Back-To-School Preparations

Summer is starting to wind down, and during these final weeks it’s time to begin back-to-school preparations. It’s time to head to the local office supply store to stock up on fresh notebooks, pencils, glue sticks, and organizers. It’s time to head to your local music store to rent your child’s instrument for another season of band, orchestra, and lessons. It’s time to get on the schedule for another fun year of individual after-school tutoring and test prep. It’s time to do a little shopping for new school clothes and shiny new shoes, and it’s time to think about fun new ways to put nutritious food into your kid’s lunch boxes.

We all know that fueling our children with healthy food is important, and a good midday lunch is vital so they can steam their way through the second half of their school day at full attention. A little forethought goes a long way, particularly since we want to create something that is not only nutritious but that the kids will really love. We don’t want the lunches to end up in the bin or get traded away for a Twinkie across that table, right? Here are a few recipes, hints, and ideas to get you started!


PB&J Sushi Rolls

2 T creamy peanut butter
2 T jam
2 slices whole-grain bread

Cut the crusts off of each slice of bread and use a rolling pin to flatten. Spread each slice with ½ of the peanut butter and the jam. Roll tightly and slice into 4 rolls. Hint: Spread the peanut butter on the bread first to prevent the jam from getting the bread soggy.


Fruity Yogurt Bars

1 ½ c whole wheat flour
1 t baking soda
½ baking powder
1 t cinnamon
½ t ground ginger
1 (6 oz) package mixed dried fruit, chopped
1/3 c chopped walnuts, if desired
1 c vanilla yogurt
1 large egg
¼ apple juice concentrate, thawed
2 T canola oil
Nonstick cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add dried fruits and walnuts.  In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, egg, apple juice concentrate, and oil. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients until blended. Coat a 9 X 13 inch pan with vegetable spray, spread batter in pan. Bake 45-50 minutes or until done. Cool 10 minutes before slicing. Slice into 8 servings. Hint: freeze individual portions and add a frozen bar into the lunchbox in the morning. It will keep the other contents cool and be thawed by lunchtime.


Zucchini/Corn Muffins

1 c flour
1 c cornmeal
1 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1 egg
½  c milk
¼  c vegetable oil
1 ½ c creamed corn
2 small zucchini, grated

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 12 segment muffin tray or line with muffin papers. Sift dry ingredients into a bowl.  Mix wet ingredients including vegetables in another bowl. Combine the two mixes, lightly stir together. Spoon into prepared pan. Bake 25-30 minutes, until golden.



Cheesy Dippers

This snack is super easy! Just slice up a block of yellow cheese (cheddar) and a block of white cheese (muenster or jack) into bite-sized cubes. Insert a pretzel stick into each cube. Store these in a baggie or plastic storage box and include a small container of honey mustard for dipping. Simple!