I’m a nutritionist: Here’s what I pack in my kids’ school lunches

I wake up at 6:30 a.m. every morning, bleary eyed, and shuffle to the kitchen to pour some tea and promptly start packing my kids’ lunches. It could be a chore—and it certainly can get repetitive—but when I’m in my right mind about it, it’s one of my favorite parts of my day. Sending my two boys off to school with brimming lunchboxes brings me sheer joy, but I promise, not in a cloying way. I try not to get too precious about packing lunch: It’s enough for me to know that they’ll have a midday meal filled with foods they’ll (mostly) eat—and to trust they’ll have full bellies to power through the rest of their day. 

I’ve come to recognize that packing their lunch gives me a semblance of control when they’re out of the house for 7 hours. 

Maybe it’s the Italian mother in me, but my biggest fear is they’ll be left hungry, so I focus on filling their lunches with things they’ll actually eat, rather than only what I hope they’ll eat—as both a nutritionist and their mom. All I’m aiming for? To strike the just-right balance between foods they love (mostly snacks) and foods I’d like them to love (lentils), all while minimizing food waste. (Someday, I pray, they’ll actually eat the bread crust or the cucumber peel.) 

And no, my sandwiches aren’t mini works of art. My strawberries aren’t always evenly quartered. I used to daydream about being the parent who slips in a handwritten love note or stamps out petite carrot flowers and crafts heart-shaped sunbutter sandwiches, and if that’s you, I’m in awe. But I’m not that mom. 

But I do try to bypass lunch boredom in other ways. My tried-and-true plan for packing lunches revolves around a variety of go-to food options from different categories, and I try to rotate among them each week (spy my list below!). Not only to ensure that my kids—or me, as the assembler—won’t fall prey to monotony, but because food variety is one of my nutrition tentpoles. Exposing kids from a young age to an array of colorful foods can help foster an appreciation of diverse flavors and nutritional choices. 

Granted, you certainly won’t find garam-masala roasted chickpeas and lemony arugula in my kids’ lunch, at least not yet. But alongside the Pirate Booty, I’ll tuck in some dried apricots. Next to the chocolate-covered granola bar, some lentil-potato curls. My youngest son’s beloved ham and mayo sandwich is on progressively seedier bread. My oldest now always wants tuna with diced celery and dried cranberries, but we worked our way there with some baby steps. (And, of course, sometimes they’ll gobble everything; at other times they’ll just gravitate to their favorites. But that’s their prerogative!) I usually include something sweet—a small piece of candy or a cookie or something chocolate-covered—because there are no “bad” foods. It’s the mix of the familiar and less-familiar that’s most important to me; while at the same time empowering them with choice, too.

Below, I’ve created a kids’ school lunch ideas cheat sheet with 63 different ideas of foods to include. If you, too, are waking up extra early to pack a lunch for your progeny, I hope this can take some of the guesswork out of what goes into those empty lunchboxes each morning. 

60 kids’ school lunch ideas: From a nutritionist mom

The magic formula: Pick 1 from each of the following categories:

1 protein + 1-2 fruits + 1 veggie + 1 dairy/plant-based alternative + 1 crunchy snack + 1 small sweet.

Protein

• Ham and mayo on wheat bread
• Turkey roll-ups on tortilla 
• Salami slices  
• Tuna salad (on bread or with crackers to dip)  
• Egg salad  
• Pasta salad with white beans
• Sunbutter and jelly sandwich 
• Roasted chicken shreds 
• Chicken nuggets and dipping sauce
• Hard-boiled eggs  
• Jerky  
• Chia pudding made with coconut milk 
• Baked tofu with teriyaki sauce 
• Dumplings  
• Fried rice  
• Edamame  
• Roasted chickpeas with cinnamon and salt
• Hummus and dippers, like pita chips or carrot sticks

Fruit

• Berries  
• Apples (a squeeze of lemon juice helps them stay fresh)
• Bananas  
• Oranges  
• Grapes (halved)
• Watermelon  
• Pineapple  
• Pear  
• Mango (fresh or dried)
• Kiwi  
• Dried apricots  
• Dried cranberries  
• Dried cherries
• Raisins  
• Dates (pits removed)

Veggies

I’ll try to slice up raw veggies in bulk on the weekend for easy lunchbox-filling.

• Cucumbers  
• Celery  
• Carrots  
• Bell peppers  
• Snow peas  
• Cherry tomatoes (halved)
• Avocado with everything bagel seasoning 

Dairy or plant-based dairy alternatives

Sometimes I replace a protein main with a larger portion of dairy, like a bigger container of yogurt and blueberries rather than a sandwich. Note that you can swap in dairy-free yogurt or cream cheese or cheese for the dairy-based options below.

• Yogurt with frozen blueberries  
• Bagel with cream cheese  
• Cheese sticks, slices, or cubes  
• Moon Cheese  
• Babybels  

Crunchies

I’m 100% sure they eat this part first.

• Crackers  
• Pretzel sticks or thins  
• Dry cereal  
• Tortilla, corn or potato chips  
• Goldfish  
• Nori seaweed snacks  
• Pirate Booty  
• Animal crackers  
• Veggie straws  

Sweets

Because no foods are bad foods.

• Dark chocolate-covered raisins  
• Granola bars  
• Yogurt- or chocolate-covered pretzels  
• Fruit leather  
• Fruit gummies 
• A small amount of candy 
• Mini cookies  

Shop my favorite lunchbox

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This stainless steel beauty has multiple compartments for those kiddos who love variety—and which makes it especially easy to pack if following the formula listed above. It also comes with two leak-proof containers for any liquid or wet food (ketchup! yogurt!) you may want to include. The best part is that the design is fully customizable with magnets you put right on the box. Makes it so easy to swap when your kid is done with dinosaurs and wants to move onto emojis. 😝 And while they can totally tote it on its own, there are insulated bags to slip it in as well.

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A version of this story was originally published on Aug. 18, 2023. It has been updated.