Three lunch box fillers that teens might actually eat

Oct 07, 2023

Do you have a teen returning to school? Or starting first year? As a mother of two teens, I have found that school lunches are a whole different ball game in secondary school compared to primary school.

Firstly, there are no strict guidelines on what can and cannot be in the school lunches. Only being allowed a “treat” on a Friday, no yoghurts (because they might stain the carpet) and no nuts are rules that are all gone out the window in secondary school, in my experience.

[ Two simple, easy-to-make, delicious bits for a primary school lunch box ]

Secondly, our teenagers have much more freedom. They may be allowed out of the school at lunchtime, there might be a canteen in school, or they might have money to buy their own food.

And thirdly, they are teenagers.

The lure of the corner shop with its chicken fillet rolls, a whole packet of biscuits for less than €1 and noodles (a staple food of every teen I know!) might mean the school lunches that mammy makes are often no longer on the menu. The challenge is to make things at home that might resemble their favourite foods. These lunches need to be tasty and, most importantly, easy to prepare for my kids to buy into taking them to school.

Here are three recipes that might work for your teen’s school lunch box.

Chia seed jam

Peanut butter and jam sandwiches are all the rage in our house. By using 100 per cent peanut butter and chia seeds, this is actually a very nutritious lunch option.

Is there a teen out there who doesn’t like pizza? Maybe, but I’ve never met one. These are really easy to make, especially in the air fryer. They are best eaten warm, so if your teen has access to a microwave at school, you’re on the pig’s back. If not, they might be able to bring it in a food flask. For ease of transport, I suggest sandwiching the two pizza bagel halves back together, and then your teen can eat it like a normal bagel in all it’s pizza deliciousness!

Making the awesome chicken nugget wrap

Make these as an alternative to the ubiquitous chicken fillet roll. Make a large batch of them so they are on hand and ready for lunches – no excuses!

[ School lunches that your kids will actually want to eat ]

Ta-da…

Recipes taken from Deirdre Doyle’s children’s cookbook Chop, Cook, Yum. Deirdre Doyle is a food educator, children’s cookbook author, blogger and social media influencer