Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (2024)

Being home most of the time has had me searching for healthy meals to serve my family. Having a weekly meal plan is nice, but sometimes, we like adding new and exciting dishes.I bet your family probably enjoys a food change occasionally, too. Right? Thankfully, I’vefound severaldelicious Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas your kids will love. Check them out below.

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas

20+ Delicious Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas

Packing a nutritious and appealing lunch for your toddler can sometimes feel like a culinary puzzle. As parents, we strive to balance taste and health while keeping our little ones interested and excited about their meals. With the right mix of creativity and nutrition, you can craft lunches that support their growth and development and tickle their taste buds.

Here, we’ll explore a variety of healthy toddler lunch ideas that are both easy to prepare and delightful for your little one. From finger foods to colorful veggies and protein-packed bites, get ready to transform mealtime into an adventure your toddler will look forward to every day.

Toddler Lunch Ideas

Healthy Fruit Wrap

Kids and adults love this healthy fruit wrap – It’s delicious and easy to make.

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Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (4)
Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (5)
Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (6)

1 Year Old Lunch Ideas

Lunch Box Kabobs – It Is A Keeper

Mix up average lunches with these kabobs! I love how versatile kabobs are, and you can personalize each one according to each child’s different taste.

Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets – Skinny Taste

Make your own chicken nuggets, coated with bread crumbs and crumbly parmesan cheese. Not only are these healthier than traditional store-bought chicken nuggets, but they don’t contain any processed ingredients.

Peanut Butter Banana Quesadillas – Budget Bytes

These peanut butter banana quesadillas are affordable(about $.86 per serving) and simple to whip up for a quick out-of-the-ordinary lunch.

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (7)

Healthy Toddler Lunches

Star Wars Stormtrooper Bento Lunch – 4 The Love of Family

Star Wars is a no-fail kid-friendly lunch. Filled with a yummy tortilla and chicken strips, kids will love eating this snack!

Cheese and Veggie Muffins – Learn With Play At Home

These cheese and veggie muffins are easy enough for kids to help you make them! Mix vegetables with fresh, gooey cheese for this yummy homemade lunch!

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (8)

Back To School Superhero Lunch Box – Life With The Crust Cut Off

Inspire kids with this superhero themed lunch, complete with a sandwich, banana, and chocolate milk.

Toddler Healthy Lunch Ideas

Apple Sandwiches – Caramel Potatoes

Creamy peanut butter mixes with crunchy apples and sweet chocolate chips in this nutritious after-school snack, or lunch treat.

Strawberry & Granola Yogurt Bark – Six Sisters Stuff

There are only four ingredients in this yogurt bark. They have a sweet taste yet are made out of healthy and nutritious ingredients.

PB&J Graham Slam – Welch’s

Put a unique spin on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with these Graham Crackers. Replace the typical white bread with graham crackers!

Healthy Toddler Meals

Egg Salad BLT – Taste Better From Scratch

Create devilled egg inspired egg salad BLTs. These BLTs can be modified for all age ranges, which makes them convenient for multiple people.

Toddler Lunches – My Life of Travels and Adventures

For a simple on-the-go lunch, createtheseDIY-Lunchables. Here are 8 basic toddler-approved dishes!

Lunchbox Perfect Apple Salad – Mirlandra’s Kitchen

As an alternative to traditional salad mixes, try this yogurt-filled apple salad. It takes only about five minutes to make and has only two ingredients! There’s also no chewing involved, which makes it great for sensitive teeth.

Healthy Lunch for Toddlers

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (10)

Easy Sandwich Kabobs – Eat Drink Love

For a fun alternative to traditional ham and cheese sandwiches, create these kid-focused sandwich kabobs, which are just as easy to put together.

Homemade Pizza Rolls – Tidy Mom

Make your own pizza rolls! These are healthier than traditional pizza rolls and can be modified depending on your favorite pizza ingredients!

Did you find a few healthy lunch ideas you want to try? If you try any or have favorites of your own, please leave me a comment and share your thoughts. I love hearing about what works for you.

If your family loves healthy food, head here for a fun free Farmer’s Market Scavenger Hunt and Eat the Rainbow Printables.

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (12)
Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (13)
Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (14)

Easy Family Recipes

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Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love (2024)

FAQs

Healthy Toddler Lunch Ideas Recipes your child will love? ›

Hard-Cooked Egg Snack Box: Add hard-cooked eggs, pita or crackers, fruit and veggies to a snack box. Toddler Taco Salad: Pack brown rice, black or pinto beans, diced veggies, cubed cheese, and salsa or guacamole in a lunchbox. (Sub pasta for the rice if that's easier.) Pesto Pasta Salad: Prepare pasta salad ahead.

What is a healthy easy lunch for toddlers? ›

Hard-Cooked Egg Snack Box: Add hard-cooked eggs, pita or crackers, fruit and veggies to a snack box. Toddler Taco Salad: Pack brown rice, black or pinto beans, diced veggies, cubed cheese, and salsa or guacamole in a lunchbox. (Sub pasta for the rice if that's easier.) Pesto Pasta Salad: Prepare pasta salad ahead.

What are some healthy lunches for kids? ›

Kids' healthy lunch recipes
  • Lemon & yogurt chicken flatbreads. A star rating of 4.5 out of 5. ...
  • Butter bean curry wraps. A star rating of 5 out of 5. ...
  • Pitta pockets. A star rating of 4.4 out of 5. ...
  • Homemade fish finger sarnie. ...
  • Pesto egg muffin bites. ...
  • Rice cake cress faces. ...
  • Tomato soup with pasta. ...
  • Chicken taco salad.

How do you pack a picky child for lunch? ›

Sneak in Foods to Cover All Food Groups

If dietary restrictions are not an issue, you can try sneaking in foods your picky eater refuses to eat, such as blending cauliflower with mashed potatoes or adding spinach to a fruit smoothie. It's also worthwhile to ask your child why they dislike certain foods.

What should I put in my child's packed lunch? ›

Make sure your packed lunch contains:
  1. 1) A portion of bread (or similar), rice, potatoes or pasta.
  2. 2) Plenty of fruit and vegetables.
  3. 3) A portion of dairy or a calcium rich alternative.
  4. 4) Some protein in the form of beans, pulses, fish, egg, meat.
  5. 5) A healthy drink.

What can a toddler eat for lunch at Montessori? ›

A Montessori-style bag lunch creates opportunities for children to apply at mealtime some of the functional skills they've experienced in classroom Practical Life activities: opening and closing (food containers), matching (cheese slices and crackers, for example), unfolding and folding (napkins and food wrappers), ...

What is a healthy food for kids lunch boxes? ›

For example: carrot coins or sticks, cucumber, broccoli, bell pepper strips, asparagus spears, summer squash ribbons, or grape tomatoes. Choose any 1 healthy protein. For example: Beans, edamame, nuts, seeds, peanut butter, hummus, veggie burger, roasted turkey or chicken slices, or a hardboiled egg.

What not to pack in a kids lunch box? ›

Type of Food

Bacteria that cause foodborne illness grow rapidly in certain types of foods. Meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, soft cheese, and cut fruits and vegetables are most likely to be attacked by food- borne bacteria.

What to pack for lunch for kids who don t like sandwiches? ›

Swap them out for one of these savoury lunch box ideas – not only are they super filling, but they're delicious, too.
  • 1Pie maker zucchini and haloumi fritters. ...
  • 2Easy tuna bento balls. ...
  • 3Healthy zucchini, pumpkin and feta slice. ...
  • 4Pie maker mini fetta, pea and mint frittatas. ...
  • 5Mini carbonara quiches.

What is a good lunch time for toddlers? ›

Snack: around 9:30 a.m. Lunch: noon. Snack: 3 p.m. Dinner: 6 p.m.

What meals are easy to digest for toddlers? ›

Top 10 Easy to Digest Foods for Toddlers
  • Low-fat yogurt.
  • Soft-boiled eggs.
  • Chicken soup.
  • Mashed sweet potatoes.
  • Bananas.
  • Pureed pumpkin or butternut squash.
  • Cooked apples.
  • Smoothies with low-fat milk and fruits.

What is a healthy lunch box for kids? ›

The formula is simple: fill half your plate (or lunch box) with colorful fruits or vegetables (aim for two to three different types), one-quarter with whole grains, and the remaining quarter with healthy proteins.

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