stuck in a rut with packed lunches

[*Becky*]

I have a picky eater (thread on preschoolers) so this is a challenge. I only have to give him a packed lunch twice a week atm but in September it will be every day 
Just wanted to share ideas really and see if there is anything I have not thought of. This is a typical lunch for Henry at pre school

Sandwich - organic brown/wholemeal bread with marmite, humus or tuna (most other fillings are rejected)
Innocent smoothie
A banana or strawberries/raspberries (other fruits rejected)
Goodies high fibre cereal bar
Alpro soy yoghurt

Then sometimes he has raisins, a 'bear' (dried fruit roll) biscuit or cake that we have made....that's about it.

I know he needs more protein so have tried little bits of turkey but he won't eat them. I tried a chicken sandwich but it came back uneaten. He does not like twiglets or pom bear crisps.
He loves cheese but I limit dairy so it is not something I really want to include.

Any other ideas would be great!

[Erin M]

I ask mine what they want and sometimes we go to the store to pick stuff out together.  We talk about what is needed (protein, fruits, veggies, grains) in a lunch and pick out things accordingly.  Do you think he's too little for that? 

[flutie]

Our DS likes salmon/tuna/egg salad with crackers to dip in it.  We use whole grain rice crackers as they are a little harder and dont crack when he scoops up the salad.

[Lemonthyme]

Why are you limiting dairy?  Is he showing signs of intolerance?

Mini quiches are a great way to hide things (vegetables and meats): http://mamacook.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/mini-quiches-for-babies-and-toddlers.html

I think the fact that some fruits are accepted are a good thing.  It's up to you, it might be easier to continue with what he does accept while he's away from home and work on the range of fruits and vegetables at home.  I like the idea of shopping together.  Maybe he could chose one new thing for his lunchbox each day?  Like a new fruit, a new sandwich filling, a new vegetable to have as sticks.

I wouldn't worry if you get the occasional refusal of part of his lunch.  There's plenty there.

[Mashi]

Will H eat meatballs Becky?  We do a few different kinds/flavours here and my DS does not mind them cold. We send "breakfast" and not lunch so the types of things I send are probably different.  But I do send cold meatballs still and they go over well.   

Will H eat dreid meat do you think? Like jerky type? It usually is salty but we can get low-salt versions here and even kids jerky (almost zero salt, made a wee bit softer and easier to bite). Really high in protein and tends to be something kids like.

Hard boiled eggs? My DS won't eat them but almost every child in his class brings one every day!

[*Becky*]

Erin - that is a good idea, we could try that. He has a bit of a fixation on sweet stuff and is not at all good at trying new food but we could have a go.

Lisa - he does not like crackers, eggs or salad in any form!

Lemonthyme - we saw a kinesiologist last year as Henry has been on/off pooing his pants since he was about 2.5 (we now know it is a constipation issue from withholding.) The kinesiologist tests showed up dairy as being an issue for him but tbh I have not noticed a difference since we took him off it which is why I am not uber-strict about it now but I try not to let him have too much i.e. he has almond milk. I have offered quiche before but maybe I could try again.

Mashi - he might well try dried meat - I will have a look out for it.
Meatballs are hit and miss - do you just cook them up an then he takes them in cold the next day?

[clazzat]

Tbh, that looks like a pretty balanced lunchbox to me - very similar to what e has three times a week! Given that it is only a couple of times a week, I would concentrate on what he eats in the evening to get his protein. It is nearly 6 months until he starts school and there is a lot that can change in 6 months in terms of what they will eat. As you have had some small successes at home recently, you are quite likely to find that you can build on that success over the summer and worry about it then if necessary! We saw a massive difference in what m would eat when she started school - we have had loads of issues with her being a picky eater and I thought we would never get to the point where she would eat new things or vegetables. She is still quite limited in the things that she likes, but she will eat, or at least try, nearly everything now that she understands a bit more about how important good nutrition is.

As he loves cheese, you could give him some small squares of goats or sheeps cheese - that would add protein but avoid dairy.

[Ima shel Alon]

Becky, if he likes hummus that's great, IMO! Are you making it yourself or buy it? Because hummus has tahini inside and if you make it at home then you can put a little but more than the shop bought one and is anyway healthier if made at home. Tahini is full of iron.
I made for DS quinoa chocolate brownies which he loved. You cook the quinoa and then ground it so you really can't feel there is quinoa in it (which is full of protein). I also made chocolate cake with black beans and you couldn't feel the beans inside.

[Lemonthyme]

I would be tempted to see a specialist in allergies or a GP about the dairy.  A kinesiologist isn't really an expert in that field.  Dairy also has great other nutrients in it and as he likes it (and excluding it hasn't made any difference) it might be worth thinking about.  At least you might then get an idea if it's lactose (in which case hard cheese is probably going to be fine unless very sensitive) or milk protein (when it won't be) or if it's specifically cow's milk or whether all dairy should be excluded.  Just by four penneth! 

What about some cold cooked chicken goujons or nuggets?  Here's a 'no junk' recipe:  http://mamacook.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/chicken-nuggets-for-babies-and-toddlers.html

Just another thought and please ignore if I'm being a worry wort (I work in food safety so I tend to be a bit of one) but obviously a lot of cooked protein is high risk for food poisoning if not kept chilled so ice blocks would be a good idea or if they have facilities, the lunch should be refrigerated.

[skatty]

Becky L used to be MSPI and even when we started dairy again we limited it but yoghurt was actually the one thing that helped L become more regular with her number 2s I guess it was the good bacteria. I think most alternative therapists recommend cutting down on dairy.

[*Becky*]

clare - great idea about sheep or goats cheese - had not really though of that.

Noa - I could try making humus  - I find that he gets quite used to certain tastes so while i know that my homemade smoothies would probably be better, I doubt very much he would like them as much as the innocent ones yk? I would love a recipe for the quinoa choc brownies.

Lemonthyme - The Dr's would never test him for allergies/intolerances as they just do not present seriously enough yk? I have recently been allowing him a few cubes of cheese and I may start on natural yoghurt again (with a compote) but i am quite happy with him not having too much dairy anyways.

Katt - good point. He has been on a probiotic until very recently as he had abx at xmas - I guess I could continue with them or give some yoghurt.

[clazzat]

Have you tried the lactofree range? The yoghurts taste just like regular yoghurts, and the cheese is nice enough (more like Swiss cheese than cheddar, though) and I think the milk tastes pretty normal too. If lactose is the problem then he should be able to tolerate those well enough.

[*Becky*]

will give them a go!

[Lemonthyme]

My son had a temporary lactose intolerance after a really bad stomach bug and we moved to lactofree for a month which worked fine. Not worth it on cheese though unless really sensitive because mature cheeses have very little lactose in anyway I think?

[Ima shel Alon]

I would love a recipe for the quinoa choc brownies.

There it is: http://www.presidentschoice.ca/LCLOnline/recipes.jsp?type=details&recipeId=lclor42016