Project Lunch Box - Week 4

Week 4 would be more like rice lunches for us.  

It's time to train the palate with rice meals this time.  

I'd like him to be more flexible with the foods we have at home.  

Just so I wouldn't be stressing much about low pantry inventories.

With the exception of Monday, all else are healthy rice meals.

Grilled Cheese Wraps for a Green Monday

Grilled Deli and Cheese Melt Wrap, Kiwi, Edamame

Packed with his favorite Fruit Punch and Frozen
Crushed Cup Strawberry-Banana Yogurt.

My son went home with some leftovers today. First time. Why? I think I packed so much for him.  He used to have some friends to share with at lunchtime.  You know little boys who's always so curious about his lunches.  And, my boy was so stressed about that.  He hears all kinds of comments and requests.  For instance, "Yucky green beans", "I'm allergic to shrimps", "I hate broccoli!", "let's trade lunches", and goes on.  There were also times he would just want to hide till he was all done, just so nobody would bother him.  I told him to either just ignore and eat or share a little to them.  

Steamed Chinese Sausages for Red & Yellow Tuesday

Steamed Chinese Sausages over steamed rice,
with corn kernels and red grapes.

I pack my lunches in such a way he has fruits and veggies on the side.  I make sure they vary each day, unless I get a huge supply at home.  So far, he's very happy and less picky lately.  The secret is I just let him know what he's having for lunch the night before.  I never give him choices.

No School Wednesday

My kids were off from school today.
It's PTC Conference Week, and Wednesday is off for a full day conference
 for parents who can't make it on their scheduled days.

My preschooler is off as well due to teachers' workshop set on the same day.

So consider this day be a rest day for us as well.

See you on Thursday!

Chili Thursday

Chili con Carne packed with corn, soy beans, edamame
and green bell peppers served with steamed rice
and grapes on the side. 

Not sure what to pack this Thursday.  Honestly, I'm running out of ideas.  I wanted to create a varied meal for at least a month to repeat over the school year.  Glad I have leftover chili last night which my children devour hot or cold.  Today was his first time to pack this for school.  And, guess what?  I had an empty lunchbox after school.  He said it was yummy and would love to have it again.  That painted a big smile on my face of course.  He also said that the boys in school asked how come he always have yummy lunches.  He simply replied with a smile, "My mom made them for me."  

Adobo Rice Friday

Adobo Rice, Shredded Chicken, Broccoli,
Kiwi & Chocolate Crinkles

It's Jog-A-Thon Day!  Each class jogged in the school's field for 30 minutes.  The classes took turns.  Not a race but the goal was to jog as many lapses as they could.  This was a fundraiser event for their fieldtrip.  Always fun to be a volunteer parent of course.  Because you get to join in the fun.  Orange slices and water bottles were donated by families per class.  Parent volunteers help tally their lapses as they jogged.  Their tally charts were attached and secured with a safety pin behind them.

So today I packed as much food as I could.  I know it would be an exhausting event, especially under the heat of the sun.  And I'd like him to regain his stamina as fast as he could. So he could better focus in school works.

My adobo rice is actually a garlic rice stir-fried with olive oil and added a bit of adobo sauce for added flavoring.  I fried the rice so it wouldn't be soggy by lunch time.  The sauce over the rice is usually the culprit.  I shredded the chicken too for easier eating, and added some broccoli and kiwi on the side for more nutrients. I also packed some chocolate crinkles for his snack.

Need Adobo Recipe?  Click here.

Project Lunch Box - Week 3

Today is a fresh start.  

A new challenge to fulfill.  

It's the Project lunch Box.

This is the 3rd week of the Challenge.

However, it would be my first since I saw the post quite late.

I was a little too busy fulfilling my Brown-Bag Challenges

in the month of September.

Everything Grilled-Up for a Strawberry-filled Monday

Grilled 4-Cheese Quesadillas, Chicken Nuggets,
Strawberry Wheels, BBQ sauce & a BABY RUTH.

I felt like grilling this morning since I woke up 10 minutes ahead of my alarm clock.  It's another week of brown-bagging for my son to school.  I thought of bringing back Chicken Nuggets since it's been a while since he had it.  This time I paired it with Quesadilla wedges. Four of each.  A Baby Ruth Chocolate for his treat. And a bunch of extra strawberries to fill him up.

Cheeseburger & Salad Tuesday

Today is quite big for my project lunch box by special request.  

Due to my recent success of packing his lunch for the Brown-Bag Challenge, 

my son has learned the value of eating healthy.  

Cheeseburger and Asian Green Salad

 with Ranch and oranges on the side.

We called it Asian Green Salad because of the dressing and some ingredients.  We made use of Romaine lettuce, imitation crab meat, corn kernels, raisins, orange wedges, bread croutons and Thai fish sauce as the dressing.

But for his salad, we did a few alterations.  I crushed the bread croutons into crumbs-like and made use of Ranch dressing instead.  Try the Thai Fish Sauce and let me know how you liked it.

Shrimp-a-licious Wednesday!

Rice with sweet pea and corn, shrimp and asian pear cutlets

with juice pouch.

For a healthier option, I've always mentioned to substitute rice with quinoa.  But since I'm still training my kids' palates to different tastes, I have to break it gently.  It'd come along the way.  My grilled shrimp were marinated with salt and pepper, thyme and lemon juice.

Hotdogs for Thursday

Hotdog on a bun, strawberry halves,
and some oreo cookies for
some lunchbox fun.

Hotdog on a bun is a classic lunch idea.  But it does not disappoint little tummies.  A matter of fact, it is what pleases them most.  Today was supposed to be tuna melt sammies, but he opted for this instead.  And so be it!

Cheese Pizza Bagels for TGIFriday

Home-made Cheese Pizza Bagels,
broccoli and corn on the side and some
of his fave strawberries.

My Cheese Pizza Bagel is just simple to make.  

I'm sure most of the moms could make this. 

It's as easy as spread, sprinkle and bake.

(Ing: spaghetti sauce, shredded cheese, mini bagel halves)

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes.

I'm glad I made it through this week's challenge and had clean lunchboxes at the end of each day.  I will be making Just a Bunch of Momsense's comment card soon to add to my son's lunchbox.  Maybe that could help me plan my lunch meals for the following weeks.  You might want to check that out too so you have an idea what I'm talking about.

See you next week!!

Brown-Bag Challenge: The Final Week (Days 17-21)

Monday: Left-overs Seafood Vegetable LoMein, Roasted Chicken & Fruit Delights

We had a splendid gathering last night with friends at home.  We did a lot of catching up.  And we found ourselves almost eating the entire time we were together.  Non-stop I shall confess.  But we have prepared healthy comfort foods so there's nothing much to worry about extra time at the gym the following day.  The kids did their part of getting to know each other.  Bonding while playing nicely.  But the mess after was a great thing to deal with.  We started late lunch and ended up past bedtime.  So there wasn't enough time to clean-up well & prepare for the next day's brown-bag.  We woke up late and just packed leftovers of LoMein and Roasted Chicken from lunch and dinner yesterday.  A repeat but a comforting meal indeed.

Seafood LoMein

Roasted Chicken

Fortunately, my son had an early release today at 12:30 pm.  So I needed not to worry about him much.  I sent him to school with fruit delights.  A mixture of grapes, strawberries, blueberries, and orange slices that will stuff him till lunch at home.  At home, he ate the LoMein as well and was happy and content.

Have a hearty meal everyone! ^-^

Fruit Delights

Tuesday: Pinwheels and Strawberries:

Ham & Cheese Pinewheels
and Strawberries

Fall weather is officially in.  I can feel the cool morning breeze here in SoCal.  And it's getting harder to rise up early in early to prepare the brown-bag.  Nonetheless, I habe to force myself to prepare for my loved-ones breakfast and lunch tummy fillers.

Today, the brown-bag had sweet Ham and Cheese with Lettuce Pinwheels.  It's one of my son's favorites that I have long forgotten.  It took Healthy Eats' Nutritionist Toby Amiador to remind me that it still exists.  So for a change, I packed that with halved strawberries on the side.  While we ate the leftovers for breakfast.  I have to make one with cheese and one without, since my daughter doesn't eat cheese.  Oh for goodness-sake! Even when we dine out, she'll eat anything as long as there are no cheeses...please :-)  It's not that she's allergic to it, she just didn't like the taste of cheesy dishes.

Hubby packed Chili and Chopseuy Vegetables with steamed rice.  I will be volunteering for my son's school after lunch today so I would have to eat from home before I go.  My choice of anything yummy to eat from home.  Might as well heat up a bowl of chili over steamed rice.  Comforting and fulfilling for a cold day.

If anyone needs a recipe for anything I have prepared, just let me now by leaving a comment.  I'll be happy to provide them for you.

Have a wonderful meal, everyone!

Wednesday: Home-made Cheese Bagel Pizzas

I am a bit excited today to create my home-made pizza bagels, as inspired by the frozen pizzas bought in supermarkets.  My children are pizza fanatics.  And since I pledged on preparing my brownbags as healthy and home-made as possible, I decided to make my own pizza bagels for my kiddos.

It's very easy.  

I just needed 3 ingredients for this. 

A store bought mini-bagels, 

bottled veggie-spag sauce, 

and shredded cheese.  

Pizza Bagels, Plums & Muffin

Procedure:  

Preheat oven at 425 degrees.

Lay-out the bagels on cookie sheet

Spread sauce, sprinkle with cheese, and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Results are healthier, cheesier and yummier pizza bagels.  The kids were excited because they sprinkled the cheese for me.  Next time, I'll just have them do it by themselves, then I'll take it to the oven for baking.  I gave him plums and cupcakes to neutralize the cheezy-ness of his lunch.

Honestly, I'm proud of myself for all the lunches I've made since the start of the challenge.  I never knew I could do wonders when challenged.  I'm happy I made my kids eat a healthier meal each time.  Best of all, my hubby's happy as well.  I guess I will continue this challenge forever.  And I will keep blogging coz it's what makes it exciting as well.

Happy brown-bagging!

Thursday: Pesto Chicken Farfalle

Just to let you know that this is a Broccoli Challenge as well by Kelly. I am doing 2 challenges simultaneously because it inspires me to prepare healthier meals, and encourages my kids to eat healthier as well.  So it's like hitting 2 birds with one stone.  Well.... this one is hitting 2 challenges with one blog and preparation.

Today's brown-bag was Pesto Chicken Farfalle with Broccoli and Nectarines on the side. This lunch is very simple to prepare. I have made the pesto sauce in advance and have stored it in my fridge.  It's made of basil leaves, olive oil, garlic and cheese.  All blended in my blender since I don't have a food processor.  But at times when I'm out, and just crave for it, I make use of any store-bought traditional Pesto Sauce jar.  It works just fine. We have a left-over chicken rotisserie from last night, so I cut it into small pieces to mix with my farfalle noodles.  I separated broccoli from my pesto farfalle because it was by special request.  My 3rd grader is like Kelly, a broccoli fanatic.  He wants to munch his broccoli by itself to satisfy his palate.  But for grown-ups, I tossed it along the pesto chicken farfalle to make it look more appetizing, and not bland.  I topped it off with shredded mozarella cheese.  And of course my fruit dessert would be the famous nectarine wedges.  Blueberry would look better with this but he just gobbled it all up last night before going to bed.  So this is what's left, and we have to make it last.

Pesto Farfalle, Broccoli,
Nectarines

My husband didn't pack his brown-bag today because of a lunch meeting this afternoon.  Lunches will be provided in their office.  So I guess, we'll consider that as his brown-bag for the day.  I'm crossing my fingers that he'll make healthier choices though.

Have a wonderful brown-bag everyone!

Friday: Fancy Garlic Rice & the Works:

Hurray! It's the last day of Healthy Eats' brown-bag challenge.  I must say I did fairly well and made everyone happy.  I have fulfilled my goal and my kids are eating healthier.  But it will never be the last day for my brown-bag chore.  It actually just began.  And I have pledged to myself that I will continue to pack and create healthy lunches for my family, and share ideas as well with other moms in need.

Garlic Rice, Strawberries

and Choco-fudge Muffin

Today's brown-bag is garlic rice with hotdogs, corn and sweet peas.  For healthier option, try QUINOA as a substitute to rice.  Strawberries and a choco-fudge muffin for dessert.

I stir-fried my hotdogs bits with garlic and oil.  I made sure that the hotdogs are slightly browned before I add in the rest of my ingredients (cooked rice, corn kernels, and sweetpeas) over medium to high heat.  You can actually add in carrots as well, edamame or broccoli, depending on what you have in stock.  Then let it cool before packing so as not to create dew inside the container.  I was told that dew is responsible for spoiled rice if you packed it still hot.  Or you might want to throw in ice pack in the lunchboxes to be safe.  I do all the time since he likes to eat his food cold anyways.

Recipes to follow.  Please check back later.

We're teaming up with fellow food bloggers to host a Brown-Bag Challenge, a month-long initiative to eat consciously and save money by packing a lunch each weekday instead of eating out. Join us here and share what you're eating on Facebook andTwitter with the hashtag #brownbag.

I'd like to link this up with Family Fresh Cooking's Project Lunch Box - Week 2.  Feel free to click on the badge to be linked back to Family Fresh Cooking's post.

Project Lunch Box

Now that the Brown-Bag Challenge has ended,

I'd like to continue on what I started.
So today, though I am 2 weeks late, 

take a pledge to provide healthy meals 

in accordance to Project Lunch Box guidelines.

I hope I could help spread the word

and inspire fellow Project Lunch Box-makers

towards healthy eating.

Why Project Lunch Box?

• Real, unprocessed foods are best for our physical and mental health.
• If we help guide what our children eat while away from home, there is a better guarantee for school success, overall happiness and health.
• It costs less to pack lunch at home. With tighter budgets these days it makes sense to bring your own lunch.
• We want our children and loved ones to thrive. Home cooked meals are best (unless your school or work cafeteria has embraced a real food meal plan)

Together let’s Take a Pledge to get it right…..

• I understand that I can help decide what my family eats. #projectlunchbox reinforces that decision.
• Made a decision to provide meals with Real Whole Food ingredients as often as possible
• My goal is to provide nourishing meals for my family, even when they are away from home. (work, school, camp, etc.)
• I will include healthy snacks to keep nourished & strong throughout the day
• I will use re-usable containers and lunch boxes to reduce waste and care for the environment.
• I will spread the word with our school, friends and loved ones about Project Lunch Box.
• I will encourage positive, mindful food behaviors including portion control & taking the time to sit and enjoy a meal.
• One box. One Meal at a Time. Each day provides a new window of opportunity to get it right.
• Even if I do not pack lunches for kids I support the mission to feed healthy food to those I care for.
• Please join us to help promote the Lunch Box Project by tweeting with the hashtag #projectlunchbox and becoming a fan on Facebook and Twitter  for regular updates.

For people who would want to join in the fun of packing foods for our kids, please refer to this link:

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/221xT1/www.familyfreshcooking.com/2011/09/16/project-lunch-box-30-day-challenge/

Day 12: Sushi Rolls & Plums

Spam and Crab Sushi Rolls & Plums

It's another start of brown-bagging week.  

Today my son brown-bagged spam and crab sushi rolls.  

This is one of his favorites and mine as well.  It's very nutritious and fulfilling.  

He brought 2 plums with him as well to help him be stuffed on breaks.  

I am so glad he has never been tired of my lunch ideas yet.  

But this week I will be trying out Nutritionist, 

Toby Amidor's kiddie lunch ideas which you can also find it here.  

You might want to check it out as well coz it gives you lots of ideas 

to prepare for the coming days.  Then jot down which one works and which one didn't.  

That way you'll be preparing meals which won't be put to waste. 

 And every brown bags are well appreciated.

What did my husband brown-bagged today?  

That left a mystery to me since he did it all by himself. 

Surely, he took some of last night's leftovers to work today. 

I guess I would just have to check on the fridge and check which one's missing :)  

I hope everyone else had a great time brown-bagging their lunches today.  

It feels great to brown-bag with everyone else, right?  

Sharing what's inside is always the fun way to do it.  

Happy eating!!

We're teaming up with fellow food bloggers to host a Brown-Bag Challenge, a month-long initiative to eat consciously and save money by packing a lunch each weekday instead of eating out. Join us here and share what you're eating on Facebook andTwitter with the hashtag #brownbag.