Healthy lunch ideas for kids

When summer rolls around, lunches should be fresh and fast – easy to prepare and using the best of what’s in season. Our friends at Lunch Lady magazine have shared a couple of their favourite recipes for gorgeous lunch ideas that are great for keeping the kids happy.

FRUIT ROLLS

8 strawberries, sliced

1/2 apple, cut into little sticks and squeezed with some lemon

1 kiwi fruit, sliced

1/2 cup baby spinach

8 rice paper wrappers

Mango + nectarine:

1/2 mango, thinly sliced

1/2 apple, cut into little sticks and squeezed with some lemon

1 nectarine, thinly sliced

8 rice paper wrappers

Yoghurt + honey dipping sauce

120ml yoghurt, or coconut yoghurt

honey, to taste

1/2 lemon or lime, juice only

1. Cut up all the fruit.

2. Fill a large bowl with warm water.

3. Dampen a tea towel and spread it out on your bench, next to the bowl of water.

4. In the bowl of warm water, individually dip each rice paper wrapper for 4–5 seconds, or until it has just softened.

5. Place the wrapper on the damp tea towel. Add some apple sticks and either a few slices of strawberries and kiwi fruit and a couple of baby spinach leaves or a few slices of mango and nectarine one-third of the way up the wrapper.

6. Fold the bottom third of the wrapper up over the mixture, and tuck it in nice and tight. Then fold in each side to make a straight edge and close up each end of the roll. Roll up and away from you. Press the edge down and lay it facedown.

7. For the dipping sauce, spoon the yoghurt into a bowl and stir through the honey and lemon or lime.

SUMMER SALAD ROLLS

For the rice paper rolls:

1 beetroot, shredded

1 carrot, shredded

1 punnet cherry tomatoes, sliced

2 large handfuls coriander

1 large handful basil leaves

1 large handful mint leaves

12 rice paper wrappers

For the zingy tahini sauce:

1 lemon, juice only

1 tbsp sauerkraut

2 tbsp tahini

1 tbsp white miso paste

1 tbsp coconut sugar

1 tsp white vinegar

a thumb-sized chunk of fresh ginger

1. Prep all your veggies and herbs, and lay them out on a board next to you.

2. Fill a large bowl with warm water.

3. Dampen a tea towel and spread it out on your bench, next to the bowl of water.

4. In the bowl of warm water, individually dip each rice paper wrapper for 4–5 seconds, or until it has just softened.

5. Place the wrapper on the damp tea towel, and lay a little bit of beetroot and carrot, a few slices of cherry tomato, some coriander, and two leaves of basil and mint one-third of the way up the wrapper.

6. Fold the bottom third of the wrapper up over the mixture, and tuck it in nice and tight. Then fold in each side to make a straight edge and close up each end of the roll. Roll up and away from you. Press the edge down and lay it facedown.

7. For the dipping sauce, blend together all ingredients until nice and smooth.

Lunch Lady is a quarterly book series about food and family. It's for parents who want easy, healthy kids lunch and snack ideas. Each edition of Lunch Lady is full of recipes, inspiring family stories, photography, art and funny relatable opinion pieces about the ups and downs of raising children.

Available worldwide, you can order all copies from the Lunch Lady website. Order your copies here! Read the blog here, and follow Lunch Lady on Facebook and Instagram.