I’ve been gradually moving away from all things plastic, so I did my research (i.e. stalked Facebook threads) and asked around. I also asked my kids what style, size, shape they wanted, finally deciding that stainless steel was going be a ‘cool’ way to go – cool for them given their shiny and slick appearance, and cool for me because they are earth friendly, chemical-fee, sustainable and super easy to clean.

Each day the kids take a smaller box for recess – U Konserve Rectangle Container which has a divider which makes it extra versatile because the divider can be removed and used as a larger lunchbox as well.

For lunch they take a large bento style box –  Lunchbots Trio. My kids are very active and therefore hungry all the time and I find the size of the boxes to be perfect to contain enough food to sustain them through the day.

I’ve also got a Thermos 450ml Wide Mouth Food Jar with Folding Spoon  and Goodbyn Insulated Food Jar 12oz 350ml. In these containers I pack soups, pastas, stews, all hot meals really and also cold salads and things like bircher muesli, yoghurt, fruit and granola. The Goodbyn comes in Black or Pink.

For bread rolls stuffed with healthy fillings I just can’t go past the awesome 4MyEarth sandwich wraps. We’ve had ours for years so we’ve got the Combie design but I’ve noticed some new designs which I love like this OceanLife and Flamingo.

And for water bottles I just can’t go past Klean Kanteen stainless steel.

I love everything about these bento style boxes, bags and water bottles and it makes adding vibrant, nourishing foods to the repertoire so much easier.

Here’s a snapshot of how I pack them. Recess is chunks of rockmelon and a savoury muffin and sweet muffin.

Lunch contains organic home popped popcorn with lots of good quality butter and sea salt, chopped up organic vegetables, and spinach and cheese Mountain Bread toasties (the kids also like to add ham or chicken to these, but we had none left).

The kids were on lunch duty while I got breaky ready. Getting your kids in the kitchen from a young age has so many rewards! Read more here.

A bit of prep on Sunday made lunch boxes a breeze come Monday morning with Mountain Bread Pizza with some homemade tomato pizza sauce, ham, olives, baby spinach and mozzerella cheese and some vegetable sticks plus a piece of Cardamom-Spice Cake.

That should keep them going until the barge through the door at 3.15pm asking for more food!

If you’re looking for more lunchbox recipe inspiration take a look at my 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 take the guess work out of what delicious, healthy food to make your kids for lunch!

Other post you might like are:
10 Warm and Hot Meals to Pack for School Lunches
10 Savoury School Lunchbox Ideas
17 Sweet and Easy School Lunchbox Recipes

Bren x

Most kids love pancakes for breakfast and they are super handy to pop into lunchboxes for a healthy treat.

It is enough for breakfast, and to pop into kids lunchboxes with a spread of raw honey and/or for savoury lunch pancakes. You can cook up the whole batch or save the wet ingredients in the fridge to cook up later.

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!

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Sunflower seeds
Chia seeds
Spelt flour
Buckwheat flour
Cinnamon
Aluminum-free Baking powder
Raw honey
Milk

The standard pancakes I make my kids use low- gluten flour, good quality eggs, milk and butter, which are all full of wonderful goodness.

As an experiment, I decided to add in some extra protein/good fats/healthy carbs in the form of ‘seed-meal’ (my term for ground-up seeds). Adding in some ripe banana  and cinnamon proves to be a great way to reduce the amount of sweetener required, whilst boosting that all important tryptohphan which helps to keep their spirits up for the day. The experiment was a success with the kids gobbling these down with glee!

To save time, you can even make this mixture the night before, ready to be turned into these tasty little delights in the morning.

Print

Banana Cinnamon Pancakes

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 cup spelt flour
• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons raw honey optional
• 1-2 cups milk we do 1 cup because we like a nice thick pancake
• 2 eggs lightly beaten
• 2-3 medium ripe bananas mashed

Instructions

• Process seeds in a food processor until they resemble fine crumbs
• In a bowl mix the mix the seeds, flour, baking powder and cinnamon
• In a separate bowl mix honey, milk, eggs and bananas
• Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients
• Pop a medium frypan on medium heat and melt some butter or coconut oil (I like using a mix of both)
• Ladle in the pancake mixture and flip once sizzling
• Serve on it's own, in lunchboxes or with some whipped cream and berries.

If you make these pancakes please do take photos and send them to me.

If you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek. Otherwise feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook. I get a total kick out of seeing you bring my recipes to life.

You may also like to try my Favourite Granola Recipe too.

Enjoy!

Bren x

My special Cyber week ‘Cleanse for Life Bundle focuses on many areas of cleansing and recipes are a big part!

The recipes I have created Naturopath Naomi Judge for the program are aimed at cleansing and nourishing the body, balancing blood sugars and hormones, all without the feeling of deprivation that so many diet plans create.

As life gets busier, we all need to monitor how and what we eat, and clearly the easier the preparation the better!

The Chicken Burrito is an easy recipe from our menu that will satisfy the whole family.

It’s fun, fresh, satisfying, and, importantly, enables the digestive system to take a break whilst eliminating toxins from the body.

Print

Chicken Burrito

Prep Time 5 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek & Naomi Judge

Ingredients

• Avocado
• Cumin
• Lettuce cups
• Shaved or sliced cooked chicken
• Diced tomatoes
• Lebanese cucumbers diced
• Chopped spring onions
• Green or black olives sliced
• Lime
• Add your favourite fresh herbs

Instructions

• Mash your avocado with a fork, add cumin to taste. Set aside.
• Plate your lettuce cups and top avocado followed by a squeeze of lime.
• Add chicken or protein, tomatoes, cucumbers, spring onions and olives.

Notes

Greek yoghurt mixed with chopped mint.

If you want to find out more about The ‘Cleanse for Life’ Bundle CLICK HERE.

Bren x

Grab your FREE copy of my 'CALM YOUR CORTISOL' recipe book to soothe your cortisol and start your journey to high energy, fast metabolism, and feeling like yourself again!

We literally throw in a bit of this and a bit of that. But there are some constant main ingredients which provide a combination of nutrients which are going to keep us healthy and strong.

Within minutes we can blend up a healthy breakfast or snack which couldn’t be further from the processed white bread or sugared-up cereals often consumed for breakfast. It’s clean, it’s live, it’s delicious & nutritious!

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Almond Milk/ coconut water
Raw honey
Raw cashews
Cinnamon
Vanilla powder

Here’s one of my family’s favourite combinations:

Print

Super Smoothie

Prep Time 3 minutes

Cook Time 3 minutes

Total Time 6 minutes

Servings 4

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 3 cups of milk coconut water & flesh or almond milk (your preference)
• ½ large ripe avocado has a neutral taste but thickens up the smoothie to an ice-cream like consistency
• 2 small frozen bananas broken up
• 1 – 2 scoops of frozen raspberries
• 1-2 teaspoons raw honey optional
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup natural yogurt
• Handful of raw cashews
• A nice pinch of cinnamon
• A pinch of vanilla powder optional
• Ice

Instructions

• Pop all these ingredients into the blender
• Blend & taste (the fruit, bananas and cinnamon usually provide enough sweetness for our family, but if you need a little extra, add the raw honey or some medjool dates)
• Pour and enjoy

Notes

Overipe bananas & mangoes can be frozen and used in smoothies
Freeze smoothie overnight, pop into lunchbox in the morning, should thaw by lunchtime : )

Check out these 6 health benefits you and your family will get from the wonderful nutritious ingredients:

1. Coconut – the water is low-calorie and high in electrolytes, the meat has healing properties because of it’s high lauric acid content
2. Natural yogurt – is a high-quality protein, is rich in vitamins and minerals & is a wonderful natural probiotic
3. Nut butter – great source of protein, good fats and dietary fibre
4. Cinnamon – provides flavor and natural sweetness, digestion and good for blood sugar levels
5. Avocado – It’s considered a superfood and contains good fats & has beautifying qualities
6. Raspberries – are low GI and jam-packed full of anti-oxidants

Why not whizz up this smoothie to a lick-your- lips experience! Or create your own version this week and drop me a line and let me know your favourite combinations.