Homemade Lunchables

My children love Lunchables and sometimes, I do too. They are so easy to throw in a lunch box when I am running behind in the morning. They are also something the kids see in the grocery store and beg me to buy, so I know when I give them to them, they are usually going to eat them up. But, as my kids get older, Lunchables seem smaller and smaller and I worry that a few crackers, some small square slices of cheese, and three or four tiny circles of meat, are not going to cut it as a meal for a busy and active child. There are Lunchables Uploaded — which are larger portions — with a snack, drink and candy included, but even those seem so small, especially for the price. So, I decided to take Lunchables into my own hands and make some homemade versions. Versions that I could customize to my childrens' tastes and portions that would help fuel them for the second half of their day. While searching on Amazon I found some small square, four compartment containers with snap-on tops that looked practically identical to the Lunchables from the grocery store — except they were reusable! They came in packs of four which was also perfect. We used them all school year last year and are looking forward to continuing with them. The kids enjoy that each compartment is filled with something different, and having the four compartments helps with including the necessary food groups. They are also perfect for picky eaters. Whether my children help decide what goes in them, or I wing it on my own and surprise them, they continue to be a hit with them and we have really enjoyed being creative and trying new food combinations. When we first got them we used similar items to the store bought Lunchables, like cheese, crackers and deli meat. Occasionally, when time allows I would cut the cheese and meat into shapes with a cookie cutter. But, other times I'd just roll up some slices of ham, or fold a cheese slice into four pieces. When we got bored with those choices, we moved on to new things. Here's some examples of things we have included in homemade Lunchables: Hummus with crackers, pita or naan bread or salsa and tortilla chips. We have done most all fruit like grapes, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, watermelon, etc. My kids are always big fans of fruit. Though they are less excited about vegetables, we have used carrots, green, red or yellow peppers, edamame, cucumbers and even pickled beets! For a protein, besides the usual deli meat, we have used imitation crab meat, shrimp and chickpeas. And for dairy items we have used many different cheeses — my daughter is a big fan of feta and the triangle shaped Laughing Cow cheese. But, we have also cut other cheeses like cheddar or Monterey Jack into shapes, slices or cubes. Cottage cheese was also a hit. There are endless amounts of options out there, get creative and have fun with it!