Bento Boxes Rescue Summer Lunch!

(Love this Bento Box? The Planetbox, Rover Basic is found at The Little Seedling. thelittleseedling.com)

Keeping it fresh, healthy, and organized

You’re probably an expert at the quick school lunch, but if you and your kids are ready to swap out the sack lunch for something more exciting this summer, try a bento box. A delicious and nutritious assortment of food, place any lunchbox ice pack on top of your bento box and put both in your lunch bag and your food should stay cool for up to 8 hours. A bento box provides great portion control, reduces the amount of plastic and paper waste, encourages kids to try a variety of foods, and is easy to wash and reuse for years.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Pinwheels

Ingredients:
-4 large spinach and herb flavored tortilla wraps
-8 Tbsp. roasted red bell pepper hummus
-8 oz. thinly sliced ham or turkey
-8 slices colby jack cheese
-2/3 cups roasted red bell pepper slices, drained
-Ranch greek yogurt dip, optional
How To:
-Spread hummus on the 4 tortillas.
-Place the meat and cheese in the middle of the tortilla and arrange the roasted red bell peppers along one side of each tortilla. Tightly roll up the tortilla starting with the bell pepper side.
-Slice pinwheels into 1 inch thick pieces and secure with a toothpick. Enjoy dipped in ranch dressing.

Chocolate Dipped Almond Butter Banana Bites

Ingredients:
-3 large bananas
-1/3 cup nut butter of choice
-1/2 cup melted chocolate of choice
How To:
-Cut bananas into slices about 1/4-1/2 inch thick.
-Spread a little nut butter onto a slice and sandwich two banana slices together.
-Place on wax paper on a cookie sheet and freeze until solid, at least an hour.
-Melt chocolate in the microwave for a minute or until smooth.
-Remove banana bites from the freezer and dip them in chocolate. -Freeze for another hour.
-Store in airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.

Trail Mix

Pick your child’s favorite healthy mix to include.

Tomato, Cucumber, Avocado Salad

Ingredients:
-1 1/2 cups of chopped cherry tomatoes
-1 cucumber – peeled, seeded and diced (or 5 mini Persian cucumbers – sliced)
-1 avocado – diced
-4 oz. feta cheese
-2 Tbsp. minced red onion
-1 handful minced parsley – about 2 Tbsp.
-2 Tbsp. olive oil
-1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
-Pepper to taste
How To:
-Combine chopped cherry tomatoes, seeded
cucumber, and diced avocado in a bowl.
-Crumble feta into the bowl.
-Add minced red onion and minced parsley.
-Whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar and
black pepper – pour over salad. Toss gently.
-Note: If making in advance, keep the avocado
aside and add before packing the box.

Pick your own!

Picking delicious, fresh strawberries is a wonderful family-friendly activity. June is peak strawberry season but call ahead to check the exact days the farm allows public picking.

LOCAL PICKING SPOTS

Rowe’s Produce Farm

10570 Martz Rd, Ypsilanti
734-482-8538 | rowesproducefarm.com

Slow Farm U-Pick

4700 Whitmore Lake Rd, Ann Arbor
917-837-0975 | slowfarmandfriends.com/u-pick

Wasem Fruit Farm

6580 Judd Rd, Milan
734-482-2342

Tantre Farm

2510 Hayes Rd, Chelsea
734-475-4323

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