Super Mom Hacks

Back-To-School Lunch Hacks For Busy Parents

If your kids aren’t back to school yet, you know the clock is ticking. And if you’re a family that packs lunch from home, you know that the daily grind of filling those lunch boxes (and snack bags!) is real.

Wouldn’t you love some hacks to simplify the process?

These school lunch hacks have made things a little easier for us and other parents. If they aren’t in your toolkit yet, give them a try and see if a few of them help.

Want to make the daily grind of filling those lunch boxes a little easier? Add these school lunch hacks to your toolkit, and streamline your mornings.

My Fave Back-To-School Lunch Hacks

1) Cook once, eat twice

Or if you prefer, Clean Up/Pack Up.

If you already plan your evening meal around healthy home-cooked food that your kids love, then this is a no-brainer. Cook enough so you’ll have leftovers, and pack up some for lunches as you clear the dinner dishes.

Taco Night means packing up next day’s Taco Salads while we clear the dishes

This works best if you have


For example: Several nights ago we had pork chops (the only dinner meat my girls like hot or cold), homemade macaroni & cheese, and steamed carrots for supper; that was their lunch the next day. Last night we had baked fish and veggies, which is what we packed for today’s lunch as we were clearing the dinner table.

2) Get some easy-care thermoses

For all-in-one meals that taste best hot, microwaving leftovers in the morning and popping the hot foods into a thermos may work better. Think pasta-veggie-protein combos, stir-fries, stews, soups, casseroles, and things you make in your slow cooker.

Packing up leftover fried rice or glass noodles into school lunches is another no-brainer for us.

 

 

But unless you’re used to hand-washing all your dishes, get thermoses that are dishwasher-safe. I finally found ✅these easy-care, dishwasher-safe thermoses last spring, and Kimmie especially loves hot lunches-from-home in them.


3) Keep ready-to-go staples on hand for easy packing

On days when leftover components or warmed leftover all-in-one meals aren’t an option, I use my keep-on-hand staples plus other leftovers we have in our refrigerator and freezer. Think ready-to-go or minimal-prep foods that are lunchbox-friendly.

My previous post listed some of our favorite go-to options by food category (fruits and veggies, protein, grains, and calcium sources). But packing a bunch of individual ingredients isn’t the only option.

Also think in terms of food you can keep on hand, might have leftover, or can prep over the weekend that can cover multiple nutritional groups at once. For example,

4. Reinvent your sandwiches

If your kids like them (mine, not so much), sandwiches are also a great way to cover multiple food groups. Just be sure to include veggies as well as protein and calcium. For example:

Essie’s peanut-butter-carrot-raisin-and-sunflower-seed rollup

5) Some assembly required

On the other hand, maybe your kids deconstruct their sandwiches anyway (as do mine). Or maybe the thought of soggy sandwiches is what makes them balk at eating this school-lunch staple.

If so – and if they’ll have enough time to do this at school – maybe DIY sandwiches at school would make them happier. I first saw this on a local deli’s lunch menu and thought it was a ridiculous idea. But then I saw my kids go nuts over making their own PB&Js with raisins, mini marshmallows, etc.

So save up those condiment containers and pouches from your next fast-food or takeout trip, and tuck them into your kid’s lunchbox along with the other raw ingredients. Pita pockets and wraps are a perfect bread choice for DIY sandwich days. You could even substitute crackers for the bread.

6) Mix up the clock

Do your kids get excited when you have breakfast for supper? What about pizza for breakfast? This is one of my favorite school lunch hacks for when your kids are getting tired of your standard fare.

You may have already noticed that several of the covers-multiple-bases ideas I listed above – crescent rolls, parfaits, and chilaquiles/nachos – I first published as breakfast recipes. Mixing in breakfast menus at lunchtime can be a fun surprise that will help keep things interesting.

My girls also love French Toast triangles with a cheese stick for snack.

Need some sample menu ideas to wrap your brain around this concept? Try one of these:

7) Put the kids in charge

Once you’ve got some of the staples I mentioned in my last post on hand, you can (and should) give your kids the opportunity to practice packing their own lunches at home. This is a great chance to do some basic education/review on eating healthy, balanced meals. It also cuts down on grumbling and complaints from children who dislike what you packed for them.

If you’ve got the space, you might even set up a kids’ lunch assembly station:

What about you? What are your favorite school lunch hacks to make those home-packed meals not only easy and healthy, but also fun and tasty for your kids? Let us know in the comments!

 

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