Instead of sending your child through the cafeteria line with a $10 bill each day for school, get into the trend of packing them a healthy lunch.

Healthy is in right now, as is budgeting. So, your child will not be the only one brown bagging or bento box-ing lunch this year!

Keeping your kids healthy should be of paramount importance to you and here’s how you can improve their lunches…the easy way!

Think of food in 6 Groups:
1. Whole Grains – whole-grain sandwich bread or pita, pasta or brown rice are good examples.

2. Fruits – apples, melon, grapes, berries, fruit juice, 100% fruit spread will all work well.

3. Calcium – That’s your dairy foods like milk, yogurt, cheese, tofu, soy milk, but also dark leafy greens, beans and almonds or almond butter – even 100% orange juice.

4. Healthy Fats – like nuts and nut butters, avocado, salmon, flax seeds or oil, extra virgin olive oil

5. Protein – nuts, nut butter, seafood, beans like edamame, hard boiled eggs, fish, chicken, lean beef, turkey, seeds or cheeses.

6. Vegetables – tomatoes, broccoli, peas, spinach, 100% vegetable juice, lettuce, cabbage – whatever they’ll eat!

Now, choose something from each of those categories and include this in your child’s (or husband’s or your) lunch.

This will prove to be a fun, interesting, filling and healthy lunch that’s inexpensive because you made it at home!

That may seem like a lot of food – well, be mindful of your portion sizes – it doesn’t have to be a smorgasbord…

Also, another great tip is to be sure you include as much color as possible – the more colorful the food is, typically, the healthier it is for you.

For example, bright red peppers, dark green leafy lettuce or spinach, bright orange mango, pickled beets, or blueberries.

This is making me hungry already!

Have fun and even let your kids help you make their lunches or let them choose which food of each category they want.

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I hope you enjoyed this Healthy How To post on Cooking With Kimberly! Until next time…

Eat Deliciously,

Kimberly Edwards 🙂

P.S. For more awesome ideas for Bento Box Lunches, check out this wonderful book:

500 Bento Box Lunches Home-packed lunches with small portions of varied delicious foods are a Japanese tradition that fits perfectly into a contemporary, healthy foodie diet. Organic, sustainable bento recipes are included, ranging from traditional Japanese to modern bento. With 500 unique recipes, stunningly vibrant illustrations, and easy-to-follow instructions, this is the perfect cookbook for a busy lifestyle.