Do you know one of the easiest ways to pack a lunchbox is to use foods you make for breakfast or dinner? Yep, it’s as simple as that. No need to buy foods which supermarkets market as lunchbox fillers, just use your breakfast or dinner options for that. Save time, money and the environment by making your own easy real food lunchbox fillers. Here’s some ideas.
Breakfast Lunchbox Fillers
Pikelets
It’s simple to make big batches of pikelets. Have some for breakfast, then pop some either in the fridge or freezer to use as lunchbox fillers. Send them to school with a bit of butter and some jam, pop some mashed banana in between 2 pikelets, spread some cream cheese and honey on them etc. There’s a multitude of fillings / toppings which will make these babies a yummy lunchbox filler. Best of all, when you make them yourself, they are additive and preservative free. Here’s my simple pikelet recipe.
Chia Puddings
These puddings are full of protein and delicious. Some children do not like the texture of chia seeds when left whole, so if that’s your child, just blitz the pudding before letting them sit in the fridge overnight. Put some of the pudding mix in jar for breakfast, and pour some into a reusable pouch for the lunchbox.
Try this recipe:
- 1/3 cup chia seeds
- 1.5 cups coconut cream
- 2 tblspns rice malt syrup or honey
- handful of berries of your choice (we used blackberries recently – delish)
- toasted coconut flakes to garnish
Good Ole Boiled Eggs
Egg and soldiers are a great nourishing breakfast for kids to have before school, and of course, the better the bread you use, the more nourishing it will be too. When you’re boiling the eggs for breakfast, pop an extra few in and keep them boiling until they are hard. Then you can peel the hard boiled eggs, and store them in a container in the fridge, then pop one in the lunchbox on a different day.
Bircher Muesli Bar
This is another filling breakfast, and I like to turn it into a bar or slice. It’s super yummy warm for breakfast with some yoghurt on the side, but it’s also nice in the lunchbox too. Here’s my recipe.
Smoothies
When you think smoothies, don’t just think about fruit, yoghurt and milk, think about how you can make it really nourishing. For breakfast, I like to add some oats or LSA (note if you use LSA, you can’t send it to school if they have a no nut policy). Here’s a good post with some ideas of breakfast smoothies. Remember when you’re making a batch for breakfast, double it, and then store it in reusable pouches, pop them in the freezer and then BAM, you have some lunchbox fillers.
Dinner Lunchbox Fillers
Fill your child’s lunchbox with these nourishing fillers as their main lunch, and watch the difference in their behaviour and concentration simply by having a lunch that sustains them more.
Crumbed Chicken Fingers
Crumb some extra chicken and make these babies as lunchbox fillers. Here’s my recipe.
Chicken Drummers
These drummers are a yummy addition to a pick plate of fresh vegetables as a main meal, but they are also brilliant finger food for the lunchbox. Try this recipe.
Pizzas
Make home made pizza and make extras for tomorrow’s lunchbox. Use this simple multi purpose dough for your pizza base.
Meat balls or hamburger patties
Spaghetti with meat balls – yummo. Make some extra meatballs for lunch or before cooking, add a couple of the meatballs together and turn them into hamburger patties for the lunchbox. Here’s my meatball recipe.
Sweet Chickballs
These sweet chickballs are protein packed morsels, and are another great pick plate option for your dinner table. They are also fantastic as a finger food in the lunchbox.
Actions for you
- Write down your families 4 favourite breakfasts and dinners
- Have a think about how you can use or turn these into your own lunchbox fillers
- Now create yourself a master lists of meals (breakfast and dinners) which can also be used for the lunchbox
- Add any of the ideas and recipes from above to your list
- You now have an awesome list of easy real food lunchbox fillers