10 Trim Healthy Lunches for the Whole Family

In my quest to lose weight and eat a healthier diet I have gotten into a habit of making something different for the kids than what I eat.  I'd like to streamline our lunches so that we are all eating the same thing and helping them to eat a healthier diet. Since we are a homeschooling family, meals need to mostly be easy to prepare and nourishing.

Please note that some of these meals may not be what you consider healthy.  Everyone has to decide for themselves what is healthy.  Trust me when I say that these lunches are much healthier than a lot of the processed foods my kids are used to eating.

Here are 10 Ideas for Trim Healthy Lunches for everyone in the family.

1. BLT Soup

Combine a 32 oz box of fat free chicken broth and a 28 oz can of tomato sauce.  Heat these together then add 1 T. Truvia, salt, pepper and any other seasonings you like with tomato soup.  Once hot, add about 1 1/3 cups of Greek 0% yogurt and stir until well blended.  Add a few handfuls of fresh (or frozen) spinach leaves and cook until spinach is cooked.  I like this soup to be a little thick.  You could thicken it with a bit of glucomannan powder but I prefer to add some psyllium husks to mine. Top with bacon bits.  If you don't use too much bacon this meal can be FP.  If you have growing children you will probably want to serve this with some sourdough bread and butter. I like to eat this with Oat Fiber Bread.

2. Salmon Patties (or use tuna)

There is a recipe in the Trim Healthy Mama book called Sponge Bob's Crabby Patties. You could also try these or these or this tuna version. These are easy to throw together and my kids love them.  Serve these plain (S or FP if you are a THM) or on a roll with a side of fresh veggies or roast some.  I love roasted veggies!

3. Macaroni and Cheese

Try this Low-carb Mac and Cheese using Dreamfield's pasta or if you think it will fly you can try a cauliflower version. I think broccoli would go great with this (or roasted veggies....mmmm mmm)

4. Chicken Hot Dogs

I recently started purchasing chicken hot dogs at Trader Joe's but I have since seen some right at Walmart for about the same price.   I like to either cook them right in a frying pan until they are nicely browned or throw them in the crockpot in the morning.  Easy peasy!  You could try these healthy corndogs or some pigs in a blanket.

5. Sandwiches

Try chicken salad, egg salad, tuna salad, or natural peanut butter and all-fruit jam.  Choose a sourdough bread or sprouted grain bread. (or make your own).  I use Joseph's low carb pitas if I want a mayonnaise based salad or sprouted bread if I just want to eat a chicken sandwich.  You could also make a sandwich with Oat Fiber Bread.  (I don't eat peanut butter and jelly.)

6. Eggs

photo by alessandro

Don't get stuck thinking eggs are only for breakfast.  Have them for lunch!  Fried Eggs are great over a salad and much easier than peeling a boiled egg (though boiled eggs are great for an on the go lunch or snack).  My kids also enjoy "Popeyes" (what my husband calls them), "Bunny in a Hole" (what I call them) or you may know it as an Egg in a Frame.  Use a quality bread for your children that need crossovers or try this Eggplant version.

7. Quiche or Fritatta

I guess I could have put this in the egg category, but I thought it was worthy of its own category.

Here are a few recipes you could try.  Just make them your own by adding the meats and veggies that YOU like!

Healthified Quiche Lorraine
Crustless Quiche
Frittata
Mini-Ham and Cheese Frittatas
Basic Frittata

8. Salad

photo by macieklew

Before this year, I rarely ate salad.  I now crave it quite often.  Make a big salad and share it with the kids.  Give them some bread and butter and call it a done deal.

9.  Pizza

Lots of options for pizza.  I love making a pizza with a Joseph's pita, or cauliflower crust (look on Pinterest for lots of ways to do this), almond flour pizza crust or try Gwen's fermented bread to make a pizza crust.

10. Homemade Lunchables

I have never purchased Lunchables but I love the idea of Bento box lunches. Think of all the great things you could put in one of these or set out some healthy foods and let your kids fill up their box.  If you don't have an official bento box, improvise with some Tupperware/Rubbermaid and cupcake liners (or some other clever idea I haven't thought of).

A few ideas for these include:

boiled eggs
cheese
homemade crackers
cubes of meat (chicken, ham, turkey etc.)
veggies: (grape tomatoes, cucumbers, celery sticks, peppers etc.)
fruit: berries, sliced fresh fruit

You can find loads of ideas with a Google search OR go on Pinterest....the ideas are ENDLESS.  You can be as simple or creative as you like.

I'd love to hear your ideas for more lunches to share with my family.

Linking up with Trim Healthy Tuesdays at Stacy Makes Cents where she is sharing a recipe for Chicken Fried Steak and at Gwen's Nest for Taco Salad 3 Ways.

*photos are my own and from rgbstock.com courtesy of macieklew, alessandro