Need some new ideas for the school lunchbox? There’s nothing worse than a lunchbox returned at the end of the day with nothing eaten. It’s time to mix things up. We have put together a handy list of 50 quick & easy lunchbox ideas that you can keep on hand all year long to give you that much-needed inspiration. Enjoy!
Time to get packing! Browse through our handy list of 50 quick & easy lunchbox ideas – including Recess and Lunch – to give you the inspiration you need this year. We have even linked some handy recipes to help you out.
Recess
Banana Bites: Just 4 ingredients and 5 mins to prep!
- Fruit: just stock up on those in season.
- Vegetables: carrot, capsicum, cucumber, snap peas, frozen peas (that will thaw during the day).
- Edamame: you can even get frozen packs from Woolworths and Coles.
- Hummus (or any dip!) with veggies.
- Ants on a log: celery with goat’s cheese and sultanas.
- Cheese sticks, blocks or slices served with crackers.
- Bocconcini and tomato skewers (or just in a container).
- Egg: boil and pop in lunchbox.
- Stewed apple with yoghurt.
- Yoghurt. Freeze them in the summer and pop in a spoon!
- Bliss balls: there are so many recipes out there, but here are some favourites: banana bites, lemon & coconut, raspberry coconut,
- Homemade oat bars: blueberry oat bars, muesli bars, strawberry oatmeal, apricot and oat muesli
- Rice cakes: these can be top with any spread you like! Or serve plain.
- Banana pancakes.
- Corn chips, veggie chips, baked apple chips, sweet potato crisps.
- Muffins: ABCD, strawberry, yoghurt and banana, carrot cake, basic muffin, peach, ricotta and vanilla bean,
- Cookies: strawberry coconut cookie, chocky rock cookies, oat choc cookies
- Roasted chickpeas
Lunch
Sweet potato & bacon slice
- Sandwiches: can’t go wrong with a good, old-fashioned sandwich. Plenty of topics to choose from to mix it up.
- Meatballs: keep them in a thermos container to keep them warm.
- Soup: perfect option for winter that can also be kept in a thermos to stay warm.
- Cheesy pumpkin puffs.
- Wraps: again, so many fillings to choose from and you can mix it up a bit.
- Fritters: corn fritters, chicken and broccoli fritters, pesto vegetable fritters, vegetable fritters, zucchini fritters
- Muffins: there are plenty of savoury muffins out here to choose from, sweet potato, spinach & feta, broccoli and goat’s cheese muffins, butternut pumpkin,
- Mac ‘n cheese muffins.
- Spinach, feta and ricotta parcels.
- Pita pockets with hummus, tomato, olives, falafels.
- Mini quiches: another great one you can mix up with mini quiches, pea and bacon, pizza quiches, quiche lorraine.
- Sushi: you can opt for the homemade variety, or simply buy some the day before!
- Slices: sweet potato and bacon slice, zucchini and pasta slice, spinach, feta and tomato, bacon, zucchini and corn.
- Rice paper rolls: a great way to use up your leftovers. Fill with chicken, noodles, veggies and more.
- Patties: meat patties, salmon and sweet potato patties, tuna patties, beef and potato.
- Pizza bagels
- Spanish omelette
- Risotto balls: tomato risotto balls, mushroom risotto balls, mozzarella risotto balls, pumpkin risotto balls.
- Deli meats: ham, chicken, salami, cabanossi
- Ham & cheese pockets.
- Sausage rolls: chicken and vegetable, sausage rolls, vegetarian sausage rolls,
- Lasagne roll ups
- Quesadillas
- DIY tacos
- Bites: broccoli cheese bites, cheddar cheese bites, couscous bites.
- Savoury pancakes with smoked salmon.
- Scrolls: cheese and vegemite scrolls, ham and cheese scrolls, spinach and feta scrolls.
- Salad: greek salad, noodle salad, pasta salad.
- Shredded BBQ chicken roll.
- Leftovers: take a look at what you cooked the night before and see if you can send it to school.
- Fried rice.
- Skewers: tomato and sausage, sandwich skewers, salami and cheese skewers.
Sandwich Skewers are a fun twist on the classic!
What about allergies at school?
If your child has any allergies, it is vital that you inform the school and advise them of medical treatment. For students diagnosed at risk of anaphylaxis, the individual health care plan must include strategies to minimise the risk of exposure to known allergens.
It is best to check with your school to find out if any foods are banned. A blanket ban on peanuts, tree nuts and nut products within the school is not required but may be agreed to by a school and its community.
Latest information from NSW Education:
