Back to School: Sustainable Containers & Vegetarian Meals For Toddlers
I am embarrassed to admit that one of my biggest stresses when we decided to put my son in daycare surrounded his mealtime. It felt so strange to send him off with a meal that I wouldn’t be participating in. If you are like me, this blog is intended to build your confidence when sending your child off with a healthy and practical meal. It should also inspire you with creative meal plans and sustainable packaging. I hope you find it valuable!
None of the links below are affiliate links. Everything I suggest comes from my personal experience. I do not make any income off purchases through the links I provide.
I grew up in a lot of old homes. Each had their own personality and quirk. If I wanted to get the shower faucet to stop leaking, for instance, I had to turn it completely off and then turn it ever so slightly to the right and voilà! It was always about finding the sweet spot. Anytime we had a guest over they wouldn’t know this so the water would leak until we either shared the trick or did it ourselves. Our children have similar quirks that only a parent knows until someone else cares for them. It is a learning curve. We are their primary caretakers and therefore understand what makes them tick more than anyone else. We know what foods they like and exactly how they like them.
This is precisely why I was really worried about my sons mealtime at school. My son, Owen, loves food. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great quality! I love that my son has an appetite. But when I put him in daycare at 18 months he wasn’t a great eater, in the true sense of the word. He has a tendency to eat extremely quick and fill his mouth with far more than he can chew. This quirk of his often results in choking, spitting up, and sometimes vomiting (if he ran around the room soon after eating). When we are home I can encourage small bites remind him to slow down. You can see why I was a bit concerned with his mealtimes at daycare.
At school I knew the teachers would be dividing their focus on all the students and their other duties. To help both the teachers and my son have a successful lunch or snack, I knew that I needed to be specific with the foods I offered him. I hoped that with time Owen would develop stronger and more independent eating skills that would get us past this phase of fast eating. Spoiler alert: with his teachers guidance and eating amongst other students, he has gotten so much better.
Aside from a real fear of choking, we also have a specific diet we serve him. I knew that this was going to be a lesson for me as a parent to let go of the need to control. My son doesn’t have allergies, but we eat vegetarian and avoid refined sugars, saturated oils, natural flavors, etc. I knew that the meals had to be healthy, but playful and fun. I didn’t want him eyeing his friends deli meat sandwich when he has a boring PB&J. I had to get creative.
Another obstacle was that every meal I made for my son at home tended to be served hot. Quesadillas, grilled cheese, pasta, roasted veggies, pizza, oatmeal or reheated leftovers. I knew that I would need separate containers to keep some items warm and others cold. This issue really stumped me! Thankfully, I have a solution for that.
So here I am today, five months into daycare and I can honestly say I feel ZERO stress around packing lunch and snacks. I have found great foods to keep on rotation, along with the best containers to keep it all organized. I spill all the details below so I can help parents and guardians who live a similar lifestyle and want some direction. Enjoy!
FUNCTION FIRST
Sustainable Lunch Box
Before we get into meal plans, let’s talk containers. We avoid plastic whenever possible. Besides the toxins that leak into the food and the environmental damage, you also risk food stains and smells.
The few brands that stood out to me:
Websites to shop sustainable lunch items:
LUNCH VS SNACK BOXES
Lunch Time
Lunch should always be in a separate container from snacks. Lunch time is messy and whatever is served is going to end up a mixed pile of mush by the end of the meal. This doesn’t make for a desirable snack later on. I purchased a PlanetBox set that included the rover lunchbox, magnets, ice pack, rover square dipper and carry bag. (I also purchased the water bottle, but I don’t recommend). I love my planetbox! It can be a pain to clean, but I plan to run my dishwasher every night he comes home from daycare. I put all his food containers in so they can be sanitized. PlanetBox offers plenty of accessories to separate foods for picky eaters or to make your organization dreams come true. The downside with my planetbox is that if one item needs to be kept cold, the whole meal will end up cold. There really is no way to have both hot and cold meals kept in the same container. But there is an easy solution.
Keep it Warm
For warm meals I purchased this Hydroflask Termal. They offer many options, but I went with the 12 oz wide mouth, which is technically for adults. They do offer kid containers, but I felt that my son would do better with a wider mouth and shorter depth. The best part is this can be used to keep food warm or cold. We use it at the beach and on vacations so it really is worth the money.
Snack Time
Snacks are a different ballgame. I started with a bunch of little jars that created a logistical nightmare. How was I supposed to pack all of these jars in a bag without looking ridiculous? Not to mention how obnoxious it must be as a teacher trying to keep track of all the little jars and make sure they go back to the right home. I did this for longer than I want to admit, but then I found LunchBots.
Keep it Simple
The LunchBots bento box was a game changer. They have a small container with four dividers that allows you to put a variety of snacks in one container. It is brilliant. It makes packing and cleaning so simple. From a developmental perspective, I think its good for kids to get to choose what they want to eat. Giving them four selections of different foods is not only fun for them, its cultivating important decision making skills. I always offer two fruits and two dry snacks for variety. Something sweet, something crunchy, something savory and something salty! I try to pack different colors in each section, although that isn’t reflected in this photo. Point is, have fun with it! We take this to the beach and on car rides. Anything that travels well is a plus!
WATER BOTTLES & UTENSILS
Investment Here
I definitely recommend the Hydroflask 12 oz kids wide mouth water bottle. Take it from me. I spent so much money on other water bottles thinking that this one was too expensive only to finally break down and buy one. He loves it! I taught him how to open the drink spout and he’s a pro now. It is worth it, just do it.
Everything I have written so far has one thing in common: it is nearly impossible to go missing. A lunch box or water bottle are staples, making them hard to get put in some other kids bag to take home.
Don’t Invest Much Here
Utensils, on the other hand, are like the dreaded socks that go missing in the dryer. I have gone through a lot of spoons and forks. For this reason, I definitely don’t recommend spending a lot of money on utensils. I don’t pack my favorite utensils for fear of never seeing them again. I like the Re-Play Utensils because they are inexpensive but still recycled plastic. You get a nice collection for a small price. It’s a nice compromise. Plus, you can write your child’s name on them — it’s the effort that counts!
P.S. for parents who pack milk, Re-Play has great no-spill sippy cup. We used these in the early days of daycare and now they have become his water cup in his crib.
Do you have something to add to this list of sustainable containers? Please share with us in the comments below!
WHAT TO PACK
Ok, now that we have the containers sorted out its time to discuss what to pack. I have a nice strategy that I think makes packing lunch fool proof.
Here are my tips:
Presentation matters. You want the food to look pretty. You don’t need to go wild and invest in special heart shaped cutters, but you do want to make your child excited to eat the food on his plate.
Feed them the rainbow. It is not only healthy for them, but it makes each food stand out and look desirable. Plus, it helps the plate look pretty and therefore desirable.
Offer a complete palette. Offer salty, sweet and savory. Give them a little variety.
Location Matters. The main meal should be nutrient dense and savory. This should be at the forefront of the plate so it is easy to access.
Food Combination. Check out the chart below. There are easy ways to support your child’s digestion and food combination is at the heart of that. Here is a great article to learn more. It is nearly impossible to follow this to a T, but it does help develop strong digestions and offer guidance if our child suffers from indigestion, constipation or autoimmune diseases.
Make it fun! I haven’t gone to the extent of shaping his foods in stars and hearts, but I did invest in this uncrustable sandwich press and Owen loves it! I do think it’s important build a healthy relationship with food. I always offer something naughty that I know my son will really appreciate. Whether it’s raisins or a little cookie. Even if I know they will likely eat that item before all the others, I know it will get my son excited to eat his lunch.
Mindful Eating
Our relationship with food starts at a young age. We get the opportunity to shape our child’s understanding of food. This is so profound. Food has long been a deeply valuable aspect to every culture and society. This is why I think what we serve our children is extremely personal. I love learning from other parents by seeing what they are serving their children. It is a big learning process for everyone involved. As for school lunches go, here are some things that I think most kids will enjoy and most parents would approve of.
A note on our diet: I feed my child vegetarian at school, but we do eat fish. That just doesn’t seem school lunch friendly. You won’t see any meat here, but I am sure meat eaters can think of some easy options.
Lunch Option A
Warm Mac and Cheese (kept in thermal) — or you do ravioli, spaghetti squash or animal shaped noodles with a simple sauce. I avoid tomato sauce since it stains clothes and is a mess for teachers.
To add variety:
Sprinkle superfood seeds (chia seeds, hemp seeds, and ground flaxseeds)
Sprinkle a little nutritional yeast
Mix in veggie or real meat burger crumbles
Add peas
Roasted veggies (sweet potato, butternut and/or carrots) with a little evoo or ghee and a touch of salt. Or sauteed summer squash.
Cut fruit (see food combination chart above) — shoot for seasonal fruits
Fig bars
1 cut date or a small handful of raisins
Lunch Option B
Nut butter and Jelly Sandwich, use the sandwich press
To add variety:
Sprinkle superfood seeds (chia seeds, hemp seeds, and ground flaxseeds)
Add thinly sliced bananas
Drizzle a little honey over the nutbutter
Non-GMO Popcorn or another crunchy option (puffs or lentil chips)
Cut seasonal fruit (see food combination chart above)
Hummus + Crackers (or sliced cucumbers and carrots)
Applesauce with cinnamon and probiotics mixed in. I often add seeds and goji berries on top to make it fun! I buy a big jar rather than individual plastic servings. Serve in the PlanetBox dipper or Thermal.
Lunch Option C
Cheese Pizza (kept in warm thermal)
Cut cucumbers and dip of choice (DIY ranch, hummus or whatever your child likes)
GoMacro Kids Bar, cut or whole
Cut seasonal fruit
Annie’s Goldfish or Simple Mills Graham crackers
Lunch Option D
Yogurt and fruit parfait, stored in the PlanetBox Dipper or Thermal
to add variety:
sprinkle superfood seeds
goji berries or raisins
honey
soft granola (Purely Elizabeth’s is easy to eat for toddlers)
Soft Crackers & sliced cheese
Muffin or banana bread
Cut seasonal fruit
1 cut date or a small handful of raisins
LAST BUT NOT LEAST: HEALTHY SNACKS!
Dry or Packaged Snacks
This picture really says it all. There are a plethora of decent to healthy options for kids to snack on out there. Look for low sugar, low salt, and less ingredients the better. We don’t want to be feeding out children processed seed oils, gums or natural flavors. If you don’t know the dangers, I encourage you to do a little snooping and you will see why it matters.
Great brands that rate from extremely clean to okay enough for me include: Emmy’s Organics, Cerebelly, GoMacro, Simple Mills, Annie’s, Purley Elizabeth, Serenity, Fit Joy, Lesser Evil, Hu Kitchen. Share more clean brands with us in the comments below!
In addition, here is a list of fresh fruits & veggies that are easy for a toddler to enjoy without much monitoring:
Fruit:
watermelon
cantaloupe
pineapple
tangerines
stewed apples
cut grapes (1/2 or 1/4 cut)
berries: raspberry, blueberry, blackberry and strawberry
kiwi
mango
papaya
peach
banana (I cut in half with the peel still attached)
Raw Veggies:
cucumber sliced, diced, or cut into sticks. skin optional
carrot sliced, diced, or cut into sticks (for toddlers with enough teeth to chew properly)
bell pepper sliced, diced, or cut into sticks
cherry tomatoes, cut in half
