Easy School Lunchbox Ideas! 25+ Kid-Approved Snacks
- Natarsha March APP
- 4 days ago
- 9 min read
Firstly, I'd like to shout-out to all the apples.
You know, the ones that go for their daily excursion to school and return home worse for wear but are sent again the next day since "we don't shop again til Thursday so its that or nothing".
Secondly, I will be honest that every January I start out with excitement and enthusiasm to pack fun, healthy, insta-worthy food for my kids. By term 3 it's often reverted back to a sandwich, the excursion-apple and something in a packet as I get tired and the kids get bored.
But since it is currently January, I have been doing some serious research into easy school lunchbox ideas (AKA looking at Pinterest and TikTok) and wanted to share my fave new quick-and healthy lunchbox fillers!
QUICK TIP - This device (around $20 at Big W) will make an Apple slinky which is heaps more likely to get eaten.
BUT FIRST - THE LUNCHBOXES!
The big craze these days is the bento style - the ones with little compartments to fill up and keep food separated.
I personally love them, but a few things to look for:
Leak proof zones - So your wet food doesn't make the dry stuff soggy
Not too large - Your kid's bag will be stuffed and heavy already
Easy to clean - Get basic designs. The last thing you need is 15 bits to pull apart and wash. Every. Single. Night.
Hinged lid - Easy for little fingers to open and guarantees it comes home.
Fits inside an insulated bag - Our Brissy summers are hot and food is nicer cool. Add an ice pack to keep everything fresh.
All the stores and supermarkets load up on options at the start of the year, but here are 3 of my personal faves:
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NOW TO THE EASY SCHOOL LUNCHBOX IDEAS!
1. Mini Munch Wrap
Let's kick off our lunchbox tour with a classic staple - the mini munch wrap.
It might seem boring but it's as easy as it is delicious and you can make it fun. Our family packs these for all our sporting day trips cause they are easy, nutritious and yum.
Start with a Mission wrap (the softest, stretchiest supermarket brand I have found) spread a thin layer of hummus , mayo or cream cheese, and pile on colourful veggies like shredded carrots, cucumber, and lettuce.
Top it off with ham, turkey or leftover roast chook.
Then either wrap it with glad wrap as you roll and cut in two through the middle (this is our day trip go-to like the photo above), or roll it up without gad wrap, and cut into bite-sized pinwheels, lock closed with a toothpick.
2. Sushi Sandwich Bites
Sushi sandwich bites are a fun, fresh twist for kids' lunchboxes—filled with their favourite ingredients and easy to eat, they're a fun twist on the classic lunchbox sanga.
The recipe link has 3 great flavour combos to try:
3. AirFryer Arancini Rice Balls
Arancini or Italian Rice Balls is a very popular street food. The classic traditional deep-fried recipe gets a makeover by being air fried to make it a healthier and guilt-free lunchbox filler.
4. AirFryer Chicken Rice-Paper Dumplings
OMG these are amazing - Air Fryer Chicken Rice-Paper Dumplings are a delicious, healthy twist on traditional dumplings, made easy with the convenience of an air fryer.
5. Spring Rolls - DIY or Buy and Bake
My kids LOVE spring rolls so I grab a box from the frozen section at the supermarket, cook up a batch on a Sunday and they pop a few cold ones in their lunchboxes through the week.
6. Brownie in a Box
Super hack on this one - cause brownies are a serious PITA to make from scratch.
But the $3 box of Coles double choc brownies is crazy easy and delish.
Just melt some butter in a bowl, add an egg and this packet and bake.
Actually... you may want to hide these from the kids and heat in a bowl with some icream after theyre in bed. We are SERIOUSLY addicted in this house.
7. Fruit Cake Bars
Another easy and tasty one.
Just add those three things in that photo above into a bowl (cheap cake mix, whole can of fruit salad liquid and all, and one egg) mix it up then pour the batter into some mini bar or cupcake moulds and bake. Suitable to freeze as well.
8. Pizza Pastry Scrolls
Grab yourself some puff pastry, lay it out and top with pizza sauce, then cheese and ham. Add pineapple if you have exceptionally well-rounded tastebuds.
Roll the pastry up into a log shape then slice around 1.5cm discs and lay them flat on a baking tray. Add a little extra cheese to the end bits that missed out on some filling.
Bake at 180 celcius for around 5-10 minutes.
9. Homemade Cheesymite Scrolls (+ Mini Pizzas)
You can make a super simple homemade pizza dough by combining 1.5 cups of self rasiing flour with 1 cup of greek yoghurt.
Mix together and you have an instant pizza dough.
You can then make mini pizzas or lay it flat in a rectangle, layer on flavours, roll up and slice into pinwheels. Bake at 180 celcius for around 5-7 minutes.
If you have a Thermomix and want to do a fancier bread dough instead:
10. Turkey Meatballs
High in protein, low in salts and fats, these hidden vegetable turkey meatballs are a great midday hit in the lunhcbox. I lay them on some spinach leaves to look a little fresher in the lunchbox.
11. Macaroni cheese cups
You cant go wrong with a crowd fave like mac and cheese! Instead of baking it all in one big pan, put some spoonfuls into muffin tins for a luncbox hit.
12. Wonton Pizza Cups
Pizza wonton cups are a quick, healthy, and delicious snack that packs all the flavours of pizza into an easy, bite-sized treat!
13. Strawberry Pots
Mix raspberry jelly with greek yoghurt for a berry mousse.
Follow the jelly packet to start (mix hot water wiht jelly crystals until dissolved) then instead of cold water, add greek yoghurt instead for a creamy protein bump.
YoGo - Thermomix
Ingredients:
100g Strawberry topping (I used Hersheys brand)
60g corn flour
80g sugar
1000g milk
Directions:
Place all ingredients into mixing bowl
Cook for 10min/80’/speed 4
Place into cups to cool and set in the fridge
14. Mini Hot Dogs
Prep these basic little treats up and keep them in the freezer for a grab and go lunchbox treat.
15. Bacon and Cheese Power Bites
Ok so it's just zuchinni slice, but if your kids are vege-phobes, calling this delicious slice "Bacon and Cheese Power Bites" might make it an easier sell.
16. Homemade LCM Bars
So theyre still full of sugar but they are heaps cheaper to make this way than buying the store ones full of extra packaging and preservatives.
Ingredients:
5 cups rice bubbles
250g Marshmallows
125g Butter
Your choice of decorating goodies
e.g choc bits, melted chocolate, mini jelly beans
Melt Butter & Marshmallows in Slow Cooker on high, about 20-30 minutes, till all melted, (lid on)
Add in Rice Bubbles and mix through util Marshmallow mix covers all Rice Bubbles.
Pour into lined tray (I wet my hands & press it all down) decorate with whatever you like. Then put in fridge till set, then cut up to size you want.
17. Quiche Boats - Air Fryer Or Oven
Another egg-cellent idea! I'm not even sorry for that. There is always time for a daggy egg joke!
The picture mostly explains it, throw your quiche mix into the stand-and-stuff tortilla shells and bang em in the air-fryer or oven. Eggs are a great lunchtime filler high in protein and healthy fats taht keep you feeling fuller for longer.
3 eggs
Ham
Spinach
Cheese
6 mini soft tortilla shells
10 mins @170, rotating them after 5 mins.
18. Sweetcorn Fritters
Sweetcorn fritters are little golden bites of goodness—crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and bursting with juicy, sweet corn in every bite!
19. Spaghetti Bolognese Cups
Spaghetti Bolognese cups are the perfect lunchbox treat for kids—easy to pack, no mess, and packed with delicious, familiar flavours that’ll keep them fuelled and happy through the school day!
20. ALL THE BALLS!!!
Raspberry Smoothie Bliss Balls
Carrot Cake Bliss Balls
Cherry Ripe Bliss Balls (use cranberries instead of cherries)
Milo Weetbix Bliss Balls
Salted Caramel Bliss Balls (recipe not online)
160g pitted dates, roughly chopped
3⁄4 cup desiccated coconut
1⁄2 cup rolled oats (if gluten-free, use brown rice flakes or quinoa flakes)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1⁄4 tsp salt
Place dates in a small bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside for 10 minutes.
Drain dates, saving 1 tbs of liquid and add to a food processor. Blitz until smooth and caramel like.
Add remaining ingredients (keeping 4 tbs coconut aside) to food processor blitz until oats break down and mixture comes together, adding liquid from dates if needed.
Using a tablespoon, scoop out mixture and roll into 12 balls. Roll balls in coconut and store in an airtight container in the fridge. Note: 2 balls = 1 snack
21. Sandwich shapes
Level up the classic vegemite and cheese sanga with these cute cutout shapes at just $3 a set from Kmart.
22. Rice Triangles and Balls
Grab these little moulds at around $3 each from Daiso (also on Temu and likely also at your local asian grocery store) and use your leftover cold rice to create cute little balls or flavoured rice "sandwiches" with filling inside.
23. Sushi Bowl
We make these ULTRA simple.
Mix some sushi rice seasoning over cooked rice (make the rice at night) then layer on some meat (anything from supermarket hot chook to leftover roast) and a handful of packet coleslaw (no dressing) and some sesame seeds if you want. I throw a container of soy sauce in to add when they are ready to eat and you can also add some of those crunchy seaweed snacks too.
24. Hot Noodles, Mac, Soup or Nuggets
If your kids will ONLY eat packet Mac and cheese or 2 minute noodles, you can make them in the morning and they'll still be hot for lunch. I find pre-heating the thermos with hot water before adding the hot food helps keep it warmer longer. This is also handy for soups and stews - my kids like tomato soup with cheese bread sticks to dip.
You can also pre-heat it with boiling water, then empty it out and put some chicken nuggets in there. They will keep warm until first break.
25. Fried Rice Slice
Found this one on TikTok - this creator does heaps of school lunch prep that goes in the freezer. Basically, make your fried rice, then squish it into silicone bar moulds (or cupcake moulds would also work, or those triangle ones I tagged above) and they are ready for grab and go.
26. Egg-selent Ideas (sorry...I had to)
You can always start with the Basic boiled eggs - self explanatory surely? Or level them up in one of these ways:
Egg salad pinwheels - https://pin.it/p5Cvn9i6H
Egg bites - https://pin.it/3Lq3edzPt
Omelet pinwheels - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iU6c-oxBMk4
Cheesy egg waffle - https://pin.it/2FW4aWHi2
27. Salads
Fork required but sometimes that adds to the fun of a salad over a sandwich?
Simple Pasta Salad - https://www.recipetineats.com/nagi-big-easy-pasta-salad/
Pesto Chicken Pasta Salad - recipe here
Mango chicken rice noodle salad - recipe here
Greek salad - recipe here
Lentil Salad - recipe here
BLT salad - https://natashaskitchen.com/blt-salad-recipe/
TIP- keep croutons separate so they dont go soggy
Caesar salad - https://www.recipetineats.com/chicken-caesar-salad/
Keep it Cool
If you made it this far - heres the reminder again to always add a gel ice pack in the kids insulated lunch boxes. Our Brisbane summers are so hot and it's much nicer to have a fresh, cool lunch. I like these soft ones more than the hard style and find the Smash range keep their cool all day long.
I hope this is a good start to your annual lunch box journey.
Maybe I will be able to keep the excitement and joy of making fun, homemade, healthy stuff until winter. Or Easter. Or week 5... time will tell.
I wish you all the best in your own lunchbox quest.
May they always come home empty and intact!
FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHER BRISBANE | NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHER BRISBANE
About the Author
Natarsha March is an award-winning Brisbane newborn, baby, and family photographer who specialises in creating timeless, heartfelt images that capture the love and connection between families. With years of experience and a passion for working with little ones, she’s known for her relaxed, stress-free sessions that result in beautifully natural photographs. Based in Bunya, Brisbane, Natarsha has helped countless families preserve their most precious moments, from the tiny details of a newborn to the joyful chaos of a growing family. If you're looking for a trusted photographer in Brisbane who values quality, safety, and genuine connection, Family Photography by Natarsha March is the perfect choice.
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