What I packed for lunch the first two days of camp...

While I'd gladly send my kids in with that pea dip filled pita and call it something cool like "slime stuffing"in their camp lunches, because I made it with pine nuts it's a no go on the "nut free policy". A few of you have asked me what I am putting in their lunches, so I'm trying to remember to photograph the lunchboxes before zipping them up. Here's what's in them this week:

My older son's lunch (pictured above) included: (leftover from Sunday's BBQ) black bean-corn-jicama salad, a cheese stick, a squeeze yogurt, and water. Then, there's a container of cinnamon graham crackers tucked in the top pocket you cannot see. Since he liked the black bean salad a lot on Sunday, I excitedly told him I was going to put it into his lunch on Monday...and yes, it was polished off.

His camp also asked us to pack a snack separately, so I tucked a baggie of cucumbers and Newman's fig newtons in the front pocket of his lunchbox...but the newtons came back untouched as a smushed mess. So, apparently there's little time for snack or he wasn't hungry yet.

My little one's Monday lunch included: (also leftover from Sunday night's BBQ) grilled chicken, a few slices of jicama and some cherry tomatoes, strawberries, a cheese stick and water. At his camp, they give the kids a crunchy snack of some sort.

You'll note that one child got the chicken he really liked the night before, the other got the protein-rich side dish he liked a lot. I packed something different for both kids, but both lunches took me minutes to prepare since I was using food I'd already prepared. Aside from making a sandwich, I really try to keep packing lunches simple, based upon what I have in the fridge ready to go.


On Tuesday, both kids have the same lunch for camp: a container of jicama and cherry tomatoes (already washed and cut stored in the fridge), edamame (again, cooked and ready to eat...you can usually buy them this way too in the produce section if you're short on time), a squeeze yogurt, and cream cheese and strawberry jam on whole wheat bread (cut into stars, I know, how very Martha of me).

Then for my older one's snack I sent in a bag of these yummy dried bananas I recently discovered. (In Lower Fairfield County, I know they carry them at Walter Stewart's and Whole Foods in Darien and Westport.)