Back to School Lunches Insights from Lunches + Littles

Well, it is that time of the year when kids go back to school and parents begin to think about preparing lunch for their kids or let them buy lunch at school.  Most of us did not like what was offered at school and preferred to take a ‘brown bag’ from home.  So, how do you do that in 2019?

Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® thinks on of the best insights out there today is “Lunches + Littles”.  One mom saw a need for a resource focused on quick, colorful recipes. Her mantra? Making meals fun doesn’t have to be hard! With three little ones (4, 5 and 6), it can’t be! Follow https://www.instagram.com/lunchesandlittles/ for more.

Today, lunches for schools can be time saving using mix & match homemade and grocerant niche fresh food options from your local food retailers.  Now @lunchesandlittles, they share daily lunch box inspiration and tips, as well as get a lot of great ideas from their community of followers.

They include retail options that make it easier for you by sharing some of  go-to lunches, favorite products from Whole Foods Market and three really simple tips that will ensure you are more prepped and less stressed this new school year. So, let’s take a look:

1. Keep it simple.

When it comes to packing lunches, keeping things simple is key. When we shop for lunch box add-ins, we pick up a whole lot from the produce section first. Think easy-to-eat fruits and veggies that can be cut into slices, cubes and sticks, as well as quick, grab-and-go options like From the Ground Up Cheddar Cauliflower Stars Crackers, 365 Everyday Value Unsweetened Apple Sauce Cups and Organic Valley Cheese Sticks.

2. Keep it colorful and fun.

We all eat with our eyes first — especially kids. So colorful, fun food and the overall presentation can be really important. We like to keep things fun by adding stars, hearts, flower shapes, etc., to our lunch boxes. Often, just a few little cuts with a sandwich cutter or mini cutters for smaller items (and the addition of a few fun food picks) can transform a meal into something pretty grand. A few extra minutes, generous pops of color and a little creativity can make food so much more exciting for kids.

3. Keep it familiar.

School lunchtime is probably not the time to start introducing new foods to your little one(s). Instead, we would suggest opting for foods that are familiar and save new foods for dinnertime or the weekends. But just remember to keep it familiar by packing lunch boxes full of foods your kids already know. You don’t want a little one away from home questioning what something is or how to eat it instead of doing the actual eating.

So now that we have gone through some of our easy tips, let’s take a look at three of our go-to lunches and show you how to make them happen:

Traditional Sandwich Lunch

Our school is not nut-free, so peanut butter works fine for us, and Justin’s Nut Butters are a great choice — we love the Honey Peanut Butter and the Vanilla Almond Butter. Take your nut butter, some jelly and a few slices of whole wheat or whole grain bread, and you have a traditional sandwich made a bit more wholesome. And, if your school is nut-free, try an alternative like Sunbutter, which is also available at Whole Foods Market.

Great lunch box additions include: 365 Everyday Value Organic Mini Cheddar Cheese Sandwich Crackers, 365 Everyday Value Drink Boxes and fresh in-season produce, like baby carrots, celery sticks, blueberries, mini cucumbers and grape tomatoes.

Mini Meatballs and More

If your little ones don’t particularly love sandwiches, or if you find yourself in a sandwich rut after a couple weeks, here’s an alternative: Homemade Mini Meatballs are easy to batch cook and make ahead, so you can quickly pack them up in the morning for school. We use organic, grass-fed beef or organic ground turkey from Whole Foods Market.

More wholesome lunch box add-ins include: Pirate’s Booty Snack Packs, Stonyfield Kids Snack Packs, 365 Everyday Value Organic Fruit Strips, 365 Everyday Value String Cheese, banana chips and more fresh produce including baby carrots and broccoli with Tessemae’s Organic Avocado Ranch Dressing for dipping (because kids love dips!).

Breakfast for Lunch

Our kids would probably eat breakfast foods every meal of the day if we let them, so occasionally surprising them with a taste of breakfast in their lunch box is a fun change of pace.

Now, if you follow us over on our feed @lunchesandlittles, you know we already do a lot of freezer-friendly waffles, and our Mini Broccoli and Cheese Toaster Waffles are one of our most popular recipes. These savory waffles are a delicious option that pack in broccoli and cheese. (To make them without dairy, simply use a dairy-free cheese alternative like Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds).

Some great options to add in to your breakfast box include: From The Ground Up Cheddar Caluiflower Stars, Zespri SunGold Kiwifruit, striped bell pepper sticks, 365 Everyday Value Single-Serve Almondmilks, 365 Everyday Value Organic Unsweetened Apple Sauce Cups, and more fresh produce like strawberries and mini cucumbers.

Are you looking for a new partnership to drive sales? Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your continued success.