Running Out of Lunch Ideas

What about quesadillas - you can really do any kind - from hummus to cheese with salsa. My daughter likes cheese a little salsa and sliced chicken.

My daughter is so picky, so these sometimes work for her, but other moms have given these ides to me:

fruit kabobs on a stick- put melon, strawberries, grapes etc. on a toothpick or kabob stick, wrap it in plasticwrap and there is a healthy snack or lunch.

Cheese or chicken quesadillas are super easy and with a little salsa on the side, my daughter LOVES these.

Roll ups- take a pita or tortilla wrap and make a large wrap with anything you so desire or what the kids will eat, from tuna, hummus, or cold meats and meatballs. Cut them into child size portions and put toothpicks in them to hold them together, these are fun and easy to put in the fridge.

Oh yeah, your hubby will like these too in his lunches!

Hi Lily
I have a 19 mth old who loves food. He HATES frozen dinners which I thought he would really like because of the variety they offer( and the prices are great! 88 cents)Anyway I found this really awesome recipe for chicken ala king muffins.
I make 2 batches at a time and freeze a batch of them . So when he is bored with hot dogs, mac-n-cheese and raviolis I break these out and he goes to town. If you are interested let me know I will forwARD the recipe
good luck

We love quesadillas (we just make them in a pan - no special equipment). You can fill them with anything (it's one of the only ways my daughter eats veggies) and they're super fun. We also buy the frozen shrimp fried rice at Trader Joe's and add fresh grilled chicken, a scramled egg, and some additional frozen veggies. The kids love it.

I just tried the bib lettuce and wrapped my sandwich in that - if was great and I didn't miss the tortilla or bread... but not sure if that is kid friendly.

anything food that you can play with is usually a big hit - cut up fruit, cheese, and crackers... veggies & dip with a cheese stick...

I love the website kraftfoods.com - and they have a great little mag that they mail out for free that I always find new ideas in... usually really simple things that you already always have... (mac and cheese with salsa and chix - I would never have tried - but did - YUM.)

Good luck.

my son loves bagel bites

We bought a quesadilla maker at Target... you can put anything in a wrap, pb&j, cheese, leftover taco meat. I like to let my nephews hunt in the fridge and make up their own ingredients...

We also do wheat pasta, grilled cheese and soup and don't forget eggs! Hard boiled, even scrambled (again in a quesadilla) they are good :)

Got this from Deceptively Delicious- steam and puree spinach in the food processor. preheat oven to 400. take a whole wheat pita, spread spinach puree, top with red sauce and mozz cheese so it covers all the spinach. Bake for 5-10 minutes on a foil lined baking sheet. Of course you can make it without spinach, too. My 2 year old ate almost a whole pizza yesterday! I HIGHLY recommend the deceptively delicious cookbook, it has easy, good for kids recipes. I just got it and I'm kind of obsessed with it! lol

English muffin pizzas and tuna melts. These were my mother's standards. If you don't have english muffins, use regular sliced bread put tomatoes or tuna on it, top it with cheese and pop it in the oven.

Hi Lily - I see you live in Gardner-is there a Trader Joe's near you? I love this store, it has everything. I buy the frozen cod fish sticks for both my girls (though my 3-year old doesn't take to them like she used to) and their frozen turkey meatballs. They also have beef meatballs - all are wonderful and fresh tasting, you would never guess they were frozen. I am in the same boat as you, especially for dinner ideas. I feel like I rotate the above items with chicken nuggets, deli sandwiches, burgers, and pizza, and that's it! It does seem so repetitive but kids do love those staples and most kids I know don't have a huge range in their menu... I hope it improves as they get older! Anyway, hope these ideas help you.

i guess thier called pigs in a blanket, but i call them wrapped dogs. my daughter loves them and always asks for me to make some. it too easy, roll a hotdog (i put 1/2 piece of cheeze on top of the hotdog before i roll) up in a crescent roll. then just bake at the directions for the crescent roll.
kids love them, and they are fun.
good luck

Bake chicken breasts in batches (breaded or non breaded) and then heat it up as you need it. You can freeze them in bags. You can make chicken parm, chicken salad, chicken quesadias, chicken tacos, chicken and stir fry, chicken sandwiches, etc. Do the same with ground beef. You can add to pasta, mac & cheese, make sloppy joes, add to nachos and beans (we like black beans at our house), tacos, etc. Mini bagel pizzas are a big heat, just use mozzerella cheese and tomato sause and add chopped peppers, ground beef, etc. Hope these help.