5 Fantastic Sandwich Alternatives For The Lunch Box

Chances are, you’ll start the school year with a desire to get creative and leave the boring old sandwich behind. But you’ll end up packing them anyway because they’re easy to make and more likely to be eaten. And that’s OK – I do it too!

But … if you are searching for some sandwich alternatives, I have some ideas.

5 easy alternatives to sandwiches

1: Choose different bread

Use a different bread such as pita pockets or naan folded in half much like a soft taco shell and fill with a grated salad (try a carrot, cucumber, cheese and lettuce mix).

Or pack a Greek-style salad and a dollop of yoghurt dip so they can stuff a salad pita themselves. Or they could just tear the pita into strips and eat along with the salad.

2: Breakfast for lunch

There is nothing nutritionally amiss about an individual container of bircher muesli with grated apple and a serve of yoghurt. By the time lunch rolls around it’ll be nice and soaked up and ready to eat. Perfect for those kids who like to spend lunchtime standing up playing handball while taking great mouthfuls of their lunch.

Simply measure out around half a cup of bircher muesli (nut-free if you need to) into a portable soup container (or other suitable container). Then top with milk to cover over the level of the muesli by about 5mm (to allow for soaking). Grate over an apple, then add a couple of tablespoons of yoghurt. If your child prefers their muesli with more crunch, just pop the milk into a non-spill container for them to add when they’re ready. Don’t forget to pop in a chilly pad to keep it cool.

3: Make pancakes healthy

For a really healthy twist on pancakes, use wholemeal, spelt or oat flours with yoghurt or coconut cream added to the liquids, as well as some mashed banana or diced berries thrown in. You can make these the night before, then butter and stack up inside a sandwich box. Include a piece of fresh fruit or some chopped vegetable sticks for a lunch that’s sure to be gobbled up.

4: Pasta salad

Pasta salads are perfect served cold and can include a variety of chopped raw vegetables as well as cubed feta or fried haloumi. Again, these can be prepared the night before then topped with salad dressing before going into lunch boxes.

5: Mexican wraps

Prepare a vegetarian Mexican mix using cannellini beans and red lentils (combining plant protein sources ensures a complete protein profile) in place of meat, then spread onto a piece of Lebanese bread, or other wrap, along with some sour cream and grated cheese. Roll tightly in waxed paper then cling film for easy and less messy eating. This could be a ‘leftovers’ lunch if you make Mexican for dinner.

Keep it simple

Not every day has to be an exciting and different lunch day – there’s so much else to get on with day to day. But a couple of times a week a little extra effort can be factored in with some forward planning, just to jazz things up a bit.

I try not to stress over lunch boxes – if they’ll happily eat a Vegemite sandwich, a muesli bar and a couple of pieces of fruit, then stick with it as they can eat their protein and vegetables at home. There are times to push and there are times to opt for peace.

Here’s to empty lunch boxes returning home!

9 Comments

  1. dawnblyth 03/07/2019 at 10:47 pm

    My eldest is a creature of comfort and he has a ham sandwich everyday for his school lunch. Recently I have been able to ocassionally swap out the bread for a wrap. My youngest won’t touch grainy bread but will have wholemeal bread so that is nice to know he will eat that.
    Switching things up for breakfasts and lunches is often a great way of getting around the problem of children not eating. A bowl full of cereal with yoghurt can be eaten at any time of the day and it still tastes delicious!!

  2. MuddledUpMolly 01/07/2019 at 9:07 pm

    There are some great ideas here! I’m not a huge fan of sandwiches myself so I can see how kids get bored with the same old option day in/day out. Master 9 is not particularly fussy but I have put the odd wrap in if we have leftovers the night before which he loves! He also has the occasional leftover pizza or chicken drum sticks and for the first time tomorrow I’m sending him with noodles in a thermos as his request. Will definitely try some of these ideas out too 🙂

  3. Jen_Wiig 01/07/2019 at 2:15 pm

    I have literally screenshot these ideas to pribt out and put on fridge.. Mr 4 is not a sbadwich fan and i get really stuck trying to find ideas that are srill healthy and kid friendly… Done the whole nutrigrain like a scroggin mix which was a fan fav for awhile but now isnt so much and will iftwn buy salami, ham, teagals chicken luncheon and tegals chicken meal to make up a little meat platter for him but aegh can be a total mission sometimes…these are a gos sejd… Thankyou!!! And the whole toothpick kebabs in other article… I now feel insipred again yay

  4. kymmage 30/06/2019 at 11:45 am

    Ohhh thank you! Have been really struggling with healthy but yummy things to get into my youngest’s tummy at school. My eldest is really good at eating healthy things. But what she eats my youngest won’t touch. The Pancakes idea is great and I might have to try that. She is currently keen on the stand and stuff taco shells with cheese but I can’t put anything else in or they don’t get eaten. The bircher museli idea sounds yummy for me! Hehe

  5. SarahBlair 26/06/2019 at 12:07 pm

    My kids get bored with the same lunches everyday so I love new lunchbox ideas! These are great and I will definitely be trying the pancake idea! They are also good ideas for at home lunches, because I often run out of ideas for that too!

  6. Micht 25/06/2019 at 1:29 pm

    The pancakes and pasta salad will definitely make the lunch box test..the others not so much…my 6yr old is not fond of Pita bread… i have invested in a food flask that allows the food to stay warm for most of the day…allows me to give lunch that stays warm till lunchtime..but is the night befores dinner…so no extra food to make and less wasting.

  7. Bevik1971 21/06/2019 at 11:37 am

    Our 6 year old is gluten intolerant and if she eats too much she gets a really sore tummy 🙁 So alternatives for school lunches is great. Today for example she has a home made little pie with cheese and some left over spag bol cut up instead of a sandwich 🙂 I have actually put some gluten free pancakes in her lunch before, with some organic peanut butter on them, she really likes them. She wouldn’t eat pasta salad but we are going to get her a little thermos tso we can give her things like spag bol etc she can take to school 🙂

  8. Mands1980 18/06/2019 at 9:25 am

    Thanks for this pita pockets sound great I have never thought of these to try for the kids. My kids have gone of healthy sandwich’s so making different things is great. These pancakes sound so yummy for lunch all the other kids would want it too and a yummy pasta salad since most kids love pasta. These are all easy ideas that you can just make easily.

  9. Shorrty4life1 12/06/2019 at 8:49 pm

    Yummm pancakes in the kids lunches. Gosh my children would be in heaven with this. This is a great idea. I also never thought of doing a pasta salad that’s an awesome idea as my children love their pasta. And it beats having a boring sandwich everyday. Awesome ideas.

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