix some summer berries with strawberry yoghurt and top with some crush meringue, their surprisingly low in calories the kids feel like their getting a treat but also gettin 1 of their 5 a day!

Fruit or vegetable muffins. Banana, raspberry, blueberry r some combination, thereof, or carrot, courgette or butternut squash. i had a glut of rhubarb once, which was a hit, muffin wise.

They don't need very much sugar compared with cake in general and since I am able to, I usually add a nutty topping of some sort, or stir in some chopped walnuts etc.

my daughter often would come home upset as she hadnt been allowed to eat her 'sweets' as the teachers called it.

they were fruit pieces disguised as sweeties

needless to say i put the teachers straight.

healthy alternatives we put in lunchboxes include- houmous and carrot and cucumber sticks

rice cakes of various flavour

fruit salad

Nuts and dried fruits, crackers and crispbreads, yogurts, energy balls/bars, anything with low sugar is v important to us!

Power balls made with coconut, sesame seeds, oats and lots of cocoa. Yum!

Berries are bloody expensive a treat and quite sweet, plain popcorn is allowed too or sometimes we flavour it with cinnamon and that is allowed

We don't do pack lunches, but the DCs school asks parents to send in a healthy snack for the children to eat mid-morning (Nuts are bannned as some pupils have severe nut allergies).

We usually send in fruit - berries or raisins are particularly popular with my DC - or crackers. It's never occurred to me to send in Soreen bars - they look far too close to being a cake bar to me. Although I admit I haven't looked closely at the nutritional information on them.

We don't have the lunchbox police at our school and thankfully not. The healthiest my DDs get is homemade biscuits made with whole grain flour and no icing. I gave DD2 chopped apple but the teacher seemed to get annoyed as it took her too long to eat as they are not allowed to eat in the playground in case they choke, so it has to be something that is very quick to eat.

My toddlers' (and my!) absolutely favourite has to be home popped popcorn! Quick, easy and cheap. Perfect to take with you anywhere and it lasts a while. Toddler thinks it is such a treat.

We have relaxed lunchbox police at dcs school so I can usually send a little cake or biscuit in.
Apart from that, we have;
Fruit and veg muffins
Carrot, cucumber or cherry tomatoes
Olives and cubes of cheese
Fruit. Sometimes whole, sometimes a chopped up fruit salad.

Fruit, either whole or a fruit salad.
Plain pop corn.
Cheese and crackers.
Hummus with carrot and cucumber sticks.

I'd say a banana pancake (just eggs and banana), dried fruit, a sandwich with a savoury topping, or a wrap.

Bacon and egg muffins - like mini quiches but without the pastry and stuffed full of vegetables.

Crudités with cream cheese or humous
Cheese and courgette scones
Fritata
Roasted chickpeas with paprika (need to prep child to explain that they are not nuts!)