Children should eat lunch around midday to ensure they have the fuel and fluid their bodies need to continue functioning efficiently throughout the afternoon. Lunch may be a sandwich lunch or a cooked meal, but it needs to be wholesome and nutritionally well balanced, just as breakfast was and dinner will be. It should not just be a snack of a packet of crisps and a biscuit bar, which will take the edge off a child’s appetite but will not give them the essential nutrients and energy they need to sustain them through to teatime or dinnertime.
School dinner
If your child is at school, he or she will very likely eat a school dinner. In the UK recent legislation means that school menus are now analysed to ensure the food meets minimum guidelines on its nutritional content. A typical day’s primary school menu will now offer:
* a minimum of two choices of main course with vegetables or salad, plus potatoes or an alternative carbohydrate such as pasta; in many schools there is a third option of jacket potato with a choice of fillings
* two choices of dessert or fresh fruit
* extra bread
* a vegetarian choice
* a drink, which could be fruit juice, milk or water
* Halal meat certified and approved by the Halal Meat Authority is available in most schools where there is a requirement.
School menus have a cycle of between two and four weeks, and they are changed every term to avoid repetition and to introduce new dishes. Copies of the menu are displayed for parents and children to see, either in the playground or near the school’s main entrance.
Secondary schools in the UK usually offer a cafeteria-style service, where pupils can choose from individually priced food. As in primary schools, the menus are rotated and the food offered has to meet nutritional guidelines. Vending machines selling fizzy drinks, crisps and chocolate bars – once a feature of many secondary school corridors – have now been removed, and more substantial and healthier snack options are usually available at morning break from the school canteen.
If your child has a school lunch, other than checking that the school is offering an appetising and healthy menu, and educating your child to choose wisely and therefore eat healthily, there isn’t much more you can do to ensure he or she has a good lunch. However, if you send your child to school with a packed lunch, as many parents around the world do, or when your child eats lunch at home at weekends and in school holidays, there is plenty you can do. What your child eats then is solely your responsibility.
Packed lunch
If children take a packed lunch to school, they usually eat it in the school canteen, and lunchtime supervisors are often appalled at what some children arrive with for their midday meal – two packets of crisps and a chocolate bar is not unheard of. While most schools have banned sweets from packed lunch boxes, many snack bars and biscuit bars are just as bad. As well as being low in essential nutrients or having none at all, their high sugar content means they are bad for children’s teeth. A packed lunch should be healthy, balanced and nutritious, just like any meal you serve your child, and should contain:
* a drink of water, fruit juice or milk
* a starchy food: for example, bread, rice, potatoes or pasta
* a protein food: for example, meat, fish, eggs or beans
* some dairy produce: for example, cheese, milk or yoghurt
* vegetables, salad and/or fruit
Packed lunches need not be repetitive or boring or limited to sandwiches, but the food you pack will have to be safe to eat when stored outside a fridge. Most packed lunch boxes are not stored in fridges (schools don’t have the room); primary schools tend to store them in the canteen or a similar space, while most secondary school children store them in their lockers or carry them in their bags. Insulated lunchboxes are relatively inexpensive and available from most supermarkets; many are designed and attractively decorated for children. In hot weather if you pack a frozen juice box, water bottle or ice pack in the lunch box it will help the food stay cool for longer. It is also a sensible precaution in very hot weather not to pack cold meat or yoghurt. At the end of the day throw away anything that has not been eaten; don’t be tempted to put a yoghurt, for example, back in the fridge for tomorrow, as any bacteria will already be breeding.
Here are some suggestions for children’s packed lunches.
Drinks for a packed lunch
It is essential your child has a drink at midday, as otherwise they will start to dehydrate during the afternoon, which will cause them to feel irritable and lethargic, and make concentration difficult. A bottle of water or a packet of milk or fruit juice is fine but fizzy drinks and high-sugar squashes or cordials are not. Explain to your child why it is important to drink during the day, as many children don’t take in enough fluid while at school.
Bread, wraps and rolls
If you regularly make your own bread, fantastic, but if you don’t, there is now a huge choice of breads, wraps and rolls available from supermarkets and bakers. Here are some suggestions for you to choose from and alternate between:
Sliced bread (for sandwiches) Wholemeal, white, granary, multigrain, soft or crusty, etc.
Rolls Wholemeal, white, granary, seeded, mixed grain, soft or crusty, and in different shapes – round, finger rolls, subway, burger buns, etc.
Pitta bread Wholemeal and white, in different shapes and sizes.
Bagels Kids love them. Try different flavours and fillings.
English muffins Choose from wholemeal, white or cheese.
Naan Plain, garlic, kulcha (onion), paneer (cheese), aloo (potato), keema (beef), peshwar (sultanas, coconut and almonds).
Chapatti, tortilla wrap, fajita These are flatbreads that make great wraps.
Croissants These are soft, easy to eat, and can be slit open and filled like a sandwich, roll or muffin.
Fillings
Experiment with fillings, but when trying a new one pack a small sandwich or roll with the new filling as well as others you know your child likes. That way they will feel more confident in trying something new. The more variety of foods you give your child, the more likely they will be to try new foods, so ensuring a healthy and appetising diet. Here are some suggestions for fillings, from the common to the not so common. They are all very simple to prepare and child-friendly.
Cold meats Sliced or diced chicken, sliced ham, pork, beef, bacon, salami, sausage, shaved Italian antipasto meats, chorizo and other Spanish cured sausages.
Cheese Sliced or grated Cheddar, Edam or any hard cheese; cream or cottage cheese, mozzarella, cheese spreads.
Fish Tuna, taramasalata, wafer-thin smoked salmon, prawn cocktail, crab or fish paste.
Eggs Hard-boiled and sliced, scrambled, or chopped and mixed with a little salt and pepper, or mayonnaise, chives, dill, onions, tomatoes, cress, chutney, tomato or brown sauce, salad cream or a little curry powder or soy sauce.
Yeast extract (Marmite) Children either love it or hate it. Spread very thinly and try it with a slice of cheese or cold meat and salad to reduce the sharpness of the taste.
Peanut butter (smooth or crunchy) Again, kids either love it or hate it. Spread thinly and add salad to balance the thickness of the texture. Sometimes schools ask parents not to include nuts or peanut butter in children’s packed lunches if a child in the class has a known nut allergy. Respect the request: nut allergies can be very serious. Your child can always have nuts in the evening or at the weekend.
Hummus Made from chickpeas, this is traditionally eaten with warm pitta bread, and also makes a tasty and nutritious filling. Spread the hummus liberally inside pitta bread, or use to make a sandwich, wrap or roll.
Add salad to any of the above fillings for extra minerals and vitamins. Choose from and alternate between: sliced or chopped tomato; cucumber; celery; red, green, orange or yellow pepper; lettuce; coleslaw; grated carrot. Add a little chutney, mayonnaise, tomato sauce, brown sauce or mustard if your child likes it. If you mix and match these salads with the above protein-rich fillings and add them to the previously mentioned breads, wraps and rolls, your child will have the calories, starch, protein, vitamins and minerals they need at lunch, for energy and health. Variety is the key to a good packed lunch, and if you rotate different fillings, salads and breads your child could have something different in their sandwiches every day of the year, although they’ll have favourites which they’ll regularly request.
Pots
Packed lunches are not only about sandwiches, rolls and wraps, however delicious, nutritious and exciting these might be. They are also about ‘pots’. I use the term ‘pot’ for the little airtight containers that can be filled, and fit into a lunch box and can contain anything from dried fruits to a full meal. They can be used as an addition to a sandwich lunch or instead of one, but don’t overload your child with too much food. Pack only what they can reasonably eat at their age, or else your child may feel overwhelmed and eat nothing.
When including a pot that is a meal rather than finger food, remember to pack a spoon or fork for your child to eat with. Check that your child can easily remove the lid of the pot; sometimes when a pot is new the lid fits very tightly. Loosen the lid by snapping it on and off a few times until your child is comfortable doing it. Pots come in different colours and children get very excited about having pots in their lunch boxes. Make the most of it. Many children who are resistant to eating fruit, salad or vegetables will happily eat it diced and in a colourful pot with their school friends watching enviously.
Little extra pots
The food in these pots is in addition to a sandwich lunch or a main meal pot – see here.
Dried fruit There is a huge choice of dried fruits now, all of which are easily available from supermarkets and health food shops. Dried fruit has a very different taste and texture to fresh fruit and many children can be persuaded to eat dried fruit in preference to biscuits. Try: raisins, sultanas, apricots, apple, cranberries, mango, pineapple, banana, pitted dates and prunes, mixed dried fruit and yoghurt-coated dried fruit.
Fresh fruit Peel and slice or dice ‘hard’ fruit so that it is ready to eat straight from the pot. Try: apples, pears, banana, kiwi, orange, clementine, satsuma, mandarin, grapes, peach, pineapple, melon. Or try some ‘soft’ fruit: strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, cranberries, red currants, gooseberries, raspberries or a combination of any of these. To prevent the fruit from browning or drying out, sprinkle a little lemon juice and sugar on it.
Canned and frozen fruit Most popular fruits can now be found canned or frozen as well as some lesser-known tropical fruit. Strain some of the juice from canned fruit before placing a helping of the fruit into the pot. Frozen fruit can be added straight from the freezer bag, as it will have thawed by lunchtime. Try: apples, peaches, pineapple, pears, orange or mandarin, grapefruit, lychees, kiwi, grapes, mango, fruit cocktail, prunes, raspberries, strawberries and cherries. Check supermarkets and health food shops for the full range available.
Nuts As well as the popular peanuts, cashews and pistachios, try shelled brazil nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, nuts and raisins, or any dried fruit and nuts. All of these can be bought ready shelled in supermarkets and health food shops, but respect any request from the school with regard to nut allergies.
Salad Pots can contain one or many different types of salad, chopped and mixed together. Always wash the ingredients first and slice or dice the salad into manageable chunks. The easier a food is to eat, the more likely your child is to eat it at school when time is limited and they would rather be in the playground than eating in the canteen. Try:
* chopped tomato and sweetcorn
* chopped celery and grated cheese
* diced cucumber and tinned kidney beans
* tomato, yellow pepper and pineapple
* cucumber, chives and sweetcorn
Or add a little rice, couscous or pasta to the salad. The possible combinations are endless and the bright colours and variety make for an interesting and attractive salad pot containing the essential vitamins and minerals your child needs. Finish by stirring in a little salad dressing, mayonnaise or any other sauce your child likes.
Other little pot suggestions Use what is in your fridge as well as buying specifically for the lunch pots. Try:
* diced cheese and pineapple
* sliced cold cooked sausage and apple
* chopped ham and cucumber
* chopped peppers and feta cheese
* chopped hard-boiled egg and tomato
* grated cheese and coleslaw
And again you can add some pasta, rice or couscous to any of the above, or a little evening meal leftovers, if the meal is nice eaten cold.
Main meal pots
If the food in the pot is to be the main meal rather than an addition to a sandwich lunch, then pack more food. Use a larger pot if necessary or use two pots.
Pasta This is a great favourite with children. It is quick to prepare, easy to eat, and the combinations are endless. Ready-made pasta can be bought from all supermarkets and comes in many shapes and sizes. For pot meals use a relatively small pasta shape: for example, penne (cylinder shaped), fusilli (corkscrew shaped), conchiglie (shell shaped), rotelle (wagonwheel shaped), rotina (spiral shaped), farfalline (bow shaped), or pasta for kids, which includes alphabet- and animal-shaped pasta. Cook according to the instructions on the packet, strain, allow the pasta to cool, and then add any of the following suggestions:
* grated or finely chopped hard cheese
* cream cheese or fromage frais and cooked peas
* chopped cold meat or sausage and cooked sweetcorn
* flaked tinned tuna and very small cooked broccoli florets
* chopped tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes
* chopped cucumber or celery or grated carrot
* red, green, orange or yellow pepper, chopped
* raisins and chopped nuts
* cooked kidney beans or chickpeas
* chopped hard-boiled egg and tomato
* cooked Quorn pieces and sliced cooked green beans
Add mayonnaise or a salad or vinegar dressing, a pinch of salt and pepper or dried herbs, or any sauce that your child likes, and stir the ingredients together.
Rice This is another favourite with children and it is as versatile as pasta. Incredibly there are over 40,000 different types of rice but most of us use no more than half a dozen. For lunch pots use long grain rice (brown or white), which includes the favourite basmati. Boiled rice works better than fried in pots, as fried rice can be dry if not eaten immediately. For each child, put 50ml of rice into a pan with 100ml of water or stock,* and a pinch of salt. Put the lid on the pan, bring to the boil, stir once, cover, turn the heat to the lowest setting and leave to cook – 10 minutes for white rice and 30 minutes for brown. Turn off the heat and leave the rice to cool. You can substitute rice for pasta in any of the above pasta recipes, but don’t use mayonnaise or sauce, as it will make the fluffy rice soggy. Instead, try adding a little curry powder to taste. In addition to the above recipes try:
* rice with diced cooked vegetables and dried herbs
* rice with chopped cooked meat and chives
* sweet and sour rice using small chunks of pineapple and cheese
* rice and curry
* rice with finely chopped nuts and raisins
Experiment: you will find that many of your child’s favourite foods can be added to rice to make a delicious rice pot.
Bulgur wheat Another alternative to pasta or rice, this is a nutritious wholewheat, and finely ground bulgur wheat is very easy to prepare. It is soaked and not cooked. For each child, put 50ml of finely ground bulgur wheat in a bowl or pan, add 100ml of seasoned boiling water or stock, stir, cover and leave for 10 minutes. Drain off any excess liquid and it is ready to use. Substitute bulgur wheat for pasta in any of the above recipes, and season with fresh or dried herbs or Season-All. Alternatively try bulgur wheat with:
* feta cheese and cherry tomato
* toasted seeds
* dried fruit/beans/chickpeas or cooked vegetables
* diced cold meat and a teaspoon of orange juice mixed in
Couscous Made from tiny granules of durum wheat, this is prepared in the same way as bulgur wheat. Couscous can be used instead of pasta, rice or bulgur wheat in the above recipes, or try using it in the following ways:
* added to cooked diced vegetables or cold meat, then seasoned with a little curry powder
* with black beans, kidney beans or tofu – lovely with chopped fresh herbs
* with chopped dates, or any dried or fresh fruit, and a teaspoon of apple juice
Add a slice of wholemeal bread or a roll to any of the above for a lovely combination of taste and texture, rich in essential minerals and roughage.
Other savouries for a lunch box
As a change from, or in addition to, sandwiches, wraps, rolls or pot meals, try mixing and matching from the following:
* sausage rolls or vegetarian equivalent
* samosa, onion bhaji, pakora
* slice of pizza or quiche
* cheese puff, spring roll or Scotch egg
* breaded chicken or chicken goujons
* mini Cornish pasties or mini pork pies
Crisps and similar snack foods have little nutritional value and should be kept to a once-or-twice-a-week treat rather than included every day.
Packed lunch desserts
Most children appreciate a dessert in their packed lunch. Try to limit the chocolate biscuits to once or twice a week. Instead, try:
* a yoghurt, jelly or fromage frais
* cold custard, rice pudding or semolina
* a scone, oat cake, hot cross bun or slice of fruit cake
* a piece of fruit, if not included in a small pot
Lunch at home
Lunch at home allows you greater flexibility in the food you can give your child, with the option of providing a cooked meal. However, there is nothing wrong in giving your child a sandwich lunch at home. If it is nutritionally balanced, as with the suggestions here for sandwiches, wraps and rolls, it is as good as a cooked meal and better than many fast foods. Also remember that all the pot suggestions here can be used for lunch at home; simply serve on a plate or in a bowl with a fork or spoon. As most families eat their main meal in the evening, lunch is likely to be a lighter, simpler meal, but eat it at the table as you do your other meals. Even if it is just you and your child, set a good example and eat with him or her at the table and your child will be more inclined to eat healthily. Here are some suggestions for simple cooked lunches that kids love.
Jacket potatoes
An all-time favourite. Wash and dry 1 large potato per child, prick the skin with a fork, and then rub on a little oil to make it crispy when cooking. Ideally jacket potatoes should be given a long slow cook in the oven, about 1½ hours at 190°C/gas mark 5, but this is uneconomical for one or two potatoes and time consuming. An alternative that works well is to microwave the potato until soft and then pop under the grill for 5 minutes each side to crisp the skin. When ready, split the potato open and fluff it a little with a fork; then add a knob of butter. Here are some filling suggestions:
* baked beans, or baked beans and grated cheese
* bacon or ham and baked beans
* coleslaw, or coleslaw and grated cheese, ham or flaked tinned tuna
* cottage cheese or cream cheese with chopped tomato/chopped apple/cooked sweetcorn/chopped chives
* flaked tinned tuna and cooked sweetcorn with mayonnaise or salad cream
* chopped ham and pineapple with mayonnaise
* leftover bolognese (see here), curry (see here), chilli con carne or ratatouille
* scrambled eggs with salad cream
* cooked prawns in mayonnaise, salad cream or seafood sauce
Once you have added the filling, serve on a plate with salad.
Kids’ hash
Kids love this variation on corned beef hash. It works well for vegetarians if you replace the corned beef with soy or vegetable protein granules, for example Quorn. This recipe serves 4 and once cooked can be frozen.
1 large potato
1 onion, chopped
oil, for frying
1 x 225g tin of baked beans
100g peas, frozen or tinned
200g corned beef or vegetarian equivalent
Peel the potato and grate it into a bowl. Add the onion and mix together the ingredients.
Fry in a little oil in a pan until soft. Add the baked beans, peas and corned beef. Stir and cook until piping hot.
Serve with bread and butter or a salad.
Egg in a nest
A simple, fun, appetising and nutritious lunch.
1 large tomato or pepper (red, green, yellow or orange) for each egg
1 or 2 eggs per child
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6.
Slice the tops off the tomatoes or peppers. Scoop out the inside. Put them into a shallow greased baking dish. Break an egg into the hollow centre of each tomato or pepper.
Cook in the preheated oven until the eggs have set – this should take about 20 minutes.
This is lovely with warm crusty bread and salad. For a different ‘egg in a nest’, use up leftover mashed potato. Break an egg into the centre of a small bowl of mashed potato, bake as above and serve with baked beans and sliced tomato.
Stuffed pepper
Many children who don’t like raw peppers in a salad enjoy baked stuffed pepper.
1 or 2 peppers per child
salt and pepper or dried herbs to taste
For the filling, choose from the following:
boiled rice (here) with grated cheese and raisins or sultanas
boiled rice, cooked mushrooms and diced ham
breadcrumbs with cream cheese and raisins or sultanas
leftover rice, bolognese (here), curry (here) or chilli con carne
tinned ratatouille or red kidney beans and grated cheese
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6.
Slice the tops off the peppers and scoop out the seeds inside. Arrange them on a baking tray or deep ovenproof dish. Fill the peppers with your chosen filling and season with salt and pepper or dried herbs to taste.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes and serve with warm crusty bread.
Quick cauliflower cheese
If you haven’t got the time, ingredients or inclination to make a traditional cauliflower cheese for lunch, try this. Serves 2.
1 medium cauliflower
100g grated Cheddar cheese
Cut the florets from the cauliflower and cook them for 10 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain the florets and arrange them in an ovenproof dish.
Sprinkle over the grated cheese until all the florets are covered.
Place under the grill or in a hot oven preheated to 220ºC/gas mark 7 until the cheese starts to bubble.
Serve with a sliced tomato and warm crusty bread or roll.
Sausage and rice pan casserole
A simple and satisfying winter warmer, loved by children and students. Serves 4. For 2, halve the ingredients or freeze what is left over.
4 sausages (use meatless if you are vegetarian)
oil, for frying
50g long grain rice – basmati works well
1 x 400g tin or carton of tomato soup
Prick the sausages with a fork. Heat a little oil in a frying pan, add the sausages and fry over a medium heat for 10–15 minutes, until cooked on the inside and golden brown on the outside.
While the sausages are frying, cook the rice according to the instructions on the packet.
Drain and slice the sausages.
Remove any excess liquid from the rice and add the tomato soup. Cover the pan with the lid and leave to stand for 10 minutes; the rice will absorb the soup. If after 10 minutes it hasn’t, then leave for another 10 minutes.
Add the sliced sausage and stir the ingredients together. Heat thoroughly but do not allow to boil.
Serve by itself or with a salad.
Soups
A bowl of soup and a roll make a great lunch for kids. Soups are easy to make; you really can’t go wrong. There are also many good tinned and packet fresh soups available in supermarkets. Convenience ready-made soups have come a long way in recent years, so don’t feel guilty about using them, although some are very expensive compared to soup made at home.
Here are some tried-and-tested recipes for soups that kids love. For a thicker soup, try adding some noodles or dried pasta while the soup is cooking – spaghetti broken into 2cm lengths works well, or any small pasta.
Soup is very versatile and there are no hard and fast rules or ingredients. Mix and match ingredients to suit your child’s taste. Add more stock, water or milk if the soup appears too thick, or boil with the pan lid off to reduce the water content.
The following recipes serve 4 and the soup can be frozen.
Potato and carrot soup
1 tablespoon butter or oil
250g potatoes (1 large or 2 medium), chopped into small chunks
2 large carrots, sliced
500ml vegetable stock
300ml milk
fresh or dried mixed herbs to suit your child’s taste
Melt the butter or oil in a large pan. Add the potatoes and carrots to the pan and stir so that the ingredients are coated with the butter or oil.
Put the lid on the pan and cook on a low heat until the vegetables start to soften. This will take about 10 minutes.
Add the stock, milk and herbs. Gently cook the soup for another 15 minutes.
Blend, mash or liquidise for a smooth soup, or for a chunkier soup leave as it is.
Serve with warm bread or a roll.
Other potato-based soups Potatoes make a great basis for any soup because of their starchy texture. Using this recipe, instead of carrots try 2 leeks, or a similar amount of any of the following: courgettes, parsnips, turnip, butternut squash, swede, celery or celeriac, sweet potato, pumpkin. Or combine vegetables using up whatever you have in the fridge. Soups are great for using up odd vegetables.
Lentil soup
Many children who turn their noses up at the mention of lentils will love lentil soup. As with potatoes, lentils make a great basis for many soups, and lentil soup is especially nice when slightly spiced. Below is a basic recipe, but experiment by replacing the carrots with other vegetables in the same quantity; or try adding some fresh or dried light-coloured fruit, for example apricots or a peeled orange or apple. Don’t use dark-coloured fruit, for example prunes, as they will turn the soup an unappetising colour. Leftover cooked meat – for example, ham, chicken or sausage – can be added, chopped, to the soup for variety.
oil, for frying
1 small onion, chopped
½ teaspoon ground cumin seed or mixed herbs, or a pinch of chilli powder (if you want a spicy soup)
2 large carrots, diced
250g split red lentils
750ml vegetable stock, or 500ml stock and 200ml milk
Heat a little oil in a large pan and fry the onion, cumin or herbs or chilli powder until the onion is slightly soft.
Add the carrots, lentils and stock, or stock and milk. Bring to the boil. Stir and simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils have swollen and softened.
Blend, mash or liquidise for a smooth soup, or for a chunkier soup leave as it is.
Serve with warm naan or a roll.
Cream of mushroom soup
Children love ‘cream of’ soups, as they are smooth and comforting to eat, with no strong tastes. This recipe can be used as the basis for any ‘cream of’ soup by replacing the mushrooms with other vegetables or with cooked meat: for example, cream of chicken soup is a great way to finish up leftovers from a Sunday roast. This recipe serves 4; for 2 halve the ingredients or store the excess in the fridge for a day or two. Not good frozen, as the cream can curdle.
25g butter
200g white mushrooms, cleaned, quartered or sliced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme, or mixed dried herbs
2 tablespoons plain flour
400ml vegetable or chicken stock
100ml double cream
Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the mushrooms, onion and herbs and cook for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms and gradually add the stock, stirring all the time. Bring to the boil and simmer until tender, which will take about 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and blend, mash or liquidise. Add the cream and heat thoroughly but do not allow to boil.
Lovely served with croutons.
Cream of tomato soup Use 750g tomatoes instead of mushrooms and basil instead of thyme.
Cream of celery soup Use 8 celery stalks and 1 large potato, all diced. Try adding a little garlic purée or fry a crushed garlic clove with the onions.
Cream of chicken soup Use 1 cooked and diced boneless chicken breast or use up leftovers. Add a little garlic and a large diced potato for added taste and texture.
Pasta lunch
Serve a cold pasta salad using one of the little pot packed lunch suggestions here or serve a hot pasta dish. Pasta is simple and versatile and can be homemade, or bought fresh or dried from most supermarkets and corner shops. Pasta is an excellent source of energy-giving complex carbohydrates, and teamed with a protein and vegetable sauce makes a perfectly balanced meal. Even kids who are picky with their food love pasta of one type or another. Here are some light pasta meals suitable for lunch at home. If you make your own pasta, cook it for the amount of time given in the recipe you use.
Cheesy pasta
This is pasta at its simplest but is very popular with children. Serves 2.
150g dried pasta – penne, rigatoni or similar
100g grated Cheddar cheese
Cook the pasta following the directions on the packet. Drain and add the grated cheese. Stir over a low heat just long enough for the cheese to melt and coat the pasta.
Serve with salad and garlic bread or a warm crusty roll.
Macaroni cheese
Slightly more sophisticated than the basic cheesy pasta above but still very simple to make and loved by kids. Serves 2.
150g dried macaroni pasta (or any similar pasta shape)
For the cheese sauce:
20g butter
20g plain flour or cornflour
300ml milk
salt and pepper to taste
100g grated Cheddar cheese
Cook the pasta following the directions on the packet and drain.
To make the cheese sauce, in another pan melt the butter. Add the flour and stir it into the butter to form a roux. Cook for a couple of minutes. The roux should look like a doughy ball. Stir in the milk a little at a time and bring to the boil so that the sauce becomes thick and smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the pan from the hob and stir in about 80g of the grated cheese until it has combined with the sauce.
Add the macaroni to the sauce and mix well. Turn the mixture into a deep, suitably sized ovenproof dish and top with the rest of the grated cheese. Place the dish under a hot grill until the cheese is browned and bubbling.
This is lovely served with fresh or tinned tomatoes.
Tomato pasta
Tomatoes are a very popular base for many pasta sauces but they can also make a pasta meal on their own. Serves 2.
150g dried penne or similar pasta
50g grated Cheddar cheese or a good sprinkle – about 5g – of grated Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
For the tomato sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed, or ½ teaspoon garlic purée
400g finely chopped tomatoes or a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
Cook the pasta following the directions on the packet and drain.
To make the tomato sauce, heat the oil in a medium pan and fry the onion for 5 minutes until softened and lightly golden. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Mix in the tomatoes. If using fresh tomatoes, cook until soft; if using canned tomatoes, bring to the boil.
Add the pasta and stir well until all the pasta is coated with the tomato mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Turn the mixture into a deep, suitably sized ovenproof dish and top with the grated Cheddar cheese (but not the Parmesan, if you are using it).
Place the dish under a hot grill until the cheese is browned and bubbling.
Remove from the oven and if using Parmesan sprinkle it on now.
Lovely with salad and garlic bread.
Variation Try using ratatouille (homemade or tinned) instead of tomatoes.
Pasta bake
This is a very simple and versatile dish that is another great favourite with kids. A wealth of different foods, to suit your child’s taste, can go into a pasta bake. Serves 2.
1 quantity of tomato pasta (made by following the recipe above until the pasta is coated with tomato mixture)
50g grated Cheddar cheese or a good sprinkle – about 5g – of grated Parmesan
One or two of the following:
200g cooked sweetcorn
200g cooked peas
200g cooked and chopped green beans
10 cooked and halved button mushrooms
2 cooked sausages, sliced (meatless if your child is vegetarian)
4 rashers of bacon, cooked and sliced
200g chopped cooked chicken, ham or other meat
3 hard-boiled eggs, lightly chopped or sliced
200g tinned and drained tuna or salmon
200g cooked prawns
200g cooked fresh fish – for example, cod, haddock, salmon, tuna, seabass, halibut, Dover sole or turbot
a similar quantity of any other protein or vegetable your child likes
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6.
Add the chosen ingredients to the tomato pasta and stir everything together. Turn the mixture into a deep, suitably sized ovenproof dish. Top with the grated cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
All pasta bakes are delicious served with garlic bread and a salad.
Spaghetti
I have included a recipe for spaghetti bolognese for dinner in the next chapter (here), but your child might like a simpler version for lunch. Serves 2.
100g spaghetti (approximately)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 quantity of cheese sauce (here) or tomato sauce (here)
1 or 2 of the ingredients given in the pasta bake recipe here
a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese (optional)
Cook the spaghetti according to the instructions on the packet. Remove from the heat and drain. Add the olive oil to the spaghetti in the pan and stir through.
Add the cheese or tomato sauce. Return the pan to a low heat and stir until the spaghetti is fully coated with the sauce.
Add the chosen ingredients, stir and heat thoroughly. Top with grated Parmesan cheese, if your child likes it.
Serve with garlic bread or crusty warm bread.
Tagliatelle
Children love tagliatelle and this very simple version makes a great lunch. Serves 2.
100g tagliatelle
1 tablespoon olive oil
100g grated Cheddar cheese
1 or 2 of the ingredients given in the pasta bake recipe here
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon single cream (optional)
a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese (optional)
Cook the tagliatelle according to the instructions on the packet. Remove from the heat and drain. Add the olive oil and grated cheese to the pasta in the pan. Add the chosen ingredients, stir and heat thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in the cream just before serving, if you are using it. Top with grated Parmesan cheese if your child likes it.
Serve with garlic bread or crusty warm bread.
Variation Alternatively instead of the cheese sauce you can use one of the pesto sauces available from most supermarkets. They are tasty if used generously.
‘Toast lunch’
Eating lunch at home gives you the option of providing a ‘toast meal’ for your child – that is, cooked food served on toast. A ‘toast meal’ can be as satisfying and as energy-giving and nutritious as a full meal. Don’t limit the toast to just toasted bread: you can also use toasted crumpets, English muffins, halved rolls or bagels. A savoury or potato waffle also makes a great base for a toast lunch. Whatever you use, toast it and then choose a topping from the following (or mix and match):
* scrambled, poached, fried or peeled hard-boiled eggs
* scrambled egg with spaghetti hoops
* poached egg with mayonnaise and chopped ham (a kids’ Eggs Benedict)
* baked beans with egg or bacon or sausage
* a stack of sliced cooked sausage, scrambled egg and baked beans
* baked beans with grated cheese on top – pop under the grill until the cheese melts
* cheese on toast or Welsh rarebit (see here)
Serve with a side salad or fresh or tinned tomatoes and don’t forget the tomato ketchup or brown sauce – essential with a toast lunch.
Toasted sandwiches
Lunch at home allows you to make the most of the toasted sandwich but don’t limit the filling to just cheese. Try:
* cheese and pickle
* cheese and sliced tomatoes
* fried or scrambled egg
* chopped ham or cooked chicken
* sliced cooked mushrooms
* sliced cooked bacon or sausage
Serve with baked beans and a salad for a nutritious and energy-packed lunch.
Kids’ kebabs
It is surprising the foods children will eat (which they wouldn’t normally) if there is a novelty factor involved. The kebab is a good example. There is no need to light the barbecue: you can use the grill or oven. Allow at least 2 skewers per child.
barbecue sauce (bought or homemade), ketchup, brown sauce, soy sauce or seasoned olive oil
Choose from the following:
any fresh meat – beef steak, lamb, pork, poultry, kidneys or liver – cubed
Quorn cubes or sliced halloumi
bacon or sausages, sliced
large peeled prawns
potatoes, parboiled for 5 minutes, cooled and cubed
green, orange, yellow or red peppers, sliced
mini corn on the cob (baby corn), cut to the size of the other ingredients
mangetout, cut to the size of the other ingredients
quartered large tomatoes or whole cherry tomatoes
button mushrooms, whole
pineapple chunks, pickled onions or gherkin (if desired)
Thread the chosen food on the skewers. If you have time, marinate the kebabs with one of the sauces for at least two hours before cooking. If you haven’t got time, simply coat the kebabs with one of the sauces.
To grill, lay the skewers on the grill rack under a moderately hot grill. Turn so that both sides are cooked, as you would on a barbecue. To cook in the oven, balance the kebabs across a baking tray and cook for 15 minutes in a preheated hot oven (220°C/gas mark 7).
Kebabs can make a meal in themselves, or you can serve them with boiled rice or warm pitta bread. Obviously supervise children with the skewers at all times.
Bubble and squeak
A quick tasty lunch and a great way to get kids to eat cabbage, Brussels sprouts and many other vegetables, and to use up left-overs. Serves 2.
25g butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed (optional)
2 large potatoes, cooked and mashed
150g (approximately) cooked and finely chopped cabbage, Brussels sprouts, swede, carrots, peas or similar leftover vegetables
salt and pepper to taste
Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry the onion and garlic until tender. Add the mashed potato and chopped cooked vegetables, season with salt and pepper, and form into patties in the frying pan.
Fry the patties for 5–10 minutes, turning them so that they become golden brown on both sides.
Serve with a fried or poached egg or bacon, sausage, baked beans, mushrooms, tinned or fresh tomatoes. Or top the patties with melted grated cheese or chopped ham.
All-day breakfast
Don’t forget that all the suggestions for cooked breakfast here also make a great lunch at home for children. Choose from bacon, egg, sausage, tomato, mushrooms, hash browns or fried or eggy bread, or add some salad to a savoury omelette or pancake, for a wholesome and satisfying lunch.
Lunchtime desserts
Most children will appreciate a dessert at lunchtime, if not straight after their meal then a short while later.
Fruit
Dessert is a good time to give your child fruit. If he or she is resistant to eating a whole fruit, here are some suggestions:
* Peel and dice fruit and serve it in a small attractive bowl with a tablespoon of cream, yoghurt, ice cream or fromage frais.
* Add some sultanas or raisins to the diced fresh fruit and mix together.
* Serve canned or (thawed) frozen fruit in an attractive bowl with a dollop of cream, yoghurt, ice cream or fromage frais.
* Add diced fresh fruit, canned, (thawed) frozen or dried fruit to a bowl of custard. Ever tried grated apple in custard? It’s yummy.
* Fruit in jelly: you will need to make this the night before to allow time for the jelly to set, but if you make several jellies they can be kept in the fridge for a few days.
Smoothies
Lunch at home means you can give your child a fresh smoothie dessert: for recipe ideas, see here. For a lunchtime dessert, you can make the smoothie a bit richer than the breakfast version by adding a tablespoon of cream or ice cream and serve with a spoon.
Yoghurt
This is another favourite lunchtime dessert with children. However, if you buy pots of yoghurt from a supermarket, as most of us do, rather than making your own, check that it is yoghurt you are buying and not one of the many high-sugar desserts now being marketed in yoghurt-type pots. As mentioned earlier, yoghurt is fermented milk and should contain no more than milk, a bacterial culture (used to allow the fermentation) and a little sugar or fruit, so watch out for large amounts of sugar and any other ingredients unrelated to milk.
Other lunch dessert ideas
* a mini fruit tart with a spoonful of yoghurt or cream
* a warmed scone or oat cake spread lightly with butter and jam
* toasted tea cake or hot cross bun spread lightly with butter
* a slice of fruit cake
* ice cream, cup cake, chocolate biscuit, chocolate mousse or similar as an occasional treat
Drinks at home
Provide regular drinks for your child throughout the day. Although you have greater flexibility in what you give your child to drink at home (as opposed to school), the majority of a child’s fluid intake should be water, with the occasional squash, juice, milk shake or drinking chocolate, etc. If your child really doesn’t like drinking plain water, add a little squash, juice or cordial. With young children who cannot reach to pour themselves a drink of water from the tap, always leave a drink at their place at the table so that they can have a sip whenever they want. It also serves as a reminder for them to drink. Active children can forget to drink and become dehydrated, which can lead to irritability and restlessness.
Convenience food for lunch
The news is so full of health warnings about processed food that as parents we could easily become paranoid about giving our children convenience or ‘fast food’. Nearly all children like a pizza, burger or hot dog, and giving these or similar foods once or twice a week for lunch is not going to do them any harm. It’s when every lunch is a processed food (short on nutrients and high in fat) that health problems can result.
* As with all references to stock, a stock cube can be used.