Making packed lunches and preparing breakfasts for kids on school days can feel like a relentless task. It’s easy to feel stuck in a rut preparing the same old things again and again, and always rushed getting packed lunches and breakfasts ready on school mornings. We spoke with an expert to get ideas for you to create colourful, healthy, quick packed lunches and breakfasts your kids will eat!
Rachel Boyett is a London mum of three, lifetime vegetarian, low-waste advocate and dietician in training. She’s well known by parents for her cookbook Little Veggie Eats, and her Instagram account by the same name.
View this post on Instagram
Rachel set up Little Veggie Eats on Instagram in 2015 as a way of documenting her son’s weaning journey and found that the weaning process was actually really fun and a brilliant opportunity to get creative.
Here she shares some of her top tips for making breakfasts and packed lunches, as well as some of her favourite recipes for inspiration…
School Day Breakfasts
I always try to have bags of frozen fruit (things like blueberries, or mango chunks), peanut butter and natural yoghurt (or plant-based alternative) on hand for breakfast – between them they can give a lot of variety for minimal effort. Plus, all last really well, so are low waste.
For starters these ingredients can add some extra nutrition to cereal. See this cereal bowl for an idea:
View this post on Instagram
They can also be used to make overnight oats the night before, or a simple and quick smoothie in the morning, such as this one:
View this post on Instagram
Frozen berries are excellent for cooling down hot porridge quickly on rushed mornings.
There are recipes for overnight oats and some smoothies all in my book too!
Packed Lunches
A good bento style lunchbox is always worth the investment and makes packed lunches easier. I like Yumboxes. The little compartments can be filled with easy food like some chopped fruit and vegetables, crackers and cheese or chunks of tofu or boiled egg. The decent seal means you can also include things like yoghurt or hummus (although make sure you check your school policy for nuts and seeds. You might need to make tahini-free hummus).
View this post on Instagram
I use veggies I know mine reliably eat- so lots of carrot and cucumber but also things like frozen peas and sweetcorn, which defrost by lunch. I’ve found having a small amount of a few things helps them eat more and keeps a little excitement, but you are filling the compartments with very simple things so it’s not hard to pack!
View this post on Instagram
I also love filling reusable pouches by Nom Nom Kids with yoghurt to put in lunchboxes instead of single-use plastic pots. It’s cheaper and low waste. When it’s warmer out I regularly use their ice lolly pouches to make after school treats.
RELATED CONTENT > How to make school mornings less stressful and more organised
In larger compartments I’ll make a sandwich or a wrap. Filling-wise I stick to things like cream cheese and cucumber or egg mayonnaise, but if your child doesn’t like sandwiches then see this post for LUNCHBOX IDEAS THAT AREN’T SANDWICHES.
I’ve got various recipes in my book and on my Instagram for things like muffins, or scones which work really well in a lunchbox and use up the bits of fruit and veg in your fridge that might otherwise go to waste.
View this post on Instagram
Fruit rejected by the kids, left languishing on plates or looking bruised and neglected can be chopped up and baked into delicious fruit mini loaves kids love. Got leftover porridge? Don’t toss it, make these tasty porridge mini loaves. Leafy greens and onions will be gobbled up by kids once chopped and baked into these savoury mini loaves. And any leftover salad leaves can be put to excellent use in my salad bag scones.
Thanks, Rachel, for all those great ideas.
Follow Rachel on Instagram and check out her website where you’ll find info on her book.
Feature photo by Tania Dolvers
