Healthy Lunch and Snack Ideas for Kids

“What are some healthy lunch and snack ideas for kids?” As dietitians, we get asked this question all the time. As parents, we want to properly fuel our kids, whether they are home with us or heading off to school. Remember, what your kids eat throughout the day truly does matter. In fact nutrition can influence behavior, learning ability, memory, and even anxiety level. 

When you are determining whether something would make a healthy lunch or snack, consider this simple rule of thumb: always include a carb with fiber (a fruit, vegetable, or grain) paired with protein and/or a healthy fat. This combination can keep kids from a “crash.”

We asked our Registered Dietitians for healthy lunch and snack ideas for kids, and below is their list. The hyperlinks are for products we recommend that can be purchased on Amazon. We’ve also linked to some great recipes from our meal planning app. Your kids will love these, and you’ll love knowing that they are properly fueled for whatever the day may hold!

Enjoy!

Healthy Lunch Ideas

1. Kids Charcuterie: whole grain crackers, cheese slices, cherry tomatoes, apple slices
2. Hummus, pita chips, carrots, and bell peppers
3. Veggie pizza quesadilla with toppings of choice
4. Recipe: Lentil Soup
5. Nachos with whole grain chips, low-fat cheese, beans, and chopped tomatoes
6. Banana sandwich with whole grain bread, almond butter and banana
7. Recipe: Avocado Deviled Eggs with a side of fruit
8. Red Lentil Mac n Cheese
9. Recipe: Homemade Acai Bowl
10. Veggie pita pocket with hummus, and veggies of choice
11. Turkey, spinach, tomato, and avocado rolled in a whole wheat tortilla
12. Recipe: Blueberry Peanut Butter Overnight Oats – Not just for breakfast!
13. Egg salad sandwich on whole grain bread with avocado instead of mayo
14. Tuna sandwich on whole-grain bread with cucumbers and pickles
15. Scrambled egg burrito and berries
16. Whole wheat bagel with cream cheese, fruit, and veggies
17. Sweet potato topped with chili
18. Grilled chicken salad
19. Pasta with meat sauce and a side of cucumber or carrot sticks
20. Recipe: Butternut Squash Mac & “Trees”

Healthy Snack Ideas:

1. Hard-boiled egg and whole-grain crackers
2. Oatmeal and peanut butter
3. Popcorn and Hu dark chocolate
4. Smoothie (Milk, spinach or cauliflower, fruit of choice, nut butter)
5. Dessert Hummus and fruit
6. Greek yogurt and frozen fruit
7. Cheese stick and an apple or orange
8. Milk and graham crackers with peanut butter
9. Apple dipped in nut butter
10. Recipe: Baked Oatmeal Cups
11. Watermelon pizza (spread Greek yogurt and ground flaxseed on top of the watermelon)
12. Avocado and whole-grain crackers or rice cakes
13. Hummus and veggies
14. Banana “ice cream” (Milk, frozen bananas, and nut butter blended)
15. Strawberries dipped in Lily’s melted chocolate chips and frozen
16. Sliced pears and ricotta cheese
17. Cottage cheese on whole-grain toast or crackers
18. Baked sweet potato fries dipped in guacamole
19. Frozen fruit and Greek yogurt pureed and frozen into a popsicle
20. Roast chickpeas (AKA garbanzo beans) and season with spices

Prepackaged Healthy Snacks to Try

1. Roasted Edamame
2. Trail Mix
3. Chomps Mini Beef Sticks
4. Plaintain Chips
5. Biena Chickpea Puffs
6. Perfect Kids Snack bars
7. That’s It Fruit Bars
8. Mamma Chia Squeeze
9. Yogi’s Freeze-dried Yogurt and Fruit Snacks
10. Kind Kids Granola Bars
11. Larabar Minis
12. Skout Bars
13. Freeze-dried fruit
14. Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars
15. RX Bars Kids
16. Bitsy’s Cheddar Chia Crackers
17. Stonyfield Organic Fruit and Veggie and Milk Pouches
18. Hippeas Chickpea Puffs
19. Simple Mills Pop Mmms
20. Once Upon a Farm Pouches

Need More Healthy Lunch and Snack Ideas?

Do you find yourself struggling to get your kids to eat veggies or less “pantry foods”? Curious about what they should be eating? Have a picky eater? Our Registered Dietitians can help. We are also in network with most major insurance companies, so your child’s session could be covered. Click the button below to schedule an appointment!

Disclosure:
Some of our pages contain affiliate links that Anderson’s Nutrition may receive a commission from, at no extra cost to you. We only promote products that we have used & verified, finding helpful for our clients and friends. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Anderson’s Nutrition is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.