Healthy + Easy Valentine Lunchbox
I love creating fun and healthy lunchboxes around a theme, and there’s no better theme (in my opinion) then a Valentine lunchbox! However, sometimes we tie Valentine’s Day to lots of sweets and sugary foods (insert a conversation hearts box here). It isn’t hard, despite what we sometimes think, to make cute and healthy lunchboxes!
This post is sponsored in partnership with the聽Rock the Lunchbox partners. I received samples and compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.聽
Healthy + Easy Valentine Lunchbox
Building a better lunchbox聽is all about making good solid food choices for your kids and being creative with what you put together. I’m going to take a spin to show you how you can swap out what your lunchbox might normally have stuffed inside with some easy alternatives that make the lunchbox healthy, fun, and pull together this really cute theme!
A typical lunchbox with聽an easy swap!
PB&J – There’s nothing wrong with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but they get boring quick and they don’t do much for the presentation of the lunchbox.
Easily swap out the PB&J for a roast beef sandwich or your child’s favorite lunchmeat. I used Applegate Naturals Roast Beef and a slice of provolone cheese for a really delicious sandwich that also let me easily add something fun to the lunchbox.
With Rudi’s Organic Bakery bread instead of plain white bread they are getting a good fill of whole grains聽in every bite and the bread is delicious! We selected their Nut & Oat variety. Since one of my boys will only eat a half a sandwich, I made a two whole sandwiches (one for each boy) and then used the one leftover half and a heart cookie cutter to add color and fun to the lunchbox.
I kept the sandwich as it was, and just removed the top layer of bread before cutting so that the white provolone cheese would add a pop of color. They loved the mini heart sandwich bites!
Cookies – Ditch the empty carbs and instead include something sweet that feels like a cookie but is healthier and adds to the presentation like graham crackers.
We swapped in Annie’s Homegrown聽Friends Bunny Grahams in a mix of chocolate, chocolate chip, and honey graham crackers. They look adorable in the lunchbox and the kids think they are fun.
Fruit Snacks or a Fruit Cup – Ditch the artificial flavors and preservatives and go with fresh fruit! Pluck off a sprig from a package of grapes and it’s just as fast and easy and gives a health sweet and juicy addition to the lunchbox.
Crackers or Chips – Instead of the individual wrapped packs of crackers or chips, sub in a fresh vegetable. This is a super easy way to add in color and the crunch of the vegetables will sub in nicely for the chips.
We used celery in this lunchbox. Cut off the stalks as you normally would and then cut an additional time at the end of the sticks in a really thin cut to get a bunch of small bite size pieces that you can arrange in the box to look like a rose or flower. If you look at the end of the celery stock you cut off where they all join, you’ll see the pattern I’m talking about.
Juice Box – Skip the juice box options with artificial flavoring and only partial juice content. We swapped for Honest Kids juice that is only sweetened with fruit juice – no聽added sweeteners! They have an awesome assortment of juice flavors like fruit punch and berry lemonade that are perfect for our easy valentine lunchbox theme.
Annie’s Homegrown, Honest Kids, Rudi’s Organic Bakery, and Applegate have teamed up to encourage families to send kids off to school with better-for-you聽alternatives with a fun campaign called Rock the Lunchbox.
They have a great resource site with tons of lunchbox ideas, including ideas for special diets like vegetarian and gluten free. If you love cute themed lunchboxes and simple lunch packing ideas, you’ve got to check out rockthelunchbox.com for inspiration!
HI. I love the heart shaped mini-sandwiches. I use cookie cutters a lot to make bigger sandwiches. I also agree with you about giving our kids fresh fruit. It’s really easy to throw in a banana, grapes or even kiwis. I like to take a banana and draw an eye on it (and slightly cut the stem) to look like a dolphin.
This is exactly the kind of lunch that I would feel confident feeding my kids. I love Applegate meat products!
we are loyal to these brands and my daughter gets a good variety of them in her lunchbox daily. thanks for the cute idea!
I’ve been wanting to get some Bento boxes for my grandson so when he starts school he can be surprised with all kinds of fun and tasty lunches.
This is adorable! I love the little hearts!
What a sweet lunchbox idea! I try to get creative at least once a week! LOL
This is such a cute idea! I also love the Honest juices; they’re really yummy.
It is so hard to pack a healthy lunch the kids will actually eat. I love the Annie’s foods and the Honest pouches.
This is so cute! My little girl would love it. It can easily turn into a family activity with the children helping make their own lunches! I love how healthy each item is as well.
I’m always glad when I see a great healthy snack/food like this. Our country is getting more and more out of shape. We need to get back to our fighting weight!
What a cute lunch! I just love those heart cut outs. Adorable.
Awww I just love the celery rose, too cute! We use Honest Kids drinks in our home too, the kids love that they are not too sweet and I love the great range of ingredients!
This is such a cute idea. My kids love Honest pouches!
Skip the kids…I’d enjoy that lunch. I’ve often seen the Annies brand when we shop at Whole Foods. I’ll be sure to pick up a few boxes the next time we go. I’m sure that my grand daughter will love them.
Such cute ideas! I always try and do something special for the lunches on Valentine’s Day – the kids love it!
That sounds like a fun lunch idea. I will have to surprise my kids with this closer to the day!
I love all of the brands mentioned in your post. We are a big fan of Applegate’s deli meat and cheeses, and Annie’s is a go-to for us for on-the-go snacks. And, that little flower made from the celery is super cute! I am going to use that idea for my daughter’s lunch here at the house- I don’t see how that could stay looking like a flower in a lunchbox (my son flings his around everywhere)! Thanks for the ideas!
You could stick the celery bites into a cheese ball or a plain yogurt to keep the shape. 馃檪 Either way, it’s the small bite size bits that make them fun and more likely to be eaten, so no harm done if they’re tossed around.
love the idea it is important that my babies have a healthy snack. Thanks for sharing
These are healthy products that I would love to try. I like Applegate products and these Roast Beef Sandwiches look so good. The Bunny Grahams are so cute. I will have to make this lunch for my niece. She would love it.
Cute and healthy! I *LOVE* the Honest Kids drinks!!
I recently tried the Honest Kids drinks and my kids love them, better option too. Cute idea for a school lunch box!