Serve Lunch in a Muffin Tin

What a great idea!  I can’t claim the credit–I’m sure I saw this somewhere on the internet–but my boys think it’s fantastic.

Serving lunch in a muffin tin (or mini-muffin tin) totally transforms ordinary food into something magical.  True story.  Try it yourself!

Recently, my boys (well, one smallish boy in particular) complained about having The Same Thing, Again for lunch.  Maybe one day they will grasp the fact that so many of the world’s children would be absolutely thrilled to consume such a lunch, day after day, with little variety.

We do discuss this fact together often, and my almost-eight-year-old truly seems to understand. Over the past few years, he’s become much more willing to eat just about anything, and seems much more thankful for good food and the time required to prepare it.

At any rate, my four-year-old is simply not there yet.  So, one recent day as I stood in the kitchen pondering that day’s lunch prospects, a sudden flash of inspiration took hold: Muffin Tins!

Voilà! The same lunch, but different.  Magically different.

At our house, we have only one 6-count muffin tin, and only one mini-muffin tin, so I rotate them between the two boys.  They love it!  And I love it!

And by the way, that same Not This Again conversation also led to a greater variety in our lunchtime vegetable consumption.  I told the boys I agreed: it was high time we branched out beyond carrot sticks.  Seriously.  I’m surprised neither of them has turned orange.

Also, see the pink hearts in our muffin tin lunches?  Those are our favorite new Real Food Snack (or treat)! Recipe coming soon to a blog near you…Here it is: Healthy Gummy Treats.

Lunch-time muffin tin ideas:

Veggies

• Carrot sticks
• Homemade carrot chips
• Cucumber slices
• Broccoli florets
• Bell pepper spears
• Radish slices
• Zucchini slices or sticks
• Cherry or grape tomatoes
• Celery sticks (+ nut butter)
• For toddlers: diced roasted veggies work well: carrots, sweet potatoes, etc.

Fruit

• Grapes
• Apple sections
• Clementine or orange sections
• Pear sections
• Banana slices
• Melon cubes
• Peaches
• Mango spears
• Blueberries
• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Kiwi slices
• Pineapple chunks
• Applesauce

Fats & Proteins

• Avocado slices
• Hummus
• Crispy nuts
• Nut butter
• Rolled lunch meat (I like this brand)
• Leftover roasted chicken
• Leftover roast beef
• Raw cheddar sticks
• Hard boiled egg
• Yogurt (unsweetened, from raw whole milk; add real fruit)

Crackers:

• Homemade Savory Crackers
• Homemade Rosemary Raisin Crackers
• Paleo Plantain Chips
• Rice crackers

Sweets & Treats:

• Homemade Gummy Treats
• Pumpkin Nut Butter Brownies
• Dark chocolate squares
• Cookie Dough Bites
• Easy Almond Flour “Graham” Crackers

More ideas for Real Food, gluten-free lunches and snacks:

• 25 Real Food Snacks for Kids
• Kid-Friendly Lunch Idea: Apple Sandwiches
• 14 Ways to Pack a LunchBots
• What’s for Lunch? (other than bread)
• 5 Ways to Jazz up a Salad

Do you have any fun and easy lunch ideas for kids?  Do tell…