We recently received a question from Michelle, a mother of two young children, ages 1 and 4, who asked us for some quick and easy lunch ideas. Since her children are not in school yet, we whipped up five weekdays' worth of hot and cold lunch ideas to be enjoyed at home.
Day 1: Cowboy Breakfast Wraps – You can find this recipe on page 150 of our cookbook, The Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers. When Liz’s son, Simon, was in kindergarten and was asked to write down his favorite food in the world, he proclaimed Cowboy Breakfast Wraps as his number-one fave. Basically, it’s a flour tortilla filled with a mixture of scrambled eggs, sautéed spinach and lowfat shredded cheese. The salsa is optional.
Day 2: Cheesy Broccoli English Muffin Pizzas – This is our new & improved twist on English 
muffin pizzas. We take whole wheat English muffins and top them with pasta sauce, shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, steamed broccoli florets (cut them up into tiny pieces so the kids say, “oooh”) and grated Parmesan cheese. Toast in the oven or toaster oven until the cheese melts.
Day 3: Salmon Salad in Pita – We featured this recipe in Nick Jr. Family Magazine and it was a big hit. Made with canned salmon, mayo, and diced apple, it’s a fun and flavorful twist on the usual tuna salad sandwich (though we do have a great recipe for Scoop-It-Up Tuna Salad on our website as well!
Day 4: Mixed Up Mac & Cheese – For this fast weekday dish, take a box of all-natural, whole wheat mac & cheese and prepare with lowfat milk and 2 tablespoons canola oil (versus the 4 tablespoons butter often called for). From there, you can serve as is or mix in a host of kid-friendly ingredients such as tiny steamed broccoli florets and leftover chicken, frozen thawed peas and flaked canned tuna (or boneless, skinless salmon), or black beans, frozen thawed corn kernels, and salsa.
Day 5: Bean & Cheese Wraps – Flour tortillas are versatile to say the least. Janice’s go-to lunch for 8-year old Leah is made by spreading refried beans over a whole wheat flour tortilla and then topping with shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese, frozen/thawed corn kernels, and salsa. Heat in the microwave, roll up, serve with sour cream and guacamole, and you’re good to go. Another filling idea we recently tried is cooked chicken cut into strips, honey BBQ sauce, shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese, and finely diced red bell pepper. Fold in half, cook in a skillet with canola oil, and serve with a salad or fresh fruit on the side.
If you have other yummy lunch ideas you’d like to share, post them here!
Maureen M., a supermom of four boys from Massachusetts sent us an email with these adorable photos. As you can see, her kids were thrilled when she let them create their own fruit and chicken kebabs for lunch. The photos inspired us to feature our Fruit & Chicken Kebab recipe in this week's Cooking with the Moms radio podcast.
Tune in and listen as we share recipes and ideas for lunch box makeovers.
