I noticed this week that now that my kids are back in school, I’m skipping meals, especially lunch, and grazing all day instead. Unfortunately, the food I’m grazing on is never good for me. It’s potato chips, packaged cookies, and other not good foods. I’m going to try to plan ahead and throw a few things together so that I’m prepared for lunch time every day. I found a bunch of great Make Ahead Lunch Ideas that I’ll be trying out. ***This post contains affiliate links. If you click one and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you! Thank you for supporting Lifestyle for Real Life!***
13 Make Ahead Lunch Ideas
English Muffin Freezer Pizzas from Simple as That Blog
These would be a huge hit in my house. I swear my son would eat pizza for every meal of the day if I let him. If I can sneak some vegetables on top, then I’d be ok with that. I love the idea of having a stack of these in the freezer that you could pop in the toaster oven at any time.
Healthy Sloppy Joes from Slim Sanity
Sloppy Joes to me are basically chili without the bowl. I love the idea of having a little premade meal like this in the fridge ready to go. Maybe snag some of these cute containers for storing them in fridge. If something is in a cute container I am 75% more likely to use it.
Turkey Spinach Pinwheels from Damn Delicious
This meal is jam packed with veggies and fruits. If you put this in front of me like this, I would eat all of it. If I had a cucumber, a bag grapes and some carrots in the fridge, I would not look at them and I would end up throwing them away a month later. That’s a fact.
Chicken and Rice Patties from Planning With Kids
This is a brilliant idea. Take your leftover chicken and rice, mash them together in a muffin tin and freeze individually for later use. These would, as the picture states, be great in your kids lunch box, too. Especially when your kid isn’t really into sandwiches.
Instant Noodle Cups from A Savory Feast
I adore instant noodles, they are nostalgic and yummy. I can’t imagine they are particularly good for you, though. If I made my own, I could totally determine the ingredients, like the rice noodles that are gluten free in this example. My daughter would love this, too.
Mexican Tortilla Pinwheels from Dinner at the Zoo
Pinwheels are big on the Make Ahead Lunch scene. They hold up well in the fridge. I love that this one is bursting with veggies. Also, they are bite size which is always fun.
Lunchbox Quesadillas from Shaken Together Life
A while back I made Quesadillas for my daughters Cast Party. (She played a king in her off-broadway debut.. By off-broadway I mean it was her school play). They were a hit and it was super fast and easy to make enough Quesadillas to serve over 30 people. We ate them at room temperature, but keep them in the fridge and then pop them in the toaster oven and you’ve got a nice warm meal.
Deli Style Box from Miss Molly Vintage
I love these deli/bistro boxes because they are so customizeable. A little protein, a little fruit and whatever else suits your fancy. And again with the cute containers! I love this.
Cranberry & Feta Pinwheels from Spend with Pennies
Here’s another from the Pinwheel arena. I love how pretty these and I love anything with a dried cranberry. These would be gorgeous appetizers for Christmas, too.
Pizza Rolls from What Lisa Cooks
I don’t think I can qualify these Pizza Rolls as healthy, but man they look good! My kids would love them and they are totally lunchbox material. I’d leave a couple in the fridge for me, too.
Enchilada Lunch Bowls
If it has the word Enchilada in it, I’m in. I can only imagine that this would get better and better as it sits in the fridge.
Apple Peanut Butter Wrap from Two Healthy Kitchens
Sometimes you just need a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Is there anything more comforting? If you can throw some apples in there, then you’ve only upped your peanut butter game.
Make Ahead Pepperoni Pizza Sliders from Little Dairy on the Prairie
These little sliders look really delicious. Maybe save these for cheat day, but, yeah, my mouth is watering.
Alright, between this post and freezer meal post from a few days back, I have a lot of cooking to do! I’ll be sure to let you know what I tried and how well it worked! Any favorites you’d like to see me make??
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