Usually on the weekend, if time permits, the kids and I will get busy in the kitchen making food for the lunchbox.

I always like to pop in something fun into their lunchbox each day. We don’t ‘do’ dessert at home, so once a day at recess my kids look forward to their healthy treat.

They are almost always made from scratch ( I have a stash of our fave packaged options for those insane days), from the best ingredients I can afford, and as nutrient dense as I can make them.

For more lunchbox inspiration check out my Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes eBook filled with 40 of my children’s favourite nut-free and refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes. All kid-tested and kid-approved!

Here are some of their fave lunchbox treats.

Rich and delicious chocolate muffins (with vegetables) by Brenda Janschek

Sweet potato and choc chip muffins by Mummy Made it – gluten free

Beetroot, quinoa and chocolate muffins by The Holistic Ingredient

Sweet potato brownie by Slim Birdy – gluten free

Chocolate Orange Truffles by Brenda Janschek (if nuts are allowed)

Leftover porridge cakes by Lisa Corduff

Date, oat and seed bars by Brenda Janschek

Nut-free chocolate and coconut no bake bars by BecomingNess

Coconut slice by Homemade, Healthy, Happy

Chai, date and sesame biscuits by Brenda Janschek

Vanilla Apple Chia Pudding by Brenda Janschek

Cinnamon, turmeric custard by Low Tox Life

Banana Pancakes by Brenda Janschek Health & Lifestyle

Pancakes 3 ways by Quirky Cooking

Super smoothie by Brenda Janschek

Brownie Cake by Brenda Janschek

Raw Cacao Balls by Brenda Janschek (nut free)

Find the best 10 Savoury School Lunchbox Ideas here

For more lunchbox inspo, grab my new Easy Wholefood Lunchbox recipe eBook with 20 savoury and 20 sweet recipes filled with simple wholesome ingredients to meet your kids nutritional needs and fuel their learning and play, giving them the brainpower and energy they need to get through the day.

Unless we are prepared, it can be a pretty slippery slope to grabbing whatever is available ‘downstairs’ and munching on it at the desk, and it’s never satisfying. Nor is it good for us when it becomes a repeated pattern. In order to make sure we eat well at work, it is imperative to be organised in advance. The beauty of doing this is that it’s not really that difficult!

I want to share with you a simple system that is guaranteed to keep you away from the burritos and schnitzels and in a steady supply of refreshing, rejuvenating, delicious lunch bowls.

If you’re looking for some lunch inspiration, take a look at my recipe ebook, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes. It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved and the whole family will love!

Off course, the easiest way  is to ALWAYS make extras at dinner to pack for lunch the next day. Here are some meals which provide great lunch bowl leftovers:  fish cakes , make extra and break them up into a garden salad for lunch; make extra Potato, Feta and Spinach Frittata for dinner and pack the rest for work with a salad; Fresh and Raw Zucchini Salad makes an easy ‘pack and run’ lunch bowl option; or this Indian Cauliflower, Potato and Mung Dhal Soup is a great option for Winter; add some diced cucumber and tomatoes to this Middle-Eastern rice and lentil dish; or pack up some of this Asian-Style Vegetable and Noodle Salad.

Other tips when you are making dinner:

• throw in some extra vegetables to roast
• cook up some extra rice or quinoa
• add an extra shank into the slow cooker, chicken thighs into the oven, fish patties into the frying pan.

And now…

Each Sunday spend up to an hour getting your lunch bowl ingredients organised for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, then prep again on Wednesdays for Thursday and Friday.
The 4 main components you need to prepare for the lunch bowl are VEGETABLES, PROTEIN, GRAINS/CARBS AND DRESSING. Always ensure you include some healthy fats, which can be found in some of the ingredients suggested below like avocado, olive oil, fish, meat, eggs, olive, cheese and nuts.

VEGETABLES

Vegetables can be raw, lightly steamed, roasted and a combination of all of them can be used in your salad

Here are some of the bounty you can choose from,choose seasonal and make sure to include at least 1 type of leafy green

Eat the Rainbow

• Cucumbers
• Red Capsicum
• Radish
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Green Beans
• Snow Peas
• Beetroot
• Cauliflower
• Eggplant
• Cucumber
• Potato
• Sweet Potato
• Corn
• Squash
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini
• Avocado
• Pumpkin
• Mushrooms
• Asparagus
• Olives
• Garlic
• Sundried Tomatoes
• Herbs like basil, parsley, coriander, mint

Greens

• Kale
• Baby Spinach
• Brocolli
• Spinach
• Rocket
• Asparagus
• Beet Greens (the leafy bit on top of beetroot)
• Bok Choy
• Brussel Sprouts
• Cabbage
• Celery
• Chard
• Lettuce
• Sprouts
• Watercress

Fruits which are also yummy in salads

• Grapes
• Figs
• Apple
• Pear
• Strawberries
• Mango
• Raspberries

PROTEIN

• Chicken
• Fish (including tinned wild caught salmon and sustainable tuna)
• Meat
• Eggs
• Nuts and Seeds
• Cheese – cheddar, parmesan regianno, halomi, fetta, gruyere, blue, goats
• Legumes/pulses -adzuki, red kidney, black, chickpeas, navy, pinto, lentils
• Tempeh

GRAINS/CARBOHYDRATE (optional)

• Basmati Rice
• Brown Rice
• Wild Rice
• Quinoa
• Rice or Buckwheat noodles
• Sweet Potato(starchy carb)
• Beans (starchy carb)
• Corn (starchy carb)
• Peas (starchy carb)

DRESSING

• Vinaigrette
• Sesame oil and tamari
• Olive oil,mustard and balsamic
• Fresh herbs, Olive Oil,Lemon
• Honey and tumeric
• Japanese Miso Dressing

ADD ONS

• Fermented Veges
• Dulse Flakes
• Nutrional Yeast
• Dried Herbs
• Spices
• Sesame,chia, poppy seeds

5 SALAD BOWL RECIPE IDEAS TO GET YOU STARTED

Warm Spinach Salad with Chicken, Bacon & Mushroom by Becomingness.

Tex-Mex Burrito Bowl  by me.

Spicy Quinoa, Apple and Kale Salad by The Holistic Ingredient.

Crunchy Asian Cabbage Salad by Low Tox Life.

10 minute Nourishing Dinner Bowl (which I think is perfect for lunch too!) by The Fit Foodie.

There you have it. With a bit of preparation, you can keep firing on all systems while you work, and get excited about your next lunch break.

Bren x

As it’s his favourite recipe from the book, we thought we would share it with everyone.

I kept his love of bold, punchy flavours in mind and I was absolutely bang on cause he LOVES this recipe!! Even my capsicum/coriander-sceptic (to put it mildly) daughter gobbles them up (what a relief to get all those extra veges into her!).

The best part is that they make a versatile breakfast (#thinkoutsidethecerealbox) lunch or dinner option.

Print

HEARTY BLACK BEAN AND SWEET CORN QUESADILLA

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 6

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 1 tin of black beans or you could kidney beans or a mix
• Juice of half a small lime
• Pinch of sea salt
• Cracked black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon chilli flakes or powder optional
• Quarter of a small red onion finely chopped
• Half a large corn on the cob kernels sliced off
• 2 tablespoons fresh coriander finely chopped
• Quarter of a large red capsicum finely chopped
• Half a zucchini finely chopped
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 5-6 Mountain Bread Wraps
• Sour cream
• Avocado roughly mashed with a squeeze of lemon or lime

Instructions

• Drain and rinse the black beans.
• Place the black beans in a large bowl and lightly crush with the back of a fork so some of the beans split open.
• Squeeze in the lime juice, adding salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, chilli flakes and stir.
• Add the rest of the ingredients and stir well.
• Heat a frying pan on medium heat.
• Place half a cup of the mix into the middle of a Mountain Bread wrap.
• Fold long side over, followed by short side, then long side then short side to make a package or pouch.
• Place folded side down into the frying pan and cook until lightly golden browned and crispy and cheese has melted.
• Using a spatula carefully flip the quesadilla and cook the other side until lightly golden brown.
• Either serve whole or cut into triangles and serve with a side of sour cream and/or guacamole.

Notes

We used Eden brand beans because they have been soaked overnight and thoroughly cooked to make them more digestible. They are additive free, and the cans are bisphenol-A (BPA) free. Winning!

If you’re looking for some lunch inspiration, take a look at my recipe ebook, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes. It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved!

Bren x

Last Saturday I had one of those days. I was unstoppable! Which is another way of saying I was in a snowball-like frenzy. Yes, we’ll mash anything in this house, whether it’s food or grammar! Anyway, while Master 10 and his dad were doing the cricket and golf run, Miss 7 and I had the kitchen production line set to 11, churning out a variety of beauties.

While I like to create my own recipes, I adore discovering, trialling and sharing recipes by other wellness mums. As a result, we had lots of nourishing goodies to see us through the week, which dramatically reduced the drama of ‘what should I cook today?’

Here’s what I made:

Nectarine sorbet

Thermie made this delicious icy treat with only 4 ingredients – nectarines, coconut sugar, egg white and ice cubes. We had it as a special after dinner treat over a few nights. Mr 10 is desperate for a mango version so I’ll get onto that this weekend.

Choc-Mint Fudge

This one was made specifically for the lunchboxes, but has been gobbled down by guests on two occasions for afternoon tea. I love the extra boost of nutrition with the addition of pepitas. Pepitas are full of goodness like magnesium, zinc and Omega 3’s.

The recipe is by Cut Out the Crap and you can find it here

Gluten-Free Banana bread

I am mindful of reducing the wheat and gluten load when cooking for my family, and this recipe by Alexx Stuart is a total gem. It’s the second time I’ve made it, but this time I included the ginger. The whole family enjoyed it toasted for breakfast with a side of cinnamon yoghurt and frozen berries.

Mayonnaise

This is the best recipe ever! Another thermomix recipe from the awesome Quirky Cooking. I didn’t add the shallots cause I didn’t have any, and raw shallots don’t really agree with me anyway. Also, I used a mix of Avocado, Macadamia and mild Olive Oil. We dolloped it over fried barramundi one night and chicken schnitzel the next and dipped our vegetables in it both nights. Mr 10 has requested some chicken schnitzel for his lunchbox and demonstrated the (huge) size of the container to be filled with mayonnaise to dip his schnitzel strips into!

Pizza

Thermomix sure got a work out today! Next on the list was pizza dough, which Thermie conjured in a flash. I use Quirky Cooking’s spelt flour pizza dough recipe. We made the dough for pizzas to have the following night and topped them with home-made pesto, lightly fried garlic, red onion and kale, fresh mushroom and goats cheese. And there were leftovers galore for the kids lunchboxes. Yipeee!

 

Huevos Rancheros and Vegetarian Nachos Sauce with Kidney Beans

I was exhausted by the end of the day, but had two hungry men heading home and Miss 7 starting to bug me about dinner. Somewhat ironically, I couldn’t think of a thing to make! A deep breath and a quick search later, and Quirky Cooking saves the day again. This recipe is sure to become a family staple, it took 10 minutes to make and hit the spot after a long, but productive, day in the kitchen.

I also had some brown rice soaking to cook the next day so I could make the kids some sushi rolls for their lunch boxes.

The next day I spent lazing about the beach and swimming in the ocean – it’s all about balance, after all!

Do you ever have the urge to cook all day? What do you like to make? I’d love to hear from you.

If you are keen to learn about how you can create nutritious real food lunchboxes and how to make some of my favourite lunchbox recipes, check out my next workshop here.

Bren x