Tired of sandwiches for lunch?

By P. Mehta, RD/Healthfulfilling.com

As featured on CBS 11/KTVT's Get Healthy Texas
(Video link coming soon...)

If you're busy with the back to school transition and find yourself slapping
together sandwiches for you and the kids, thinking, "Here we go again,
all these boring sandwiches for lunch," you are not alone! Being a Mom
and packing lunches myself, I try to find other less monotonous ideas to
jazz up what's inside the lunch box! Here are some healthy and tasty
lunch ideas to help make lunch something to look forward to rather than
to get over with! Some of these ideas are for the adults in the family,
too--we need to look forward to what's for lunch just as well!

Take the sandwich apart--as crazy as it sounds, kids actually get excited
about the sandwich being separated into a different form! So, you can
get a bento box type of container that usually has three separate
compartments. Put lean deli meats or sliced cheese along with whole
grain crackers or whole wheat pita in one part, raw cut up vegetables in
the other, and plain yogurt or low fat or fat free dip in the last
compartment for kids to dip in the veggies. Or, you can put in fresh cut
fruits in the third compartment. The key is to make sure you get in a lean
protein source like lean meats or cheeses, a whole grain source like
whole grain pitas, tortillas, crackers, flatbread, or breadsticks, and
vegetables and fruits.

Since kids need anywhere between 1 1/2 cups to 3 cups of
vegetables daily, and 1 to 2 cups of fruits daily, depending on age
and gender, lunch is a good and necessary opportunity to help meet
those daily requirements. Grown ups need there veggies and fruits, too!
Adult men need 3 cups of vegetables daily, and 2 cups fruit daily,
and adult women need 2 1/2 cups of vegetables daily, and 1 1/2
cups of fruit daily.

Whole grain pasta. Top with chopped tomatoes, and mozzarella
cheese, and a dab of olive oil. This can make a tasty and healthy cold
pasta at lunch and the tomatoes are another way to add veggies. If you
like spinach, add in some fresh chopped spinach to take advantage of
more veggie intake! Tomatoes are rich in antioxidants, vitamins A, C
and minerals like potassium and phosphorus, and antioxidants lutein
and lycopene. Spinach is prominently packed with the antioxidant lutein,
and beta carotene, and Vitamins A and C. It's a win- win when it tastes
great and is a nutrient rich meal! For sides, add in some fresh fruit, and
a low fat cheese stick or sliced cheese, or some low fat yogurt.

Corn tortilla. Top with low fat shredded cheddar or colby cheese, and
mozzarella cheese, and chopped tomatoes, and bell peppers. Again,
the corn tortilla is getting in some whole grains, is low in fat, and you can
get another opportunity to get some veggies.

Make it a wrap! Wraps are always a different twist to a sandwich and
are just as easy to make. Use whole grain wraps like flaxseed, oats or
wheat. Be careful that the wrap does not contain any partially
hydrogenated or hydrogenated oils, or saturated fats like palm or
coconut oil. Choose wraps made with polyunsaturated or
monounsaturated liquid oils, like soybean, safflower, sunflower, canola
or olive oils. Load on a variety of veggies like leaf lettuce, fresh chopped
spinach, radishes, red, green or yellow bell peppers, tomatoes, and any
of your zesty favorites veggies! Use lean meats, eggs, tuna, beans or
low fat shredded cheeses for a protein source.

Super salad--Want more veggies? Great idea! Choose 3 to 4 of your
favorite veggies over some lettuce or spinach. Add in a tasty protein
source like low fat cheeses, low fat cottage cheese, eggs, beans, tuna,
lean meat or poultry, or seafood. Add some bread sticks, a whole grain
roll or pasta on the side to get some grains.

Craving for the leftovers? Why not? Did you have a great piece of
seasoned roasted chicken and sauteed veggies last night for dinner that
you want more of? Don't forget the leftovers! When we do manage to put
a healthy and tasty dinner on the table, it's a great option for lunch the
next day! It also encourages us to keep making and eating healthy
dinners!

Ready made frozen options--When there is no time to make lunch,
you can keep some frozen options in your freezer to grab and go. Some
frozen food brands like Healthy Choice and Lean Cuisine make a few
healthy and tasty lunches, in which sodium, fat and saturated fats are at
fairly acceptable levels. Note that most frozen packaged meals won't be
under 500 to 700 mg of sodium, but it is most likely less than most fast
food options, and might be close to sodium levels of accumulated
ingredients in a packed lunch. Depending on your age, you should not
exceed more than 1500 to 2300 mg of sodium per day. (See How Much
Sodium for more information on sodium).

When looking for a frozen food lunch, be sure that there is no trans fat,
and fat and saturated fat should be 5 to 7 % or less on the % DV column.
Frozen food lunches are also a good option for kids who are in middle
school or high school or college in which there might be a microwave in
the cafeteria.

Crunchy, Tasty Sides:

Whole grain tortilla chips
Whole grain crackers
Whole grain flatbread
Whole grain bagel chips
Peanuts, walnuts, cashews or favorite nuts
Whole wheat pretzels with honey and less salt, or lightly salted pretzels
Baked potato chips or regular potato chips in moderation, made with
liquid polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fats

The sweet stuff:

Fresh fruit
Fruit cups with no added sugar
Dried fruit like raisins, dates, and figs
Mix of raisins, nuts and dark chocolate (should be chocolate without
palm, coconut oils, or trans fat)
Muffins and cookies made with whole grains and liquid oils and no trans
fat
Granola bars made with no high fructose corn syrup, and trans fat
Biscotti

Remember when packing lunch, focus on whole grains, lean proteins,
and plenty of produce! Make variety and flavor inviting, and involve the
kids to expose them to food, meal planning, and preparation which
leads to healthy habits and a healthy lifestyle. Happy and healthy
lunching!

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Updated 8/2010