14 School Lunch Ideas That Are Absolutely Genius!
Check out these fun & easy school lunch ideas! These clever hacks will make your mornings easier!
These genius school lunch ideas make mornings easier! Check out these fun tips that make packing lunch a breeze.
After you pick out your favorite best lunch bags for kids, you’ll be mastering these on-the-go school lunches like a champ in no time. 🙌
1. DIY Lunchables are a fun & frugal school lunch idea!
Instead of buying expensive prepackaged mini-meals, it’s actually pretty easy (and way healthier!) to cut up a few pieces of cheese and lunch meat, or pre-assemble mini sandwiches, and design your own simple bento-style lunch.
You can buy containers with compartments, or just wing it by separating everyday Tupperware with stackable containers and cupcake wrappers. I love that you can customize for each child and use up odds and ends of crackers, cheeses, and fruit & veggies from the fridge.
2. Prevent apples and other fruits from browning before lunchtime.
Soak apple slices in pineapple juice or lemon juice first, then place them in lunch bags to prevent them from turning brown so quickly in the lunch box. This works for banana slices, too!
Ball Fruit Fresh can also keep produce from getting brown before lunchtime! Our recipe blogger, Lina, loves this product and wrote a whole review here.
3. Create organized grab-and-go baskets for stress-free snacking.
We love finding clever ways to keep our kitchens organized, and having a dedicated snack basket does just that! Place a storage basket filled with snacks in both the fridge and the pantry so everyone knows where to go to find quick snacks for school lunches without searching.
We love these stylish wire storage baskets from Target for $8.99 😍 + save an additional 5% when you use your RedCard!
This is also an awesome method for keeping the healthier snacks up front! When I’m super hungry, I tend to grab the first thing I find, whether it’s leftovers from last night’s healthy salad or a less-than-nutritious bag of chips. 😆 If you make an easily accessed snack basket with fruits, nuts, trail mix, and other healthy treats, the fam is more likely to go for those wholesome options.
4. Making DIY Uncrustables is one of our favorite clever school lunch ideas!
Skip the expensive and unhealthy store-bought version and make a bunch of homemade peanut butter and jelly sandwiches ahead of time to freeze for future lunches!
These handy crust cutters slice off the crust and seal the edges when you press down on the sandwich. You can also buy a less expensive plastic version or you can even use a large cookie cutter and then press the edges using a fork as an alternative.
Is your school nut-free? Use a nut-free peanut butter alternative like Wowbutter or SunButter. Also worth noting, the cut and seal tool can be used to cut the crust off other sandwiches, too – not just PB&J!
5. Making peanut butter and banana sandwiches in hot dog buns is an easy school lunch idea that also eliminates waste!
Got leftover buns from the last outdoor barbecue get-together? Throw some peanut butter and bananas in ’em for a fun and waste-saving snack!
To use this idea for school lunches, spread the peanut butter in the bun and then send the banana with the peel still on. When your kiddo’s ready to eat, they can peel the banana and place it inside the bun so it’s still nice and fresh!
6. DIY frozen smoothies/juices are a frugal and healthy school lunch idea!
Use these long freezer pouches to pre-make homemade smoothies, and then pack them in your child’s lunch for a refreshing and healthy snack! Check out a few easy & healthy ice pop recipes.
7. Pre-portioned snacks make school lunch-packing time a breeze!
Save money by buying or making snacks in bulk and dividing them out into smaller snack-sized baggies, instead of buying the pricier, individually wrapped snacks.
You get to be in control of the ingredients, save money, and make lunch packing easier, so it’s a win-win-win. 🙌
Hip Tip: Stasher bags make durable snack-sized silicone bags that are dishwasher-safe and endlessly reusable.
8. Make DIY ice packs out of sponges to save space and keep lunchboxes cool.
We think this school lunch idea is genius! Instead of taking up valuable lunchbox space with bulky ice packs, freeze a water-soaked sponge inside a plastic baggie and use that in its place. They’re slimmer than most ice packs but work just as well!
Get this 4-pack of sponges at Target for only $3.49!
You can also use frozen juice boxes, grapes, and yogurt tubes that double as extra cold packs, yet will be defrosted for lunchtime!
9. Serve a hot lunch with ease by using an insulated container.
School lunches don’t all have to be cold sandwiches! You can pack everything from warm chicken nuggets to mac & cheese, to soups, or even last night’s dinner using these helpful insulated food containers. This way, your kiddo can still enjoy a hot meal without having to worry about finding a way to reheat it at school.
If your kiddo is a little older and likes taking hot or cold drinks with them to classes (or you like having your own coffee within reach while driving them to school 😆), we also have a roundup of the best travel coffee mugs for those mornings when everyone is on the go!
10. Invest in some reusable wraps.
Our Hip team thinks the reusable Bees Wraps are the best on the market! If you find yourself using a lot of single-use plastic wraps or containers to store your lunch snacks, these wraps are a frugal, reusable, and eco-friendly alternative! Plus, they’re antimicrobial and great at keeping your fruits and veggies fresh. 🙌
Hip Tip: I shared a bunch of eco-friendly product swaps if you want to ditch more wasteful products in your home.
11. Use cookie cutters to make eating fruits & veggies fun!
This tip is best for younger kids and picky eaters who seem hooked on one or two lunchbox staples. Kids seem to think that everything tastes better when it’s made into a fun shape. Use cookie cutters to make your fruits and veggies into stars, dinosaurs, or any neat shape you want! It’s a fun way to fit some fruits and veggies into their lunch boxes, and they’ll actually look forward to eating them. 🙌
If your cookie cutters are a little too big for produce, you can get this set of super cute mini cutters made specifically for fruits and veggies!
12. Prep school lunches ahead on the weekends.
The best tip for making lunchtime go as smoothly as possible is simply being prepared! If you’re able to carve out some time on the weekend to prep meals ahead, then creating fun & nutritious meals during the week will be so much easier and stress-free.
Check out these easy, make-ahead lunchbox favorites:
13. Use wraps instead of bread for sandwiches.
This may go without saying, but using a wrap instead of bread can mix up lunches and make them feel a little more elevated. You can either use flour tortillas or consider corn tortillas as a great gluten-free option. We even have a keto cheese wrap hack idea on our sister site for low-carb lunches!
14. Use a mason jar to pack a complete salad.
If you have a way to keep glass safe for your lunch using a mason jar for a salad is a genius hack! Mason jar salads are a great way to prepare healthy salads ahead of time for fast meals during the week. Make sure to first layer salad dressing, then veggies, and top with lettuce so your salad will stay fresh in the fridge for up to five days!
You can also consider layering yogurt, granola, and fruit in smaller mason jars. Keep the granola separate until ready to eat to maintain its crunchiness.
We rated the best lunch bags for kids!
I always divide up bags of snacks like pretzels or mini rice cakes… I look at the serving size and divide he bag by that… keeps everyone on track…
Perfect! Great tip 👍
To prevent apples browning simply soak for a few seconds in lightly salted water!! Trust me it works to keep them for browning for days!
I came here to say that too! They can last for up to a week if soaked in the salt water.
this might sound like a silly question, but how long are you suppose to soak the apples? This would be so cool if I can do this, and can you taste the salt much?
We store the thermos drink bottle (bottoms) in the freezer, and then can fill it with milk. My son drinks some with his breakfast and has enough (cold) milk still at lunch time. If you’re ever unsure if something like this will stay cold (or hot for the hot containers) try it yourself for work lunch, or try it on the weekend.
That’s a great tip! Love it 😍
Awesome! Thanks for sharing 👍
Oh interesting! I’d like to try that – thanks for sharing
I toss apples in cinnamon (not cinnamon sugar)—no browning and delicious flavor!
Thanks for sharing! I’ll try this 👏
Well that’s probably because the cinnamon is brown, good truck! 😆
“Trick”
This is what I do too. My kids don’t like the lemon juice taste left on apples. It works great and does not taste salty. 👍🏻
I usually eat the extras for breakfast Or I pack the whole sandwich with the cut out. My kid likes the shape and will also eat the crust
That’s so great! Nice tip- thanks Shannon!
I always have high hopes but never get around to it 😂. I do cookie cut a sandwich and cut up strawberries
it is only a waste of bread if someone CHOOSES to waste the bread. cutting food into a different shape doesn’t force it to go to waste.
there is no step that says, “throw away the whole rest of the piece.” why be so presumptuous?
Nice! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Just to clarify, I posted the Fruit Fresh as an option for people that don’t want to have to soak their fruit in any liquids, which usually involves additional dishes and is a little messy and drippy. ☺️
I am glad to learn of all of these ideas!!! You are all awesome! My oldest is 11 and I still feel lost daily! :/
You don’t need an IG account to look at public IG profiles such as the above one.
Freezing sandwiches on Sunday night for the week is another good idea…then all you do is toss them in their lunch bag and it thaws by lunch time. For hot foods, you can pour boiling water into a thermos, seal it up for a few minutes, then toss the water out and pour in the hot food item…it will keep it warmer much longer. We also buy regular or bulk bags of snacks and portion them up ourselves- the individually-wrapped ones are much more expensive in comparison.
And my kids would much rather eat fruit that has slightly browned vs. fruit that tastes like lemon juice, soda, or Vitamin C tablets (of all things). I also taught them to eat their crusts- we don’t waste food and I have no desire to eat their leftover crusts myself!
❤
I feel the same way. But…I use the crust for homemade breadcrumbs and/or croutons.
I actually just cut the apple and rubber band it together so it looks uncut. No air gets through to the cut edges and the apples are good to go at lunch time.
Thanks so much for your kind words and support of Hip2save! 👏❤️ I agree the comments and suggestions from other readers can be so helpful. 👍
I agree on the pampered chef circle! Used the guts out of mine when I used to pack our kids lunches. Still have it 12 years later. 😉👍🏻 love all the ideas on this post! Thanks Hip2Save ☺️
We also use those little plastic containers (like for salsa and condiments at restaurants) for small fruit bites, pickle slices for sandwiches, and goldfish/crackers. Buy in bulk at sams- they last a long time and are really convenient. My mom gave them to me and i thought what am i going to do with these?! 🤪 actually, are pretty handy! 😁😁
I use Fresh Fruit on my peaches. It works great with no after taste… at least I don’t notice any.
Thanks for reminding me I have the Pampered Chef sandwich crimper! I’ve had mine for many years and seldom used it so it was stored away. Now that I have grandkids who love PB&J sandwiches, this is coming out of storage! As for sending lunches with containers, I could never trust them coming back home when my kids were little. They somehow either got forgotten or tossed in the trash can.
I wanted to also add that I use an apple slicer and rubber band the Apple back together and don’t have to put anything on it and it does not brown
For the thermos u have to heat water befor u add ur heated food to keep it warm. I use the kerieg w out a pod so it’s warm water and won’t take forever. I find this works really well.
Oh I love that tip!! Great idea 💡
My tip is to involve your kids with the lunch packing. When I’ve volunteered at schools, I’ve seen beautiful lunches tossed in the trash. If your kid helps decide what goes in, he or she is more likely to eat it. Also, by the time my kids were in upper elementary, they were packing their own lunches with no help. They add stuff to the grocery list that they want, or we are running out of, and I don’t pack their lunches for them at all.
For the insulated food jars, is there one you recommend over another? Also, are they hand wash only or can they go in the dishwasher? I appreciate these new ideas for school lunches. I think my son would like having warm food once in awhile.
They are dishwasher safe (most of them). I usually try to buy if it is dishwasher safe, I honestly don’t have the time to hand wash and dry things. I have enough with the water bottles that my kids have that are hand washed every day 🤦♀️. We had several and honestly they are all great. Go to The store (target, Walmart or even Marshals) and check them out. They usually have a label saying how long they can stay hot or cold. We have the thermos and contigo ones. There is a thermos one that we have had for almost 10 years now! My son got it when he started kindergarten and he is going to 10th grade now. They are meant to last 👍
I don’t typically buy prepackaged snacks, nor do I bag them separately for at home (these are “special” items purely for convenience and out of the house due to the waste and extra expense), BUT I did find a way to help my kids be more independent about getting their own snacks at home. I bought a couple of inexpensive measuring cup sets and snacks go into easy to open/close containers with a measuring cup. My kids can easily get their own snack during the day while home and know exactly how much to get.
Thanks for your tip! That’s a smart idea Sarah!
You’re very welcome!
I have always soaked my fruit in Sprite too to keep it from browning!! It works wonders!!
Awesome! Following your Insta now
My mom used to tell me when I was little that the “crust” was the best part for you. Lies, lies! It’s all the same… the crust, the middle. And then come to find out I later developed a gluten intolerance.
Back to the brown apples again… cut them and soak in apple juice and no you’ll get no strange flavor added. Then toss the apple juice into the fridge for the next time.
Too cool, I’m going to try this.
I’m glad to see these tips since I plan to be more diligent about packing the kids lunches this year. I make a whole loaf of breads worth of uncrustables, put each in a sandwich bag(cheap fold over top bags), put them all back in the bread bag, then put in the freezer. Super easy to throw in the lunch box this way. I have made those protein snack bites and used for breakfast instead of a snack. The protein keeps my kids full until lunch.
Great tips – thanks Jennifer!
Yes! My kids do sometimes as well! 👏
Do you do Pinterest by chance? I use Pinterest all the time and have several different “boards” but I don’t use Instagram much
The Pampered Chef Cut & Seal, medium 3-1/2 inch (#1195) is now $12.13 on Amazon.
Love the banana sandwich idea!! Genius!! Thinking outside the box! Thanks to all the staff on Hip2save!! Y’all are amazing!!
Ah thanks so much Bernetta!
Thanks to the hip2saver on here that suggested purchasing the pampered chef sandwich cutter via eBay. Got one for only $9 brand new. Be sure to use promo code: flash five for an extra $5 off any eBay order…thinks it’s only good for today.
Thanks, Joanna! I have that Pampered Chef sandwich cutter and LOVE it!
Going to have to check out the sandwich cutter, I eat the crust myself lol. I found some reusable bags on Amazon for sandwiches and snacks so I don’t have to use the plastic baggies anymore and they are awesome! Top rack dishwasher safe and inexpensive so if they get lost, or thrown away🤦♀️, no biggie, compared to how much you’re saving! I did learn quickly that the zipper ones are the way to go as the fold over ones let things get stale. It’s cool when stuff that saves us money can help the environment too! Thank you H2S for all your awesome savings and ideas!
Oh nice I’ll have to check those out- thanks so much for stopping by Amy!
How long can I keep in freezer ? Have your children complained about bread being stale thanks in advance trying to learn from you expert ladies 😍
We make them once a week and just take them out the night before school. If you think about it, the Crustables are in the freezer section and the kids like those.
Sams club still has the 2-pack bentgo boxes for $25 and 2-pack of the chill version (icepack inside) for $40.
I loved the Bentgo…but its a little small for kids over kinder or 1st in my opinion. If you have bigger kids I think the Yumbox has a larger option. Flat icepacks for lunchboxes are pretty inexpensive and we have had ours for years. I think they are flatter than a sponge but I am keeping that trick in mind anyway. Could be a great travel tip if you are doing packed lunches and don’t want to worry about losing ice packs.
I had to laugh at the Bentgo photo with blueberries in those two spots. I do the same thing most of the time–that little circular spot is so tiny and the one next to is oddly shaped so I either put just a few of something as a “treat” (like mini marshmallows or gummy bears) in that circular slot and use the oddly-shaped larger spot for crackers (wheat thins go nicely in there). I imagine it’s meant for a “dip” to go in there for veggies? We don’t use any dips except peanut butter (which isn’t allowed at school) so I try to get creative with it.
I also buy the Reynolds wax paper bags. My Mother packed our school and camp lunches in them for years! They work great, less expensive, and more environmental sound.
One organizing trick that has worked great for my family since we have very limited space is to get one of the shoe organizers that hangs on the door with the clear plastic pockets and put it inside the pantry door, works great for lot of different snacks and they can easily see what’s there and grab it 🤗🤗
Thanks so much for sharing that idea! Those organizers are sure handy for a lot of uses! 🙌❤️
They really are great! I use one for the bathroom as well! All the stuff that gets lost in drawers are much easier to get to😁
They sure are! We also just posted a picture on Facebook of an idea where someone used them for all of their cold tumblers/cups storage! I think the ideas for those are endless – but it’s always nice to hear and see how others utilize them! 🥰
Oh great idea! Yes they are very handy! Especially in places where the space is limited!!
Is Ball Fresh Fruit salty or sweet?
Hey AngieM! A previous reader mentioned that “It’s basically ground up ascorbic acid (vit C) and comes in a shaker. My mother used to use it before she froze fruit to keep it from browning. I just sprinkle it on my kids cut fruit before packing it up – they’ve never complained about the flavor, which I was worried about initially since no one really likes citrus except me.” I’ve personally used this product too, and found that I really couldn’t identify any taste while using it, just the flavor of the fruit I was preserving. Hope this is helpful! 💗
When my kids took lunches to school, I would use an entire loaf of bread to make sandwiches (we used just almond butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon (but jelly would work too). I sealed them in sandwich bags and froze. My kids said that if I packed them frozen in the morning, they would sometimes still be partially frozen at lunchtime so I got in the habit of moving them to the fridge the night before. Worked great! Sometimes I could even get the kids to make them.
Sadly, peanuts and peanut butter isn’t allowed in school any more here in upstate NY. Just in case one person in the entire school may be allergic 🤦♀️
Oh bummer. Thanks for letting us know about the exclusion of peanut butter at your area’s schools. Hoping you enjoy some of the other lunch ideas! 🤗