Packing a School Lunch

[Heather]

Montgomery County schools start on August 28th, which means that I will be back in the school lunch grind soon. Our kids are 4 and 7, with pretty diverse tastes, but somehow wind up with the same lunches over and over...sandwich, piece of fruit, milk. Sometimes dessert, occasionally leftovers. I start the year with the best intentions and wind up in a rut by October.

So, I thought I'd ask the board for inspiration: what do your kids like?

[bookluvingbabe]

No kids but I'm fascinated by the Vegan Lunch Box blog.

http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/

[zoramargolis]

My daughter goes to a private school where lunch is provided as part of the tuition. High school aged kids can leave campus at lunch to buy food, but no one except the devoutly religious or the very allergic bring food from home. The cafeteria food gives the kids a convenient target for adolescent rebellion and general snarkiness, which takes a little pressure off of the teachers and administrators. As a body-conscious vegetarian teenage girl, she grazes at the salad bar or skips lunch altogether ("I was too busy studying!") and then buys a Starbuck's cappucino after school.

When she went to public school and brought lunch from home, I had some influence over what she ate. She liked it when I sent a wide-mouth thermos with soup (black bean with sliced hot dog was her favorite), chili, mac and cheese or pasta. She felt very grown-up when I sent hot water in the thermos and she had a dehydrated cous-cous, bean or noodle cup from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's to pour it into. This obviously would not work for a four year-old, but Emma could handle it.

Another popular change from sandwiches was cheese, crackers and apple slices (almost as good as a Lunchable). Chips, salsa and guacamole was HUGE--then everyone wanted to sit with her at lunch.

[hillvalley]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Some of us are in denial that it is already August.

[Waitman]

When annoyed at the teachers, we used to send our kids to school with Pixi Sticks, chocolate and Mountain Dew.

What they really like? Leftover red beands and rice from Popeyes and the corn/spinach combo from heritage of India.

Otherwise they were boring as hell. Lotta yoghurt.

[lizzie]

Heather - my kids go to a school with no cafeteria, so every day since pre-kindergarten (one is now in 10th grade, one in 5th) I have packed lunch and a snack (and frequently breakfast to eat in the car on the way). One year I even wrote a small lunch-packing primer based on a class/parent survey. I will preface the following by saying that my kids are not picky and will eat just about anything lukewarm or cold that most people want heated, so many of these ideas may not fly with your child. We also make frequent use of a high-quality, glass-insulated thermos. I try to include the following each day - an entree, fruit, veggie, a dairy, something crunchy/salty, and something that brings happiness (cookies, fruit snacks, a few Hershey Kisses, etc).

Anyway, some long-time favorites include:

-noodles and peas with some butter or olive oil to prevent them sticking together. Tortellini is a particular favorite

- sesame noodles with peanut sauce

-baked potato - mash the insides with some cheese or add broccoli (I throw them in the oven when I wake up and in an hour, the potato is nicely cooked and double wrapped in foil stays relateively warm until lunch)

-breakfast for lunch - a bowl of cereal - just add the school-provided milk; hard-boiled egg;

- quesadillas

- rice and beans or taco fixings in a thermos - wrap the tortillas separately

- hummus and veggies with pita (the Container Store has a great container that has a separate section in the middle for hummus and the veggies fit around it, so nothing touches - this is also good for peanut butter and crackers or fruit to dip.)

- chicken nuggets/fingers (I always make these from scratch) and the kids like them cold

- leftover chinese in a thermos, or dumplings

-cold pizza

-corn on the cob

-muffins - everything from peanut butter and jelly to banana, zucchini, or pumpkin

- edamame or sugar snap peas

-empanadas

-fried rice in a thermos

-baguette with any of the following - butter, brie, a sharp cheese with apple slices, or a million other things

There is a new issue of the Martha Stewart kids Ideas magazine in the grocery and book stores that has great lunch ideas - these may be on-line as well. We also use the Williams-Sonoma Kids Cook cookbook for ideas.

Good luck - and please share any favorites in your house.

[Tweaked]

I ate the same lunch every day throughout high school and loved it. Cafeteria school food sucks.

2 Marmite sandwiches on store bought white bread

a small bag of Lay's potato chips

a Little Debbie snack cake (usually Star Crunch)

piece of fruit

2 chocolate milks

[DanielK]

I guess I have it the easy way out.

I just send the school a check for $4.50 a day (month at a time) for 2 kids school lunch, and they enter their PIN at the cafeteria each day and get the school lunch. No cash, no problem.

In the end, it's probably cheaper than buying groceries, I don't have to deal with fixing (or forgetting to fix) lunch, and I know the kids get a reasonably nutritious (if not especially tasty) lunch.

The very first day when my son entered school, we made it abundantly clear that he WOULD find something to eat in the cafeteria, even if he just ate the piece of fruit and drank the milk. I think he complained once the first year when he didn't see something he liked amongst the choices. The lack of compassion at dinner that night has prevented any further complaints. My daugher starts this fall, and though she's a pickier eater, she already understands the drill.

Signed, ate school lunch every single day from K-12, and lived to tell about it.

[Heather]

I would take the cafeteria route, but after the initial thrill wore off the quality of the cafeteria food got a big thumbs down.

Emma loves hummous, so I send it pretty frequently, along with pita, celery, and olives.

I have been pleased to discover Horizon organic milk in single serve boxes. I have some reusable rubbermaid drink containers, but the straw always leaks and stale milk is a bad lunchbox smell.

[Mrs. B]

Aarghh. I detest making lunch but have no choice. Gogurt sometimes frozen sometimes not or some other yogurt product, fruit cup (the kind with jello serves as dessert too), applesauce and or fresh fruit sometimes cherry tomatoes or baby carrots, crackers or chips sometimes with sliced cheddar or salami, Pop-tart or cookies or some other sweet for dessert. Day in, day out tossing mostly pre-packaged crap at my child really gets me going in the morning (not at my kid really into her lunch box). I keep the Lunchables to a minimum, too much salt and cardboard. Sandwiches are not in Nora's culinary vocabulary. During the winter if the thermos is not lost or broken, any left over pasta, soup or beans.

[jm chen]

For a different twist on the sandwich, put Italian cold cuts (I loved hard salami) on a roll and include a small sealable container (I had those little black things film comes in) of Italian dressing. Would also work with roast beef and feta (tzatiki or Greek dressing), Asian flavors, etc. Still a sandwich, but not the same sandwich.

[dinwiddie]

I usually gave my son the classics, you know them:

A melange of tuna and celery hearts in a fresh Hellman's sauce with a side of carrot lardoons or

a peanut puree lightly garnished with jelled grape essence and nestled in a bed of pain blanc.

[DanielK]

I would take the cafeteria route, but after the initial thrill wore off the quality of the cafeteria food got a big thumbs down.

You just didn't stay the course, that's all. We passed through the thumbs down and out the other side. Now he prints out the monthly menu and chooses his lunch a month at a time...

[legant]

I try to include the following each day - an entree, fruit, veggie, a dairy, something crunchy/salty, and something that brings happiness (cookies, fruit snacks, a few Hershey Kisses, etc).

Damn Lizzie! Will you make MY lunch? Sounds far better than anything I can buy downtown for $8.47. Believe me: I will be much more appreciative than any other kid on the planet!

[Jacques Gastreaux]

Just make sure that they get something from each of the 3 major food groups: sugar, grease and salt.

[PollyG]

My mother, generally a good and creative cook, was a total failure when it came to school lunches. The worst had to be the year she was clerking for the state supreme court; I am fairly certain it was kosher salami and mustard on Pepperidge Farm bread with a mealy Red Delicious appleevery day of that school year. The only positive thing about it was that I avoided the school's cafeteria fare, which was Southern overcooked everything.

Needless to say, I'm not trying to recreate my lunchbox trauma for Naomi. We bought several kid's bento box sets from Super H. They have 3 compartments on the top layer and 1 on the bottom layer. In theory, the bottom layer is for rice. It's also about the right size for a half sandwich. The 3 compartments on the top pretty much force me to make sure she gets some variety with her lunch. Generally they hold grape tomatoes, carrot sticks, and a third fruit or vegetable.

Naomi's absolute favorite sandwich is a peanut butter and mini-robin egg sandwich. But you have to plan ahead for those since robin eggs are only available around Easter time. She also likes peanut butter and nutella, cream cheese and butter on matzoh, rice balls, and soba. She's okay with PB&J, but not wild about it. She also flips all over the place about whether or not she likes yogurt. The truth is that she gets suckered by advertising into begging for yogurt marketed to kids, but finds it too sweet. The Dannon whipped yogurts seem to work.

The Container Store (and possibly your local grocery store) has Rubbermaid juice box shaped drink containers with a straw. These can be very handy if you don't want to get suckered into paying the high price for juice boxes.

Ironically, though Naomi has enjoyed her lunches, she is currently looking forward to attending a public school with a cafeteria. It's a novelty. We'll see how long that lasts.

[Heather]

-->

QUOTE(Mrs. B @ Aug 9 2006, 03:10 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Day in, day out tossing mostly pre-packaged crap at my child really gets me going in the morning (not at my kid really into her lunch box). I keep the Lunchables to a minimum, too much salt and cardboard.

Emma gets some packaged stuff, mostly for the novelty (for her) and convenience (for me). I rationalize it by buying the "organic" version. Earth's Best makes little carrot packs with a wee cup of ranch dressing that she thinks are the bee's knees.

She used to love pudding occasionally, so I was really irked when Horizon stopped making their pudding cups. The Jello and Swiss Miss varieties have way too much crap in the them and making pudding from scratch isn't part of my morning routine.

I usually gave my son the classics, you know them:

A melange of tuna and celery hearts in a fresh Hellman's sauce with a side of carrot lardoons or

a peanut puree lightly garnished with jelled grape essence and nestled in a bed of pain blanc.

My daughter would eat tuna fish or PB & J every day if I let her. She loves tuna so much that I worry about her mercury consumption.

[mdt]

I am depressed with all of this talk of school lunches and not one mention of THE best sandwich.

[Heather]

I am depressed with all of this talk of school lunches and not one mention of THE best sandwich.

Ah, the fluffernutter. I love them. My kids won't touch them.

Is it a regional thing? I'm originally from the Boston area and ate them all the time. Scott's grew up in New Orleans and had never heard of them until he was a teenager.

[MBK]

Ah, the fluffernutter. I love them. My kids won't touch them.

Is it a regional thing? I'm originally from the Boston area and ate them all the time. Scott's grew up in New Orleans and had never heard of them until he was a teenager.

I think it may be. I grew up in Louisiana too, and I don't remember hearing of them til some reference on tv in high school.

Another good peanut butter combo -- grilled peanut butter and banana -- had this for the first time at Graceland and was sold. And the messy option I always took to lunch as a kid, peanut butter and honey. Delish!

[mdt]

Ah, the fluffernutter. I love them. My kids won't touch them.

Is it a regional thing? I'm originally from the Boston area and ate them all the time. Scott's grew up in New Orleans and had never heard of them until he was a teenager.

You have ruined your kids with your good cooking!

It is pretty regional as Fluff is made in MA and was only locally shipped. The crap that Kraft makes called Marshmallow Creme is not the same. Anyway has been available in Giant grocery stores ever since Stop&Shop merged with Giant.

[lizzie]

I am depressed with all of this talk of school lunches and not one mention of THE best sandwich.

I have one daughter who is a huge Fluffernutter fan, and they continue to make their way into my lunches occassionally, totally grossing out my colleagues. The biggest problem here is finding Marshmallow Fluff, which we prefer to the Kraft brand. My other daughter will not touch Fluff or peanut butter, but is a long time devotee of Nutella.

[mdt]

I have one daughter who is a huge Fluffernutter fan, and they continue to make their way into my lunches occassionally, totally grossing out my colleagues. The biggest problem here is finding Marshmallow Fluff, which we prefer to the Kraft brand. My other daughter will not touch Fluff or peanut butter, but is a long time devotee of Nutella.

See post directly above yours.

[Heather]

Aha! That explains it.

As for Marshmallow Creme...just close your eyes and try to pretend that it doesn't exist.

OK, kids, no more olive oil packed tuna and homemade jam. It's Fluff for you from now on!

[hillvalley]

Anyone else craving a fluffernutter right about now

[Principia]

I think it may be. I grew up in Louisiana too, and I don't remember hearing of them til some reference on tv in high school.

Another good peanut butter combo -- grilled peanut butter and banana -- had this for the first time at Graceland and was sold. And the messy option I always took to lunch as a kid, peanut butter and honey. Delish!

And the inimitable hot fluffernutter and banana combo. I think one of the local sammich joints does this with Nutella in there too.

I always found the peanut butter and honey worked a lot better with spun honey.

[thistle]

School lunches-my kids, who are 7 & 11, have mixed reactions... My son, Tom, who's older, is happy to eat anything at the school cafeteria (he went away to 2 summer camps this year & raved about the food), my daughter, who is younger, frequently asks me to pack a lunch (very boring-ham sandwich, no crusts, carrots, apple or other fruit, juice or CL lemonade)-she's already asked me to pack a lunch for the first day of school...

They're strange kids-no PB&J, no spaghetti (my mom is like, 'what kid doesn't like pasta?'), only PLAIN rice, chicken, veg...

[legant]

I know schools are winding down, but here are some ideas for summer day camp lunches.

[dinwiddie]

I know schools are winding down, but here are some ideas for summer day camp lunches.

Those are quite inventive.

My kid is in college now so I haven't made lunch for him in a few years (he preferred to buy lunch when he was going to high school since it was a block from Dupont Circle) but one sandwich that he thought was pretty cool was putting peanut butter in a hot dog roll with a whole banana. Typically his lunch would consist of a sandwich (varied kinds, he did like tuna) two pieces of fruit, a pudding cup, and a bag of cookies or crackers. He would buy milk (or so he said, I bet it was really a soda).

[V.H.]

I was wondering how successful people have been packing warm/hot things in their child's lunches. My daughter started kindergarten this year and we are going the packed lunch route. We got a nice kid's drink cup made by the good folks at Thermos which keeps her milk cold all day without needing an ice pack. I'm now looking at their line of food jars and wondering how practical it would be to put hot things in them other than just soup or chili. Specifically, Lily would love to have something like rice and meat or mac and cheese in her lunch.

[pizza man]

I usually gave my son the classics, you know them:

A melange of tuna and celery hearts in a fresh Hellman's sauce with a side of carrot lardoons or

a peanut puree lightly garnished with jelled grape essence and nestled in a bed of pain blanc.

can a mod move this to the trite foods section, please? It's popping up on menus everywhere...

[Mrs. B]

I was wondering how successful people have been packing warm/hot things in their child's lunches. My daughter started kindergarten this year and we are going the packed lunch route. We got a nice kid's drink cup made by the good folks at Thermos which keeps her milk cold all day without needing an ice pack. I'm now looking at their line of food jars and wondering how practical it would be to put hot things in them other than just soup or chili. Specifically, Lily would love to have something like rice and meat or mac and cheese in her lunch.

We have packed spaghetti, chili, stews, red beans & rice in the food jars with sucess.

[goldenticket]

I was wondering how successful people have been packing warm/hot things in their child's lunches. My daughter started kindergarten this year and we are going the packed lunch route. We got a nice kid's drink cup made by the good folks at Thermos which keeps her milk cold all day without needing an ice pack. I'm now looking at their line of food jars and wondering how practical it would be to put hot things in them other than just soup or chili. Specifically, Lily would love to have something like rice and meat or mac and cheese in her lunch.

That looks like it should do the trick - since it says it keeps hot foods (and not specifically liquids) hot for 5 hours. Not having any current experience in the school lunch packing arena, my only reference is the Thermos thingy my mom used for my lunches (way back when). It worked well and my tomato soup was always hot at lunch time. I can only imagine the technology has improved since then

[Sthitch]

It worked well and my tomato soup was always hot at lunch time. I can only imagine the technology has improved since then

I cannot remember the last time I had a hankering for Campbell's Alphabet soup (or even eaten it for that matter), until I read your post and my thoughts went back to opening my thermos on a damp winter day and discovering it still hot and welcoming.

[Anna Blume]

Montgomery County schools start on August 28th, which means that I will be back in the school lunch grind soon. Our kids are 4 and 7, with pretty diverse tastes, but somehow wind up with the same lunches over and over...sandwich, piece of fruit, milk. So, I thought I'd ask the board for inspiration: what do your kids like?

I was allergic to wheat and dairy when I was that age. Mostly what I remember were sandwich-wannabes with one slice boloney, yellow mustard, one slice Kraft singles [logic there? milk in moderation, perhaps], one slice Iceberg lettuce, repeat, repeat. Cut in quarters, held together with toothpicks.

No cookies. Fruit. Little bags of potato chips. Tiny Mounds bars.

Then in winter, the wide-mouth thermos with crinkle-cut french fries in the bottom, foil divider, corned beef hash. Soup. Stew. Cut up hot dog in baked beans.

Felt so weird.

A couple of weeks ago, someone walked up to me and said her name.

"Didn't you go to Davis Street Elementary School?" I asked.

The Yankee replied, "Anna Blume! You look just the same!!! God, how I wanted the kinds of lunches you brought!"

Judging by the stuff in the basement of Rodman's, thermoses are back in a big way. At The Container Store, there are all these cool Bento-box type of contraptions w differently-sized sections for nibbles and such.

[DanielK]

Our kids (one in ES one in MS) continue to thrive on Montgomery County Mystery Meat.

No more losing lunch money - they have special debit cards for use in the school cafeterias, that I recharge every month.

[goodeats]

So, I thought I'd ask the board for inspiration: what do your kids like?

I think this was the only latch-key part that I enjoyed as a kid -- shopping and packing my own lunches since I was 7. My mom didn't have time, so she taught me how to make my own lunches (which consisted mostly of sandwiches). I think it built my independence skills and still appreciate it (even though other kids' lunches were better somedays).

That looks like it should do the trick - since it says it keeps hot foods (and not specifically liquids) hot for 5 hours. Not having any current experience in the school lunch packing arena, my only reference is the Thermos thingy my mom used for my lunches (way back when).

The only part that I am still concerned about (although I'm not there yet) is to keep the lid screwed on tight and correctly. I just remember having something similar to the food jar V.H. posted, and while it kept things hot, one time, I didn't have the lid screwed on right, and well, lunch was a miss that day.

[V.H.]

Judging by the stuff in the basement of Rodman's, thermoses are back in a big way. At The Container Store, there are all these cool Bento-box type of contraptions w differently-sized sections for nibbles and such.

We got this sandwich cube contraption from The Container Store with a closed compartment for a sandwich on the one side and two open compartments on the other side. It works well for dry things and cuts down on plastic baggies. I've been wanting to go back and look at their other containers.

Thermos are definitely back in a big way. Those food jars I linked to are sold out locally and in most online places too.

[Saycheese]

My kid went through a taco phase, during which I took a rectangular tupperware container and divided it into 3 compartments with artistically folded tin foil. Ground beef cooked with taco seasoning went into one compartment, shredded lettuce went into another, and diced tomato went into the third. Shredded cheddar cheese went into a snack size ziploc bag, and salsa and sour cream went into little plastic cups with lids (recycled from take out meals). Taco shells went into a separate ziploc bag. She also went through a much simpler phase of wanting prosciutto-wrapped melon day after day. Sandwiches were never an option.

[Night Owl]

We got this sandwich cube contraption from The Container Store with a closed compartment for a sandwich on the one side and two open compartments on the other side. It works well for dry things and cuts down on plastic baggies. I've been wanting to go back and look at their other containers.

Thermos are definitely back in a big way. Those food jars I linked to are sold out locally and in most online places too.

We're using the same Container Store sandwich "bento" for our daughter -- it's great! The perfect size. In the continued quest to cut down on disposable waste, they also sell a great fork-knife-spoon combo you can pack for your kid (http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=74067&PRODID=10021291)... they were sold out of it right before the school year started, but it's back in stock.

As for thermal bentos for the kids to use, I've just ordered the zorosushi mini (this site has the best price I've found: http://www.ecrater.com/product.php?pid=2454338), so our daughter is psyched since she loves warm lunches...

[V.H.]

The school packing adventures are going well. Things I've learned:

-kindergartners talk more than they eat, unless you pack dessert that they can only have if they finish lunch

-homemade bittersweet chocolate pudding is way more successful than Oreos in getting your kid to eat their lunch

-the food jars keep the food warm but are really hard for kindergartners to open

-the thermos drink containers are awesome at keeping milk cold, even until the end of the school day

Very few of the kids seem to buy lunch and those that do don't seem to eat very much of it, based on my two lunch time visits. It's interesting to see the spreads that the packers bring. One boy gets a plate along with his containers of food and sets out his lunch on his plate before eating. Another girl has a food jar and brings a warm lunch frequently. Everyone is always interested in what everyone else has and there is lots of comparing but no trading.

[Anna Blume]

It's that time of year and this topic was lively long ago, but I'm hoping for more insights.

I'm interested in knowing a bit more about food taboos among schoolchildren and how to avoid them, including lunch boxes themselves as well as their contents.

Any food trends out there in the cafeteria to work around?

Marketing tips for getting kids to go ga-ga over simple, fresh preparations of seasonal food ( yes, I'm on my soapbox again, sorry ) without hitting them over the head with overdetermined signifiers?

[goodeats]

I'm interested in knowing a bit more about food taboos among schoolchildren and how to avoid them, including lunch boxes themselves as well as their contents.

Here is a do not send list from the little man's school:

What NOT to send

- For children three years of age or younger, foods easily causing choking, such as, but not limited to, hard candy, popcorn, raisins, seeds, nuts, whole hot dogs, hot dogs sliced into rounds, uncut grapes, raw carrots, apple chunks, fruit rolls and fruit gels are not recommended. Because of our mixed age classrooms, these foods are avoided in the PrePrimary, morning Primary, and Extended Day program.

- Foods containing red dye (such as Jell-O) are not to be served. DO NOT send in foods that squirt (like squeeze yogurt), candy, or soda for snacks or lunches.

- Our classrooms have children with a life-threatening allergy to peanuts and tree nuts. In order to minimize their risk of exposure, you are asked to completely avoid nut products of any kind, including peanut oil, for snack, lunch and crafts.

- Please do not send foods with trans fats.

- Please do not send any other foods to which children in the class have a life-threatening allergy.

[Heather]

The kids are 8 & 11, and I am working full time now. The choices will be to make your own lunch the night before, or buy. Frankly, I am fine if they want to buy lunch. We waste so much food here (because no one has time to prepare it) that the fewer groceries brought into the house, the happier I will be. Emma is looking forward to having salads as an option in middle school. Ian will eat school lunch most days, and bring a salami or peanut butter sandwich on the others.

[hillvalley]

Any food trends out there in the cafeteria to work around?

Marketing tips for getting kids to go ga-ga over simple, fresh preparations of seasonal food ( yes, I'm on my soapbox again, sorry ) without hitting them over the head with overdetermined signifiers?

If you want kids to try new veggies let them literally play with their food. Dips are a great place to start. Make pizzas or wraps using pita bread or English muffins with veggies as toppings. Provide cut up veggies and let them make shapes and pictures using the different veggies and then eat the pictures.

When I taught and incorporated food into lessons the number one rule was you had to try everything twice. Often kids claim they don't like something just because they are trying something new. On the second try they are a little more open.

When sending food in a container make sure the kid can open it on their own. If there is access to a microwave remember that there are other kids who need to use it too so don't send foods that need a long warm up/cooking time.

[dcs]

If you want kids to try new veggies let them literally play with their food. Dips are a great place to start.

Hommos from Lebanese Taverna packed in a small tupperware with some mimi pitas and carrots is a big hit with our youngest for school lunch.

[PollyG]

- Please do not send foods with trans fats.

I wonder how much collective eye-rolling that one has caused.

The older your kids get, the more they are likely to refuse any lunch foods that aren't mainstream. My daughter loved rice balls in her lunch at age 5, despite the confused classmate who thought they were raisins. (Sure, Marissa, they're three inch, white, triangular raisins.) At age 8 or 9, she started resisting them because they're not what all the other kids have in their lunch boxes, and the little white bread fascists other kids notice and are not kind about this. Last year, at age 10, I was still able to slip the occasional dish of cold soba into her lunch, and she seems okay with all types of soup.

Fresh fruit, especially berries of all types, continues to be a hit. I just need to clear things like dragon fruit before including them into my conformist's lunch pail.

Avoid glass-lined insulated soup containers. My daughter's helpful classmates managed to unscrew the bottom of one of them last year, dumping the glass interior and breaking it. There are some good stainless steel mini-containers (Target, among others, stocks them) and they seem to hold liquids hot until lunchtime if you pre-warm them with hot water.

I have a small collection of kid's bento containers. Most of the Korean markets in our area stock a few of them. They also have a lot of small serving sized plastic containers with a gasket and four locking flaps on the sides. Those have proven durable and liquid-tight.

[zoramargolis]

The older your kids get, the more they are likely to refuse any lunch foods that aren't mainstream. My daughter loved rice balls in her lunch at age 5, despite the confused classmate who thought they were raisins. (Sure, Marissa, they're three inch, white, triangular raisins.) At age 8 or 9, she started resisting them because they're not what all the other kids have in their lunch boxes, and the little white bread fascists other kids notice and are not kind about this. Last year, at age 10, I was still able to slip the occasional dish of cold soba into her lunch, and she seems okay with all types of soup.

This really brought back a lot of memories. Before we moved to DC, my daughter attended a Los Angeles pre-school/kindergarten, Play Mountain Place, an alternative Summerhill-model school that was started in the late 1940's and where the 1960's were still very much alive. (Naked body-painting was a popular activity.) I loved most things about the school, one notable exception being the hegemony of the sugar police. There was a pervasive belief among an influential group of parents and teachers that sugar caused hyperactivity, when the actual cause of wild behavior was the absence of structure...

Nothing with sugar or honey was permitted in anyone's lunch, even homemade treats. Fruit and 100% fruit juice was ok, but some hardcore vegetarian parents wanted to ban meat and fish, and vegans wanted no dairy or eggs on top of that, because the kids would swap. I remember one sad little boy whose macrobiotic mother would typically send him to school with a container of stewed winter squash, and he would beg and plead to be given bites of other kids' tuna sandwiches...

Wildly popular was Annie's Goddess Dressing--the kids loved dunking carrot, cucumber and celery sticks in that. Also there was a big fad of sticky rice balls with soy sauce, and also bringing cold sticky rice and separately bagged nori, so that they could make their own "sushi." One girl started a fad of whole wheat bread with mustard and alfalfa sprout sandwiches that we had to provide so my daughter could be "in" with her friends.

When she started first grade in a DC public school, it was a whole different story--the "in" lunch was Oscar Mayer Lunchables. Oy. Soup, pasta or chili in a thermos worked, however. In fifth grade she moved to a private school that provided lunch, which solved the what to send dilemma. The food was cooked from scratch and there were always sandwich, soup and salad bar alternatives if the kids didn't like the hot entree.

[Anna Blume]

I wonder what the percentage of lunch-packers is these days given the pervasiveness of lunch programs in both public and private schools--and whether there's an unstated cut-off age.

I'm guessing a lot of parents send very young kids off with a little bit of home--or recognition of special tastes, favorite treats.

* * *

Great idea I heard today: hummus or dip in the bottom of a small, lidded container with thinly sliced vegetables standing upright in it.

[PollyG]

I wonder what the percentage of lunch-packers is these days given the pervasiveness of lunch programs in both public and private schools--and whether there's an unstated cut-off age.

I'm guessing a lot of parents send very young kids off with a little bit of home--or recognition of special tastes, favorite treats.

* * *

Great idea I heard today: hummus or dip in the bottom of a small, lidded container with thinly sliced vegetables standing upright in it.

My daughter despises the school's cafeteria. I've never eaten the fare from her current elementary school, but I can say that the Thanksgiving "feast" at Armstrong Elementary in Reston seems to be designed to convince parents to never make their kids eat the school's food again. Parents are invited to join the kids for lunch and it is largely inedible, consisting of sad shreds of turkey "loaf" drowned in gloppy salty brown goo, grey beans, and gluey potatoes. It must be depressing to work in that kitchen.

That being said, there are plenty of kids eating the cafeteria's fare at her current school, but there are also a lot of kids qualified for the free lunch program. Very few of the kids who aren't qualified for free lunch seem to buy the school lunch.