Back To School – 25 Easy School Lunches

With all the back to school shopping for supplies and clothing, what to send in their lunchbox might not cross your mind until the night before.  If your kids are anything like mine, they don’t like 99% of the lunches their school offers.  You will also likely find that you can make lunches at home to send with your child much cheaper, and definitely healthier, than if they were buying.

Some schools provide microwave ovens available to the children to heat lunches.  Other schools do not.  Even if your school does not provide a microwave, there are many options other than sandwiches to send with your child.

15 options for Cold Lunches:

• Peanut butter & jelly sandwich
• Peanut butter & honey sandwich
• Turkey and cream cheese on a rolled tortilla
• Ham & cheese bagel sandwich
• BLT wrap
• Chicken salad on a croissant
• Chicken ceasar salad in a pita pocket
• 7-Layer Dip with tortilla chips
• Pasta salad
• Cobb salad with blue cheese or ranch dressing
• Garden salad with grilled chicken strips and ranch dressing
• Individual box of cereal with milk and fruit
• Homemade Lunchables.  We like hard salami, gouda cheese, and ritz
• Yogurt, granola, and fruit parfaits

If your children’s school does provide a microwave for the students to use, count yourself lucky!  If not, you can always use a thermos.

10  options for Hot Lunches

• Soup, salad, and roll
• Macaroni & cheese
• Chili, over an individual bag of Fritos, sprinkled with shredded cheese
• Baked beans and cornbread
• French toast sticks with maple syrup for dipping
• Frozen waffles with fruit preserves, peanut butter, or syrup for the top
• Homemade Bagel Bites
• Quesadillas
• Ravioli with marinara sauce and shredded mozzarella
• Taquitos

Don’t forget, you can always send leftovers from last night’s dinner if there is a microwave to use.  Using leftovers makes preparing lunch a breeze and you will save money too!

If you have another other lunch ideas, please share in the comments below.