Nugget's Lunch - April 30, 2008

A thank you to Liz for reminding me of the ease of Ants on a Log!

(clockwise from upperleft) Ants on a Log: celery sticks with Trader Joe's sunflower seed butter and raisins (I placed them on a layer of folded paper towel, so they wouldn't tumble around), four teaspoons TJ's chocolate covered sunflower seeds, strawberries, a spiderman napkin, red and yellow bell peppers, and TJ's mango chicken sausage on mini-skewers with monterey jack cubes. I used two regular sized wooden skewers, then cut them using clean gardening clippers. Drink: Trader Joe's Green Food juice/water.

Nugget's Lunch - April 28, 2008

Arrrrrrrr, matey! A little pirate patch, tucked in next to a jolly-roger napkin, accompanies today's goods. If I'd have been really thematic and on my toes, I'd have included Veggie Booty but it didn't occur to me until just now.

(clockwise from upperleft) Trader Joe's pineapple salsa (a mild, sweet salsa), roasted lavender/rosemary sweet potatoes (leftover from dinner), four white-chocolate covered pretzels (leftover from Easter, yikes!), four flower-shaped cheese spinach quesadillas (you can get eight cutouts from one tortilla), TJ's veggie tortilla strip chips, and more of the applewood smoke-cured ham steak cubes. Drink: TJ's Green Food juice/water.

Cheesy Art with the Food Writer

The kids pulled out these trays for lunch today, so I thought we'd have some fun with it. I forgot I had the orange and black Wilton Food Writers until after I made the first tray. The food writers are meant to write or draw on cookies, cakes, breads and fruit. They are not meant so much for cheese, but it worked just enough, I suppose. Nugget finished the first tray, saw Rooni's cheese fairy princess and requested a cheese picture of his own, so he ate two trays of food but as you can see the trays were not overflowing. Blue Tray 1 (clockwise from upperleft) slightly wrinkly grape tomatoes, dried currants, kiwi, apples, Trader Joe's tabbouli, TJ's Lite mild cheddar cut into shapes, and chocolate chips.


Orange Tray (clockwise from upperleft) Trader Joe's Lite mild cheddar, honeyed sesame sticks, dried currants, navel orange segments, five small pieces of a chocolate chip Z bar by Cliff, TJ's tabbouli, and a fairy princess cutout with orange Wilton Food Writer. Rooni wasn't sure what to think about the "pin-cess", but eventually tore off her head and crown and ate it. There was also a Yo Baby Peach yogurt that didn't make it into the picture.

Blue Tray 2 (clockwise from upperleft) honeyed sesame sticks, three bites chocolate chip Z bar by Cliff, navel orange segments, Trader Joe's apple raspberry fruit leather in heart cutouts, more grape tomatoes, and a TJ's Lite mild cheddar tower crane using the black food writer.

Nugget's Lunch - April 25, 2008

(clockwise from upperleft) As I have mentioned before, Nugget's preschool focuses on learning one letter of the alphabet each week. This week is letter "Z". Trader Joe's has organic alphabet pasta (a tri-color pasta using tomato powder and spinach powder to get the other two colors), so I thought it might be fun to incorporate the weekly letter into this lunch.

A great activity to keep the kids occupied while you prepare lunch in the morning is to have them sort the uncooked letters, or look for specific ones - or even have them just sort by color if the letters are too difficult. There were not enough Z's to make a serving, so instead I picked out a couple letters to spell one of his favorite words since toddlerhood - STOP (as in "Stop sign" and "Red light! Stop!"). I cooked the alphabet noodles in salted water to al dente, tossed them with extra-virgin olive oil and ground pepper, and added grape tomatoes and little squares of cut prosciutto.

To the right is fresh and airy micro-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, which Nugget likes to eat plain but can also sprinkle on the pasta if he thinks of it. I did cover the cheese container with Glad Press-n-Seal since that container does not have a lid and the cheese would otherwise get everywhere during transport. Peas, a banana with slits for easy peeling, and five TJ's chocolate mini-meringues. Drink: Water.

Power of Flower Cutters - Rooni's Lunch

I found a great bread conducive to cookie cutting into shapes - Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Bread. It is soft enough to be palatable to kids, but dense enough to not lose all shape when subjected to a cookie cutter. And it is made with stone ground whole wheat and honey, followed by a list of natural (and pronounceable) ingredients. I had the tin of Ateco Graduated Daisy-shaped cutters handy, using the smallest size to get three daisies out of one slice of bread, and three daisies out of a kiwi. I hand-sliced a quarter apple, then placed a few green peas on the plate to entice Rooni to try one, or at very least to just get her used to seeing them. This lunch took a mere 3 or 4 minutes to prepare as Rooni played with water in the sink.

Picnic in the Park - April 24, 2008

Nugget, Rooni and I packed up and met some friends in Patterson Park. We enjoyed not only the equal parts sunshine and shade, but the lovely breeze, great playgrounds and feeding the ducks as well. What a glorious afternoon!

(clockwise from left) two navel oranges cut into segments, Trader Joe's mini-rice multiseed Omega-3 flax crackers, raw fresh green beans with TJ's sunflower seed butter for dipping, blackberries, four Medjool dates, three Black Mission figs, red bell pepper strips, TJ's salted "popped" potato chips (they are really cool - they aren't baked or fried, they are popped under intense pressure), five TJ's "Way More Chocolate Chips" cookies, and cubed dye-free mild cheddar mixed with cubed Niman Ranch applewood smoked ham. Drinks: TJ's Hawaiian pineapple juice/water, TJ's tropical carrot juice/water, and Water.

I wasn't sure how much mileage we'd get out of the two boxes, but with the ham and cheese it turned out to be very filling, and the whole crew (two toddlers, one preschooler and two moms) had a pleasantly full tummy as we shook the crumbs from our blanket.

Nugget's Lunch - April 23, 2008

(clockwise from upperleft) Trader Joe's Apple Wild Berry 100% natural fruit wrap which I spread with a layer of cream cheese, rolled up, and cut into spirals. The spirals do not hold together at all, so I had to pack them tight, but they taste fantastic. Kiwi cut lenthwise and placed in a way that is supposed to look like a tower crane (construction fruit impressionism, if you will - and I told Nugget I was packing it like that, so he knew to imaginatively look for it. Because otherwise it just looks like strips of kiwi.) Red grapes, whole grain pretzels, mini-carrots cut into rounds, mini-pita breads stuffed with TJ's original sesame tahini hummus, fire engine napkin, apples slices, and four jumbo pitted Kalamata olives. Drink: TJ's tropical carrot juice blend/water.

Edit: It was a warm day today, and the fruit leather spirals got slimy! It was such a shame, because they taste good in their regular state, but it's hard to get past the slime factor. At least it was for Nugget and me. Rooni (2) did not seem to care about the slime - on the car ride home from picking up big brother, she enjoyed the leftover spirals, slime and all.

Napkin Verve

Another engaging idea I learned from the lunch making DVD is to offer fun napkins to use. You can make the napkin match the theme, if you are doing a lunch theme that day, or just have charming patterns and pictures that your child enjoys. Nugget happens to like fire engines, Spiderman, and other boyish things, so I found some cute ones at Jo-Ann Fabric. The one pictured (left) I am particularly fond of because it includes so many realistic items. And how can you not love the old school engine?

Jo-Ann Fabric had bins of scraps that you can pick through, but I had the best luck with the quilting squares. The quilting squares are bundles of 4 to 6 swatches that I can cut into two napkins using pinking shears. I used a sewing machine to tuck the edges under on one napkin. In reality, I never sew and have no idea what I'm doing. After spending way too long on one measly napkin, I concluded there must be an easier way. The easier way is to have grandma do it. But until I can get them in the mail to grandma (thank you! thank you!) along with her next batch of grandchild artwork, I trim the edges with the pinking shears and most of the frays are kept at bay.

The napkins are also a nice alternative for folks wanting to reduce the waste generated from paper napkins (and on a side note, there is always room in the washing machine for another napkin, so using more wash water is a non-issue).

My only initial concern was that Nugget would lose the napkins, but it hasn't happened yet. I cannot say that he necessarily uses the napkins (he's been wearing long sleeves, after all), but I figure it's a fun visual addition and more importantly, it's there if he needs it.

Nugget's Lunch - April 21, 2008

I'm so excited to have these lunches actually prepared the night before! Nugget saw the toy dinosaur in my bin of kid lunch supplies and requested it be packed in again.

(clockwise from upperleft) TJ's pear halves in white grape juice & ascorbic acid (aka Vit C), apple slices soaked in the same juice to prevent browning, sliced Stil bangers, yellow tomatoes, toy dinosaur & tomato "pizza" pie. Drink: TJ's Green Food juice.

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Dad's Lunch (clockwise from upperleft) Easy Homemade Macaroni & Cheese, sliced Stil bangers wrapped in prosciutto (he'd have more but Nugget saw the sausage and really wanted them, so Dad graciously gave them up), Black Mission figs, and paella rice. Drink: water.

Pizza Pie aka Tomato Pie

Here is the recipe I promised in an earlier comment. My friend Carey first brought this dish to a moms' group potluck in October 2005. It has since become a repeat meal at our house, and one of my standby hospitality dishes as well. Cursory searches on the internet yielded hundreds of tempting variations. One of the most popular seems to be adding onions and bacon, but I think anything that tastes good on pizza would work well in this dish. In fact, when I first introduced this to Nugget (and later his friends - and yes, they liked it!) I called it by the euphemism Pizza Pie, since it has a pizza-like taste. I am planning to put some in his lunch tomorrow, though it's unclear if he'll eat it for yet a third meal, having had it for dinner two nights in a row.

In addition to my being a big fan of leftovers, I am also a fan of ready-made refrigerated pie crusts. And unless I can get fresh tomatoes from a friend's garden, I think canned tomatoes are often better than the grocery store fresh ones. There are a number of ways kids can help out with making this dish, including dumping the tomatoes into a colander, tearing the basil leaves from the stems, and measuring ingredients.

Pizza Pie

1 ready made pie crust
1 heaping Cup grated mozzarella cheese, divided
1 large can plus 1 medium can petite diced tomatoes (enough to fill a pie)
1/2 Cup light mayonnaise
1 Cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 Cup grated Parmesan
3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
salt and pepper

A few hours before preparing the pie, drain tomatoes (regardless if fresh or canned) in a colander. More than a cup of liquid will come out, all of which would otherwise make the pie crust soggy. The liquid can be frozen for later use in soups or rice.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. The pie crust often needs to rest on the counter twenty minutes, so be sure it is sitting out during prep time.

Place pie crust in pie dish, and sprinkle half the mozzarella onto the crust. Scoop the fully-drained tomatoes into the crust (you can also mix some fresh basil into the tomatoes prior to placing the tomatoes in the crust). In a seperate bowl, mix the mayonnaise, basil, Parmesan, garlic, salt and pepper and remaining mozzarella. Scoop basil mix onto the tomatoes, and spread evenly to cover the top of the pie. Bake uncovered 45 minutes or until gently browned.

Nugget's Lunch - April 16, 2008

A fortuitously timed grocery trip found us at TJ's last night during a cheese tasting. I left not only with an abundance of cheese, but the cutest idea for these little Caprese kabobs.

(clockwise from upperleft) steamed plain corn, orange bell pepper which I attempted to cut into stars but quickly abandoned the idea, multiseed cracker sticks, low-sodium ham rolled up into bite sized pieces, and mini-kabobs of grape tomatoes, basil and mozzarella. I used wooden skewers, then cut the sharp end off with clean gardening sheers. Drink: tap water.

Nugget's Lunch - April 14, 2008

(clockwise from left) mixed spring greens chopped into small leafy slivers and tossed with grape tomatoes, honeyed sesame sticks and pear vinaigrette. Freeze dried strawberries, 1 Tbs. chocolate chips, plain garbanzo beans, and mini-toasts topped with cream cheese and diced dried apricots. Drink: water.

Healthy Lunch a la Happy Meal

I now own a highly informative and creative DVD "The Visual Guide: How to Make Healthy Lunch for Kids." It is chock full of fun and interesting ideas, and is narrated and produced by a real mom (Laura Pasetta, a former health club owner, with admittedly advantageous resources such as a successful producer for a husband.)

The price ($19.95) is a little steep but you get a lot of information and video time. It is an hour and a half long. Fortunately, the DVD menu is divided into small, manageable video portions easily digested in short increments. Pasetta has what she calls the 7 Essential Layers of a Healthy Lunch, each one being a chapter with additional sub-menus, and includes great visuals (hence the name). I did a marathon run of watching the whole video, and much to my husband's credit he actually sat through most of it, but I will likely not ever do that again - it is certainly as effective to watch a chapter here and there.

A prerequisite for watching is to steel yourself against the inevitable onslaught of (a) wistful thinking that your lunch never looked like that as a child and (b) the ubiquitous mom-guilt that rears its ugly head anytime you see that your efforts fall pathetically short of what they could be given more time, effort or even just sleep (yours or the kids'). So remember that it's not about the guilt! It's just about making it fun and healthy - not letting it turn into a miserable or stressful excercise in frustration and inadequacy. I have given myself permission to move on if it gets to that point. I grew up on peanut butter and honey for most lunches, and still turned out relatively okay. But back on point:

The video is full of so many ideas, I cannot do it justice in a short post and don't want to draw attention away from the really unique ones, but here is one recommendation of the DVD I managed to implement: Put a small toy in with the child's lunch, having a few you rotate through to keep their interest. (Yes, I realize this is not groundbreaking and fast food chains rely on this tactic, but there's is a reason kids like it!) I am not a fan of doing this every time, since I don't want the toy to become the focal point of the lunch, but it seems like a fun idea to surprise Nugget. Moderation is key, I imagine. So I put in a little dinosaur that he had never seen before.

Nugget's reaction? Well, he kept the dinosaur in the lunch box after he finished, so I can use it again. And when asked whether he liked it, he reported back, "I played with it, even though I really wanted a tower crane." Huh?

Nugget's Lunch - April 11, 2008

(clockwise from bottom left) falafelish pancakes (a quick and bumbling though thankfully tasty attempt to remember how to make falafel), a tahini-cilantro-yogurt dipping sauce, toy dinosaur, grape tomatoes, and kiwi sections cut into flower shapes. Drink: water.

Nugget's Lunch - April 10, 2008

(clockwise from upperleft) spiderman napkin, seedless grapes, whole grain wheat pretzel sticks, sweet potato chips colored with beet juice (thank you Trader Joe's), quesadillas made with spinach flour tortillas and a combo of sharp cheddar and jack, and plain yogurt which I hope will pass as sour cream since we were all out.

Drink: more of the peach/grape/apple juice/water.

Putting the X in Soft Pretzels

Every parent at Nugget's preschool has to bring in a snack one day, which is theoretically supposed to correspond with the letter of the week they are learning. My letter was "X". When I told Nugget I was making pretzels in the shape of an x, he thought it was a terrible idea since pretzels start with a P. Well, duh mom. I gave my forehead a little smack, and exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot! They are not pretzels, they're Xetzels!"

They are meant to be eaten right away, when they are warm, soft and only slightly chewy. I left a few on the counter (to simulate them sitting out for a few hours at preschool), and they do toughen up. I'll have to get the final verdict from Nugget when I pick him up today.

Edit: Turns out the pretzels actually stayed soft at preschool, because I had covered the tray in plastic wrap. The ones I left on the counter were not covered. So keep 'em bagged!

Xetzels

1 package active dry yeast
1/2 C warm water (110-115 degrees)
2 tsp orange blossom honey
2 + 2/3 C unbleached all purpose flour
1 + 1/2 tsp kosher salt
teaspoon olive oil
small bowl of water
kosher salt to top

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Allow baking stone to preheat in the oven, or line a baking sheet with parchment or silpat.

Combine the warm water (check temp) with yeast and honey, and let sit 5 - 10 minutes.

In a seperate bowl, combine flour and salt. Pour yeast mixture into the flour, stirring until a dough forms. Do not be tempted to add water - the dough will moisten up as you work it.

If you have a large bowl, knead it in the bowl or turn it out on the counter for a few minutes. Place the dough back in the bowl and cover the bowl top with a warm wet cloth. Let rest in a warm place for 10 minutes.

Dip the tips of a couple fingers in the olive oil and use that to ever so lightly coat your fingers and palms, which will prevent the dough from sticking to your hands. Pinch off small amounts of dough and roll out on the counter, forming an X or whatever shape sounds fun.*

Place on baking sheet or stone, and brush water on the dough, which will help the salt stick. Sprinkle kosher salt on as desired. Bake 10 minutes or until golden brown.

*You can really get creative with this, and little chefs love to help out. We've made everything from snakes to tower cranes out of the dough. And don't forget it can also be used to make Mini-Pizzas!

Nugget's Lunch - April 9, 2008

(clockwise from left) banana (with slits cut along side for easy peeling), grape tomatoes, half of a Trader Joe's "InsideOut Carrot Cake Cookie", and ultra-mini slices of homemade pizza - a last minute idea since I had some extra pretzel dough this morning leftover from the Xetzels. I just patted the dough into two four-inch circles, topped with tomato sauce and cheese, and baked for the same time as the X pretzels. Drink: peach/grape/apple juice/water.

Nugget's Lunch - April 7, 2008

(clockwise from upperleft)

unsweetened vitamin C applesauce, whole grain cracker sandwiches with a mixture of miso paste, sunflower seed butter, jam and orange blossom honey, apple-shaped bites of muenster cheese, a spiderman napkin, and 'Enjoy Life' brand nut-free gluten-free soft-baked Happy Apple cookies.

Drink: organic enriched rice milk.

What's For Dinner?

So this is dinner rather than lunch, but Nugget and dad had multiple servings of this. I knew it was a keeper when Nugget breathed deeply, eyelids heavy as he sighed, "I love meat." If there were any leftovers, you betcha I'd serve them for lunch...

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with
Balsamic Apples, Green Beans & Beets

Roasted Pork Tenderloin

3/4 to 1 lb. pork tenderloin
cooking twine
2 tsp. pressed/crushed garlic
3 Tbs. mild olive oil
2 tsp. crushed rosemary
kosher salt
fresh
ground pepper
1 Tbs. grapeseed oil
1 C chicken stock
a few pinches thyme or other herb

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Tie the tenderloin so the size is consistent end to end (eliminating the taper). Using a knife, make slits along the meat every inch or so, and fill slits with the pressed garlic. In a small bowl, mix olive oil, rosemary, kosher salt and pepper. Spread evenly over all sides of the tenderloin.

Heat a 10" skillet (do not use nonstick) over medium/high heat with 1 Tbs. grapeseed oil, until oil shimmers . Place tenderloin on the skillet to sear the outer layer, about 60 to 90 seconds per side on all sides, just long enough to nicely brown the meat and get dark caremalized bits (called "fond") stuck to the bottom of the skillet when you turn the meat. Remove meat from skillet and place in a foil lined baking dish, then cover the baking dish with foil.

Place tenderloin in the oven for approximately 35-45 minutes, or until the interior temperature in the center reaches 140 degrees. Meanwhile, add the chicken stock and thyme to the fond in the skillet, bringing up to a medium heat, scraping the skillet bottom to incorporate all the fond into the reduction sauce. Allow to simmer, stirring and scraping occassionally, for about 15 minutes.

At 140 degrees internal temp, remove the tenderloin from the oven but keep it in the baking dish and keep it covered with foil. While it rests, reheat the reduction sauce since it has cooled by now. The internal temp of the pork while resting should reach about 150-155 degrees in the center, and 160+ degrees at the ends.

Cut tenderloin on the bias, giving children the ends and adults the middle. Drizzle reduction sauce over the meat and serve.

Balsamic Apples, Green Beans and Beets

2 junior apples, cut into thick matchsticks
1/2 lb. fresh green beans, blanched or microwaved in water 3 minutes
2 beets, cooked but still firm,cut into thick matchsticks
balsamic vinegar

Toss together and serve!

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*Kitchen Notes*

Recipe adapted from the ZonePerfect Cookbook by Kristy Walker.

Easy Homemade Macaroni Cheese

A fifteen minute lunch that the children can help prepare.

Easy Homemade Macaroni Cheese

8 oz. pasta noodles
course grain salt, about 2 teaspoons
3 Tbs. unsalted
butter
1 egg
5 oz. can evaporated milk, divided
1 tsp. ground
mustard
few drops hot sauce
fresh ground pepper
3 cups freshly grated cheese

Bring a large pot of water (12-16 cups) to a boil. Add pasta noodles and salt. Boil according to directions, usually between 9 and 11 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl lightly whisk the egg, half the milk, mustard, hot sauce and pepper.

Remove pasta immediately from stove and drain the water, then return the noodles to the same warm pot, and add the butter. Turn off the burner, and place the pot on the still warm heating element, stirring as the butter melts. Add the egg mixture, and mix to coat. Add the cheese and stir thoroughly until the cheese has melted. Add enough of the remaining evaporated milk and stir. Serves 2 adults and 2 children.

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*KITCHEN NOTES*

(1) The pasta noodles I used are pictured above - and though it was admittedly a nice touch that they are called "Nuggets", there was a more important reason choose them. Rather than use elbows, I want a pasta with lots of ridges to give it more surface area to absorb liquid as well as more crevices to hold the cheese sauce while still being a small and compact pasta.

(2) This recipe is adapted from the Cook's Illustrated recipe for Stovetop Mac and Cheese, which I enjoy because it is fast and easy and the children can help out in numerous ways. They are more likely to eat food that they helped prepare, even though macaroni and cheese is always a hit.

(3) I use whatever cheese I have on hand, but always freshly grated (the preshredded cheeses are coated with an anti-caking agent, which inhibits melting). Young cheeses do better than aged cheeses because the fat seperates more readily in aged cheeses. Be sure you have the burner heat OFF prior to adding the cheese, because that can cause seperation as well. The mac and cheese for this photo used a combination of 30% fontinella, 30% asiago, 10% parmigiano reggiano, and the remainder of a mix I had on hand (sharp cheddar, queso blanco, asadero and monterey jack).

(4) Technically, prep and cooking time is just a tad longer than 15 minutes depending on how long it takes your water to boil. But once the water is boiling, the rest comes together in under fifteen - promise.

The Eponymous Favorite

These are my son’s favorite nuggets. When he smells them cooking he runs excitedly with his sister through the kitchen, plucking the nuggets right off the paper towels as they cool.

Coconut Pan Fry Chicken Nuggets

1 lb. chicken breast, cut into chunks, trimmed of excess fat
3 Tbs. grapeseed oil (or other high smokepoint oil)
2 Tbs. toasted sesame seed oil
1 Tbs. potato starch (or cornstarch)
1 Tbs. unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 C unsweetened coconut flakes

In a 12" cast iron skillet (or nonstick skillet) heat 1 1/2 Tbs. high heat oil over medium heat until shimmering (about 2 minutes). Place chicken chunks into a medium sized bowl. In a seperate small bowl, whisk sesame oil, starch and flour. Pour over chicken, and toss by hand until thoroughly coated. Place coconut in a third seperate small bowl. Dredge each chunk seperately in coconut, but dredging all the chunks prior to frying so you can place them in the skillet all at once for each batch.

Pan fry the nuggets in two batches. Place half the chunks in the skillet. Take care not to let the the chunks touch each other; this way they cook thoroughly and brown nicely on the bottom. After 4 minutes, flip them over. Pan fry an additional 1 to 2 minutes, just until the internal temperature of each nugget reaches just over 160 degrees. Remove from heat immediately and drain on paper towels or brown paper bags.

Prior to frying the second batch, quickly wipe out the old oil and coconut bits before placing in the second batch, since the coconut leftover in the pan will burn. Place remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. oil in pan, allowing it to get hot before placing chicken chunks in the pan.

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*KITCHEN NOTES*

(1) The key to these nuggets is the velveting technique used in Asian cooking, which typically uses a combination of egg whites and cornstarch to marinate and coat the chicken, which protects the small chicken piece exteriors from getting tough. I used sesame oil instead of egg white. A great optional addition is sherry.

(2) Kosher salt is used instead of standard table salt because it is easier to control the amount you are using. If you prefer sea salt, add it immediately after removing the chicken from heat.

(3) Finally, the extra step well worth the payoff: Using a thermometer to check the temp of the chicken, allowing you to remove the chicken immediately without over-cooking, ensuring a juicy, moist and thoroughly cooked nugget. Enjoy!

Nugget's Lunch - April 4, 2008

Nugget's lunch today: (clockwise from upperleft) tabbouleh, hard boiled egg with sea salt, red bell peppers, maple syrup stroopwafels, and reduced-sugar strawberry jam with sunflower seed butter on sprouted whole wheat berry bread. Drink (not pictured) 50/50 Strawberry-kiwi juice & water.

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Dad's lunch: (clockwise from upperleft) buttercream mashed potatoes & chicken stew (leftover from dinner), plantain chips, celery and crunchy natural peanut butter, grape tomatoes, macaroni goat cheese and bacon. Drink (not pictured) lemonade.

About / Statement of Purpose

I am a stay-at-home mom to two children, affectionately referred to as the nuggets. My son was first given that nickname as a three-day old infant, all swaddled tight in a precious bundle, when my husband commented that he looked like “the cutest little nugget of love.” And when our daughter was born, her big brother couldn’t pronounce her name and called her “Erv,” which progressed to Ervness, Ervarooni, and eventually just Rooni. We don’t actually call our son Nugget these days, since he is so much bigger. But little sister still gets the Rooni moniker as often as her own birth name.

As I ease my way into the diverse world of healthy, responsible and delicious packed lunches for my husband and children, I thought it would be fun to document my journey as I hopefully become better at it. There are a couple reasons for Lunch Nugget, including:

• limiting the waste that is so common with packed lunches
• providing a diverse and healthy assortment of food
• expose my children and husband to new tastes and textures
• learning to cook and prepare healthy meals for kids and an active family
• being conscious with our lunch money, knowing there are better uses for it than fast food
• posting lunches and other ideas will keep me on track with my goals to keep our family on the road to being healthy and fit, as well as hold me accountable for staying motivated

Nugget is currently in Kindergarten at a public school. I first began packing his lunch in preschool, because he had an after school program three days a week. Now, I pack his lunches because I am not thrilled about the school lunches that are offered, though I do plan to let him buy school lunches every now and then.

He also has food allergies, which remain a persistent underlying concern as the world today (extended family, schools, society at large) ever-so-slowly adjusts to the increasingly prevalent number of children with life-threatening food allergies. Originally, my son's allergies were to dairy, egg and tree nuts. He has since outgrown the dairy and egg allergy (yay!), but remains allergic to tree nuts. As an interesting aside, there are two tree nuts he is not allergic to - almonds and pine nuts, both of which he was exposed to during breastfeeding and inadvertently as beginning eater. Though recommendations change regularly as pediatric allergists continually learn more about their specialty, the current recommendation for my son (particular to his situation), is to continue supervised and controlled exposure – meaning, in the presence of mom or dad or the pediatric allergist - to peanuts, almonds and pine nuts. This is in order to inhibit a future allergy from forming to those food items. However, none of the lunches pictured in this blog will ever contain peanuts or tree nuts of any kind.

My daughter Rooni is 2 years old, and has tested allergy-free. She eats lunch with me, so if we enjoy a picnic somewhere I will post our lunch, but otherwise she will not get as much screen time as her older sibling. Same with Dad, since I often pack his lunches late at night, or sometimes WAY too early in the morning and then head back to bed.

It is very inspiring to view the number of books, videos and websites about lunch making, and I am going to try and incorporate many of the things I learn into Lunch Nugget. I had no idea about the endless lunch possibilities that avail themselves to anyone committed to venturing beyond standard kid lunch fare!

Primary goals for Lunch Nugget:

• enjoy the progress on my journey to create appealing, healthy kid lunches
• maintain a place to store ideas, tips and other fun thing
• give a snapshot of our food-lives with family and friends - if we cannot break bread in person, we can at least share from afar

Secondary goals for Lunch Nugget:

• keep tree nut allergies in the conscious awareness of family, friends and readers
• provide good lunch ideas for anyone struggling with tree nut allergies
• maintain focus for the more general goal of living a healthy lifestyle
• learn to take better pictures of the food

Thank you for joining us at Lunch Nugget!