The Gluten-Free Menu Swap is being hosted by Angela at Angela’s Kitchen this week. And with kids going back to school this month and next, she chose Lunch Box Solutions as the theme.

We are going into our third week of school already, and I’m happy to say that we seem to have the lunches and snacks figured out.

It seems best for us if we just keep it simple. One protein, one fruit, one vegetable, one grain/snack, and one drink. Their teacher also lets them have two snacks and water in class, so I also pack extra containers of fruit and snacks for them.

Protein: ham or turkey roll-ups, grilled chicken nuggets, or baked chicken nuggets. I usually just cut up leftover chicken from dinner for the lunches. The kids love to eat the chicken, but like to have ketchup, honey mustard, or BBQ sauce to eat with it. It’s a great way to get rid of those extra packets hiding in the pantry. Just make sure they are gluten-free! We avoid sending peanut butter to school because of all the nut allergies. But I do have some SunButter that I need to have the kids try again. They weren’t too excited about it last year. Hummus is another good option, but my kids definitely don’t like that yet.

Fruit: bananas, clementines, grapes, blueberries, apple slices, pear slices, peach slices, applesauce, etc.

Vegetable: baby carrots, sugar snap peas, baby spinach leaves, celery sticks, etc.

Grains/Snacks (gluten-free, of course): crackers (Schar Snack Crackers), pretzels (Glutino), chips, popcorn, mini muffins, etc.

Dairy: I don’t send dairy products to school. It gives my daughter stomach aches, and my son just doesn’t like it. But if it works for your family, you can easily add yogurt or cheese sticks to lunch boxes.

And for packing it all in? Their lunch bags from last year got worn out. So we bought Pack-It Freezable Lunch Bags this year. They stay in the freezer overnight, so they are nice and cold in the morning. It’s great for keeping the fruit and vegetables cold and fresh.

More ideas from some of my favorite gluten-free sites:

• The LunchBox Experiment at My Extraordinary Life
• Back to School Guide – The Food at The GFCF Experience
• G-Free Breakfasts & Back to School at Gluten Free Goodness
• Gluten-Free Lunch Roundup at Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free
• Four Weeks of Gluten-Free School Lunch Ideas at Celiac Central (NFCA)

Even more ideas from Celiac Family:

• GF Treats and Snacks in the Classroom
• GF Sandwich Bread
• Sandwich Bread Alternatives

Celiac Family’s Menu This Week:

Monday -  Grilled Chicken Breasts (Leftovers get cut up for the kids’ lunches this week.), Baby Potatoes and Green Beans
Breakfast: GF Cereal, Blueberries
Lunch: Ham Rolls, Pineapple Chunks, Baby Carrots, Potato Chips
Snacks: Clementines, Pretzels, Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tuesday - Easy Garlic Shrimp served over Quinoa, sautéed Zucchini slices
Breakfast: Pancakes, Cantaloupe
Lunch: Grilled Chicken Nuggets, Banana, Celery Sticks, Crackers
Snacks: Grapes, Pretzels, Watermelon

Wednesday -  Teriyaki Chicken Tenders served with Rice and steamed Broccoli
Breakfast: Pancakes, Cantaloupe
Lunch: Grilled Chicken Nuggets, Pear Slices, Baby Carrots, Corn Chips
Snacks: Grapes, Crackers, Watermelon

Thursday - Leftovers
Breakfast: French Toast, Strawberries
Lunch: Ham Rolls, Banana, Celery Sticks, Pretzels
Snacks: Blueberries, Tortilla Chips, Popcorn

Friday - Hamburgers, Sweet Potato Fries and Green Beans
Breakfast: French Toast, Strawberries
Lunch: Ham Rolls, Cantaloupe, Celery Sticks, Popcorn
Snacks:  Pear Slices, Crackers, Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Saturday - Eating Out

Sunday - Waffles and Berry Fruit Salad

Want to join Gluten-Free Menu Swap?

• For the roundup of menu plans this week, visit Angela’s Kitchen.
• The theme for next week’s GF Menu Swap is Zucchini and Summer Squash at Celiac Family.
• The Gluten-Free Menu Swap Page has the current schedule of themes and hosts. If you’d like to host a future week, please send me an email (celiacfamily[AT]gmail[DOT]com) with your preferred date and theme.

Need more menu ideas?

• Laura at OrgJunkie.com hosts Menu Plan Monday every week. You’ll find links to hundreds of meal plans (not necessarily gluten-free) there.
• Or, check out some of my past menu plans.