Stealthy and Healthy Lunch Bag Power-Ups
By Lauren Popeck, RD, LD/N, Registered and Licensed Dietitian at Orlando Health
Kids love all things sweet, savory and crunchy in their school lunches. Parents do, too, as long as these items are healthy. Here are a few stealthy and healthy lunchtime power-ups to pack in kids’ lunch bags.
Whole grains with a twist: Go savory by topping a whole grain tortilla with low sodium turkey breast, part-skim mozzarella cheese, crunchy lettuce and savory mustard. Roll-up and slice in half. Go sweet by spreading peanut butter on a whole wheat tortilla, adding a banana to the middle and rolling it up.
Protein power-up: Pack a punch of protein with Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese sticks, or packs of nuts such as almonds, cashews or peanuts.
Curb crunch and sugar cravings: Replace chips with carrot sticks and hummus. Straighten out snack time with low-sugar granola bars, graham crackers, pretzels or whole grain crackers with peanut butter.
Naturally sweet: Fruits are nature’s candy. Substitute sugary candy with grapes, clementine oranges, apples and raisins.
