Healthy Eating

Optimise your child's lunchbox

As a Food Optimiser you’re following a wonderfully nutritious, generous and healthy diet which sets a fantastic example to your family.

We’ve got tons of suggestions for optimising your child’s lunchbox with nourishing nibbles and crafty ways to disguise the greens! There are also some inspired ideas for your own lunchbox! Children need a certain amount of protein, carbohydrates and fats from a healthy source (e.g. full-fat milk and cheese). Pile the ingredients into your children’s lunchbox; ‘Syns’ and ‘Healthy Extra’ references are for your eyes only! The experience of food – talking about it, preparing it and eating it should be an enjoyable one and children don’t need to think about curbing their food experimentation.

sandwich suggestions

Merely changing the bread type can make a sandwich more interesting and fibre-filled. Mini wholemeal pitta bread is excellent for stuffing with Free fillings and they’re only 4 Syns each! Children are also quite fond of tortilla wraps 4½ Syns for 28g) as they make perfect little parcels for fillings. These sandwich fillers are fab for packing into pitta or topping a wholemeal roll!

• Tuna crunch – mix 1 tablespoon very low fat mayonnaise (2½ Syns) with tuna in brine (113g counts as a Healthy Extra ‘b’ choice on Green). Add very finely chopped crunchy vegetables such as cucumber, peppers and spring onions. Replacing the mayo with very low fat fromage frais makes it a completely Free filling on Original!
• Cheesy wonder – mix together grated cheddar (28g is a Healthy Extra ‘a’ choice), carrot and a little red onion with very low fat fromage frais for a tangy cheesy-coleslaw style filling.
• Spicy chicken – flavoured chicken fillets such as tikka or tomato are available in most supermarkets and are Free on Original. Alternatively, to make your own, Schwartz Shotz seasonings such as Cajun or Smoky BBQ are fabulously Free and liven up ordinary chicken pieces. Another chicken option is to layer grilled chicken, tomato, lettuce and bacon for a classic club sandwich.
• Pink cheese – layer thick cheese spread, (5 Laughing Cow Light triangles are a Healthy Extra ‘a’ choice), with chopped beetroot or red cabbage… for a colourful addition to a pack-up!

load up their lunchbox

There are lots of fab and filling sandwich accompaniments without loading your child’s lunchbox with high sugar and high salt snacks:

• Dips – children love the novelty factor of dips and they’re also a great way of getting vegetables into their lunch. Very low fat fromage frais mixed with chives or garlic, or houmous (57g is a Healthy Extra ‘b’ on Green) make yummy dips for pepper strips, carrot batons or breadsticks (1 Syn each).
• Boiled egg or two
• Rolled up slices of ham
• Chicken drumsticks
• Cherry tomatoes
• ‘Novelty factor’ foods such as stringy cheeses and stackable crackers are extremely popular with children. Unfortunately these can be very high in salt. A healthier choice is to buy a selection of packet cheese from the Pick & Mix cheese section in the supermarket. Most portions in these packets are between 25-30g and can be enjoyed as a Healthy Extra. Even easier – simply slice a portion of cheese from your whole block for them to nibble on.

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