[Ad- gifted products] We always do packed lunches, unless the school is doing a special meal. Our children don’t prefer the food schools make, so it’s just easier and ensures that they are getting food that they enjoy. With that in mind, I find that packing bento-styled lunch boxes is so much easier and takes a lot of thinking out of it. Looking at the box, you can see all of the compartments and figure out exactly what to put into them. Amelia was excited to try the b.box Mini Lunchbox, which isn’t really mini, but is smaller than their jumbo, along with the b,box Snack Box for her breaks. After a few weeks of using these boxes, here are the lunches she enjoyed:
Chicken, Avocado and Bacon Skewers
We aren’t a big sandwich or bread household, so one of the things we like making are bacon, chicken and avocado skewers. These are so easy to make; bake up some chicken (which I often do the night before) and cube it. Cook off some bacon and cut some avocado. We then add all of those to a stick, to create a sort of one-bite sandwich. Amelia had this with some homemade potato salad as a side. She had tomatoes and cucumbers as her vegetables, and grapes and blueberries as her fruit. We used the little divider for the b.box Mini Lunchbox, which gave enough room for some vegetables. In her b.box snack box, it fit an entire single serving bag of pop chips (BBQ Flavour), along with Oreos for her and her friends. I tossed in a few Sour Patch Kids and her vitamin as well. Inside her bag, I packed her a Raspberry Jelly Squeeze for one of her breaks.
Pizza Pinwheels
Pizza is always a fun idea! I made these very easy pizza pinwheels by taking puff pastry and spreading some pizza sauce along it. I then grated a bunch of mozzarella on top. I rolled it up as tightly as I could and cut them into circles. I then baked them in the oven! These turned out very fun to eat, I placed them on a napkin just to get any moisture as they were warm. Amelia had these with some cherry tomatoes and a whole apple, cut up into slices. This lunch box has a soft top on one of the compartments, making it good for holding stuff a little big. In her snack box, we went with the Oreos for her and her friends, her vitamin, some Sour Patch Kids, and a handful of caramel popcorn. She also had a Jelly Squeeze.
BBQ Chicken Wrap
An absolute classic that we have all the time is BBQ Chicken wraps. There are lots of options when it comes to this wrap; sometimes I airfry chicken tenders in the morning or grab some popcorn chicken, other times I take some leftover chicken from cooked chicken breasts or from a roast, and place them into a tortilla. We add cucumbers and some BBQ sauce, wrap it up, and it’s in the box! She had more leftover potato salad, as she had asked for some, and of course cherry tomatoes. Her sides were the usual Oreos, Sour Patch Kids, vitamins, and some pop chips this time, with a jelly squeeze on the side.
Pesto Pasta Salad
Pesto Pasta is something that Amelia and Kai absolutely love. Pesto Pasta is a simple enough thing to make ahead or on the day. We had our Pesto Pasta with mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and some shredded chicken, though sometimes we do leave out the chicken. You can use pre-made pesto or make your own. Dann makes the best pesto, so we often have him make it ahead for us. Amelia asked for some pineapple to go with it, along with a handful of blueberries. She also got some pretzels in her main lunch. In her snack box, she got some Oreos to share with her friends, a flap jack, and some heart shaped jelly beans, along with her vitamin.
Thoughts about the b.box Mini Lunch Box and Snack Box
I do like the feel of the b.box Mini Lunch Box and Snack Box, though I do feel the jumbo, which has more compartments, might be better for us. The removable slider does feel good, but I struggle to remember it in the hectic mornings! The is far more water tight then previous boxes, with the plastic-y lid on top perfectly holding in liquids like the pineapple – something that we have struggled with in the past, with other bento-style lunch boxes. The snack box feels like a fantastic size for snacks, and the soft top to store an entire apple or something slightly too big is very fun too. Both of these do hold a really good amount of food as well!
These are great ideas. I love that everything is separated, too. Those are great little lunch boxes!
These little containers are awesome! I had an old-school lunch box when I was a kid, and everything was always touching. I hated that.
This is a great idea for kids lunch boxes and good variety. I’ll share this with my brother; he can have ideas for my niece for school.
These are such great lunch ideas! Love the variety—perfect for keeping things fun and nutritious. Honestly, these would be great for adults too—who says only kids get to have fun lunches? Definitely saving this for inspiration!