As the exclusive Australian/New Zealand distributor and stockist of a range of super-cool school lunch products, Mini Hippo knows a LOT about irresistible lunchboxes! Founded by savvy businesswoman Megan Mallen, and run by her family for your family, Megan has spent the past seven years carefully considering Mini Hippo’s food-focused range. A parent as well, Megan is well placed to share her lunchbox ideas to help uninspired parents create a healthy lunchbox! Here are her thoughts:
1. Use compartment or bento-style lunchboxes
These lunchboxes keep dry foods from getting soggy and wet foods from spilling, while little fingers love exploring the different sections. Lunch becomes a grazing session across the various compartments and variety is the spice of life, as they say. Just make sure your bento box offers a tight seal between sections. Try Yumbox for a durable tapas-style lunchbox.
2. Let your kids choose
One sure-fire way to get healthy lunches eaten is to get your kids involved in the prep. Let them select their own pieces of fruit/veg at the shops. Let them clean, cut and prep that produce themselves. If you’ve got a home veggie patch, you can go next level and let them grow their own lunchbox inclusions. Snow peas, beans, strawberries and cherry tomatoes are perfect choices for ease of growing and eating, and the perfect addition to a healthy lunchbox!!
3. Presentation is key
While Mini Hippo knows many parents are rushed in the mornings and dealing with meltdowns, lost socks and unfinished homework, remember that we eat with our eyes first so cool lunchbox presentation is a guaranteed way to inspire fussy eaters. Cute food = edible food! Cutting food into fun shapes is an easy starting point. Watermelon hearts, cheese stars, bite-sized sandwiches. Try FunBites for a quick, easy, mess-free way to chop food into healthy lunchbox art!
4. Hidden messages
OK, again, while most school mornings can be manic, it only takes 30 seconds to scribble a lighthearted note to your mini cherub and hide it in their lunchbox. This simple activity starts to associate a healthy lunchbox with fun – for your kids and for you, dear parent, when lunchbox prep can be the least fun thing on your morning chore list! Using a toothpick to make notes on banana skin is another way to inject some surprise and fun into lunch time.
5. Think outside the (lunch) box
Vegemite takes on a whole new perspective when spread on wraps, rolled and cut into small bite-sized scrolls. Fluffy pancakes make great sandwich outers – simply add a spread between two pancakes and cut into interesting shapes. English muffins as pizza bases are lunchbox-sized perfection. Just because you might not like to, remember that many kids will eat dinner leftovers cold. You simply have to start looking at all foods from a different perspective and healthy lunchbox ideas will abound!
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Thinking outside the (lunch) box
