Easy Veggie Waffles

Savory Waffles are one of my favorite things to pack in a lunchbox. They’re the delicious leftovers from a relaxing weekend breakfast. My kids are not going to school these days, due to the novel corona virus, but in an effort to find some routine and sanity, I started packing lunchboxes again.

My kids grab their lunchboxes out of the fridge when online school has a lunch break, and we can all sit around the table together, because I’m no longer a line cook. This is what’s working for us now. These Veggie Waffles are easy to make, easy to freeze and easy to love. I hope you give them a go.

Veggie Waffles

I love this recipe because the waffle base (the ingredients minus the veggies and cheese) is so versatile. There’s flour and cornstarch, plus raising agents like baking powder and baking soda, eggs to make them fluffy and buttermilk to give them that perfect acid balance.

From there, I’m free to customize the flavors however I’d like. Cinnamon + cardamom + turmeric make a delicious dairy free and nut free Golden Milk Waffle. Add cheese + paprika and garlic powder for a cheesy waffle. Depending on the additions, I can adjust the cornstarch and flour to get the right texture.

Use these Veggie Waffles as a sandwich base or just by themselves, and your kids will celebrate. My kids eat these cold. Happily. And they love to pack them in their lunchboxes using the LaLa Lunchbox app. Of course you can warm them and place them in foil in that lunchbox, if your kids like things warm. You can pack my Grilled Cheese Wafflewiches or these Veggie Waffles and either way, you’re good.

Veggie Waffle ingredients

VEGGIE WAFFLES

INGREDIENTS
1 cup + 3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup finely chopped veggies (such as broccoli, carrots, spinach)
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk*
4 tablespoons of neutral oil
1/4 cup grated parmesan (or any) cheese (optional)

*If you don’t have buttermilk, use 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons of milk + 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Let that sit at least 5 minutes until it curdles.

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the waffle iron and the oven to 200 degrees F. In a medium sized bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients.

2. In a large bowl, add the wet ingredients: apple cider vinegar, oil, eggs and buttermilk and whisk together until just combined.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, making sure that everything is fully incorporated.

4. Whisk together the dry ingredients with wet ingredients and mix thoroughly to make sure there are no flour clumps. Add chopped veggies and cheese.

5. When the waffle iron is hot, pour about 1/4 cup of batter to create each waffle (may change depending on your waffle iron). Close the waffle iron and cook for approximately 3 minutes, or until the steam stops spraying out of the sides.

6. Use a spatula or your fingers to remove the waffle and repeat until the batter is finished.

7. Place the waffles on a rack and place that rack in the oven to stay warm and crispy.

If you make these, tag me on Instagram @lalalunchbox #lalalunchbox

5 Lunchbox Ideas with Eggs

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Eggs are a relatively inexpensive protein source that my family loves. Sometimes we go through phases where we’re eating 2 dozen/week, and other times, a dozen eggs can last ten days. Having a variety of ideas to use eggs in the lunchbox is a savior for me… it keeps the overall cost of packing lunches for my 3 kids down, and at the same time, keeps my kids interested.

I buy organic, pasture raised eggs and they cost about $6.50/dozen. It feels expensive sometimes, but when I actually think about it and tally, the reality isn’t so black and white. One dozen eggs can feed my family of 5 for one meal (usually with two eggs to spare). Actually, if I use a dozen eggs to make a big frittata loaded with veggies, it can last more than one meal. That’s pretty awesome! Comparatively, one chicken can feed my family too, but that’s way more than $6.50, especially because I buy organic chicken. I can make a big pot of black beans to serve with a DIY Taco Bar and that is less expensive than a dozen eggs, especially if I start with dried beans. But all things considered, when I approach grocery shopping from this perspective, $6.50 doesn’t feel offensively priced at all for a dozen eggs.

Anyway, eggs are easy to buy, easy to make and easy to love, in my humble opinion. Here are five new ideas for lunchbox packing that I’m sure you’re going to love!

1. COBB KEBAB

Cobb Kebabs

Cobb Kebab is exactly as it sounds - Cobb Salad, deconstructed on a lollipop stick and eaten like a kebab. Here we’ve got eggs, lettuce, chicken (use leftovers here!), avocado, bacon, tomato and cheese. Seriously delicious. Even my non-salad eating kid loves this one! The best part is that this can be customized to include any ingredients you’d like. Cobb Kebabs are also a great way to introduce salads to your kids for lunch. I use these lollipop sticks to create the kebab, and I love them because they have no dangerously sharp edges and are therefore safe for young kids.

This lunch is packed in my Planetbox Launch.

2. EGG & QUINOA STIRY FRY

Egg & Quinoa Stir Fry

Egg & Quinoa Stir Fry is made just like fried rice. But there’s no rice involved, and it’s not fried. I love using quinoa because it tastes great, but quinoa is a feel good food for me. Loaded with protein and fiber, it’s pretty dang amazing.

One batch of my Egg Quinoa Stir Fry contains:
4 large, scrambled eggs
3 cups cooked quinoa
1.5 cups cooked chopped vegetables
1/4 cup chopped scallions
2 tablespoons vegetable or neutral oil
salt to taste

I combine everything into a frying pan and sauté in oil until the flavors are thoroughly mixed. Simple. Delicious. Easy to make. Great for leftovers. Perfect for the lunchbox!

This lunch is packed in my Lunchbots Cinco.

3. EGG & CHEESE MINI SANDWICHES

Egg & Cheese Mini Sandwiches

As a New Yorker, egg & cheese is a classic breakfast sandwich combo. This is my riff on the classic New York Bacon, Egg & Cheese (affectionately called BEC) but I’ve omitted the bacon here, and used baguette in place of a hard roll to make mini sandwiches. Feel free to add the bacon back if you’d like!

To assemble, lightly scramble two large eggs in a pan with some unsalted butter. Set aside. Slice a baguette into rounds (I used whole wheat here) and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with cheese (I used cheddar here) and pop under the broiler for a minute or two, or until the cheese is nice and melty. Remove from the oven, and add egg to make mini sandwiches. That’s it! Easy peasy!

This lunch is packed in my Planetbox Rover.

4. BAKED EGG ROLLS

I am in love with this lunchbox idea. I make them on weekends for my kids, and finally the idea dawned on me to send them in the lunchbox. Here’s how to make the magic happen here:
Hollow out two rolls and place a raw egg inside each hole. Bake in a preheated oven at 350F for approximately 30-35 minutes. The egg will be fully cooked - aka, no runny yolks, so if you’re looking for a runny yolk, cook it for less time. My kids bite into these like they would an apple, and because the yolks are baked to creamy perfection, and not runny, it won’t be a drippy mess at school.

This lunch is packed in my Lunchbots Cinco.

5. CHUNKY EGG SALAD WITH DILL (MAYO FREE)

Chunky Egg Salad with Dill (no mayo)

I love egg salad, but I don’t love mayo. For this chunky-style egg salad, cook the eggs for seven and a half minutes, submerge them in an ice bath and peel them once they’ve cooled. Chop them into chunks and place in a bowl. My general rule of thumb here: for every two eggs, add 1.5 teaspoons of chopped fresh dill. Add 1/2 teaspoon of paprika and salt to taste. Feel free to add mayo if you enjoy it! Serve with toast or pita to assemble a sandwich, or eat it as is.

WHY I BUY PASTURE RAISED ORGANIC EGGS

I’ve been buying organic eggs for as long as I can remember. At some point, I started noticing labels like cage free, free range and pasture raised. I didn’t understand the difference, so I made my purchases mostly based on price. After visiting egg farms in Kentucky with the Feedfeed and Handsome Brook Farm, my eyes were opened.

Handsome Brook Farm works with 75 farms across the United States to produce pasture raised, organic eggs. Pasture raised means that each hen has 108.9 square feet each to roam outdoors and forage. (That’s 400 hens per acre of land). The space enables the hens to live in a non-competitive environment and live stress-free lives because of it. These eggs are organic, which means that both their feed is organic and and the land that they roam is organic. Both mean that the feed and the land are not sprayed with traditional pesticides and herbicides, and there are no antibiotics or growth hormones used.

Because there are no antibiotics used, keeping the flock healthy is critically important. There’s never just one sick hen. Operations management for hen health is taken very seriously, to protect both the overall health of the flock and the livelihood of the farmer. They live symbiotically in this way.

Comparatively, Cage Free and Free Range denote the space available on the farm for hens. Cage free literally means that the hens are not placed in cages, but it does not specify much else about the hens’ quality of life. Unless a label says Pasture Raised, it is unlikely that the hens will have even remotely close to 108 square feet each. Free Range means that the hens have outdoor access and at least 2 square feet each. It doesn’t specify much more beyond that.

Marketing jargon can be dizzying, and becoming an informed consumer is empowering. If you want more information about Handsome Brook Farm, hop over to their FAQ.

Huge thanks to Handsome Brook Farm for including me on the farm visit and for sponsoring a week’s worth of egg ideas for the lunchbox.

Easy Lunchbox Rollup Ideas

Rollups are a great lunchbox idea for kids who don’t love sandwiches but want something that’s easy and fun to eat. Once I got the idea for Rollup Week on Instagram, the ideas were rushing into my head faster than I could keep up with!

Basically anything that you can eat on a sandwich can be rolled up. Here are some of my favorites:

BLT Rollup

BLT lunchbox

Bacon, lettuce and tomato is a classic combination! Here I’ve swapped out mayo for avocado and rolled it all up in a tortilla before packing it in this lunchbox. Here, I’ve used 1/2 an avocado, mashed and spread it onto a tortilla. Then I added 2 slices of cooked bacon, a handful of shredded lettuce and 4 cherry tomatoes that I sliced. I rolled it up and sliced into pieces.

Burrito Rollup

Black Bean Burrito Lunchbox

Burritos are a perfect lunchbox idea! Here we’ve got black beans (recipe adapted from Pamela Salzman) with quinoa (instead of rice), lettuce and peppers. I love burritos because they’re so adaptable. Got chicken? Use that! Hate peppers? Eliminate them! Basically anything that you put on a taco can be used in a burrito and rolled up in a tortilla. Add a thin layer of quinoa or rice to half of the tortilla. Top it with beans (or chicken or any other protein). Add other toppings, such as veggies, cheese, salsa, sour cream, etc. Roll, slice and pack!

Strawberry Sunbutter Rollups

These are totally similar to the Banana Rollups that we pack and love, but different enough to keep it interesting. Know what I mean?
I’m allergic to nuts, so we’re nut free around here. Sunflower seed butter is my go-to substitute. Using strawberries here is a great change of pace from banana. Spread a thin layer of sunbutter (or any nut butter) on the entire tortilla. Add berries in one line in the bottom third of the open tortilla. Here I used 5 strawberries that I sliced. Roll, slice and pack!

Pizza Omelette Rollups & Berry Cream Cheese Rollups

Pizza Omelette Rollups & Berry Cream Cheese Rollups

Here’s a twofer: Pizza Omelette Rollups and Berry Cream Cheese Rollups. The Pizza Omelette Rollup is made with two eggs that I flat fried in a pan. As they were cooking, I added dollops of tomato paste (about 2 tablespoons), mozzarella cheese and basil. With the heat on medium low, I waited until the cheese had melted. I slid this out of the pan and onto a board and let it rest for a few minutes before rolling. Eggs are a great substitute for tortillas for gluten free folks!

For the Berry Cream Cheese Rollups, spread a thin layer of cream cheese onto a tortilla. Add berries exactly the same way as you’d do for the Strawberry Sunbutter Rollups. Here I’ve used whole blackberries. This also works beautifully with mango and mint!

Avocado Carrot Sushi Rollups

Avocado Carrot Sushi

I’m allergic to fish, so the sushi that comes out of my kitchen is always made with veggies. They’re easy to make and fun to eat! I’ve got a tutorial posted here that shows how I make avocado sushi. Give it a look!
All you need for this is nori sheets, rice, rice vinegar, avocado and carrots (lightly steamed). Want to give this a little nutritional boost? Use quinoa instead of rice, or add another protein.

Do your kids like rollups? Let me know in the comments below. Feel free to download these photos and add them to the LaLa Lunchbox library so that your kids can choose them regularly. If you like what you see here, follow along with me on Instagram where I post regularly.

Pasta Lunchbox Ideas

I hadn’t realized how many ways there are to serve pasta in a lunchbox until I launched Pasta Week on Instagram. But wow! The ideas are limitless! Here’s a roundup of the ideas I’ve shared with links to recipes where applicable.

Beyond the traditional mac and cheese lunchbox, there’s a world of ideas using pasta to pack up for school lunch!

Do you have a favorite pasta lunchbox idea? Share it in the comments below!

Pasta with Quick Meat Sauce

Here’s a meal that comes together in under 30 minutes, and works seamlessly from dinner to lunchbox leftovers. Score! The recipe has just 7 ingredients and is absolutely kid approved. It’s on steady rotation around here and is one of the few lunchbox ideas that I send in a thermos. I’ve used our Lunchbots thermos here.

Pasta with Quick Meat Sauce in a thermos

Pesto Pasta

Pesto is something I didn’t eat for years. With nut allergies like mine, pesto is one of those things that can be dangerous. I love pasta. I love basil. It’s a natural flavor fit for me, so I developed a recipe that I’m absolutely crazy about, and so is my family! I love the simplicity of this recipe, and that I can freeze any unused pesto. This is a perfect example of “cook once, eat twice;” so make a big old batch for dinner and send it off in a lunchbox (assuming you have leftovers!) This is packed in our Monbento.

Nut Free Pesto Pasta Lunchbox

Tortellini Kebabs

This lunchbox idea doesn’t have a recipe, and it couldn’t be easier. Tortellini absolutely tastes more delicious on a stick, right? :) All you need are cooked tortellini, veggies of your choice and some lollipop sticks. Here I’ve used tomato and basil, but in the past we’ve used all different veggies (peppers, cucumbers, summer squash, cooked carrot, you name it!) This is packed in our Yumbox Panino.

tortellini kebab lunchbox

Chicken & Veggie Lo Mein

I started making Lo Mein a few years ago after seeing it on my friend Karen’s feed and drooling over it. Karen runs the blog Healthy Gluten Free Family and has loads of great ideas to feed families. When I decided to give this one a go, it was an immediate hit with my crew. Now we’ve got it on repeat. I’ve modified Karen’s recipe slightly based on our preferences, and make this with either gluten free pasta or regular pasta. This is packed in our PlanetBox Rover.

Chicken and Veggie Lo Mein Lunchbox

Taco Pasta

We love tacos. We love pasta. It finally dawned on me to combine the two! The tricky part: coming up with a name for this! Is it Taco Pasta? Tacsta? Pasco? Something else?
Essentially it’s pasta with taco seasoning and veggies. For us, this is a fridge forage meal that uses up the odds and ends of the vegetables in the fridge. It also goes nicely with added grilled chicken. Here it’s packed in our Lunchbots Cinco.

Taco Pasta Lunchbox

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Valentines Day Lunchbox Ideas

Valentine’s Day is a fun little holiday that we don’t actually celebrate around here with any seriousness. Truth be told, the hubs and I exchange cards some years, but we forget some years. There’s usually some baking involved for the kids, but in general, it’s not a big time holiday at my house.

Still though, I like to include some lunchbox fun for the kiddos. Here’s a roundup of some fun lunchbox ideas for Valentine’s Day that I hope will give you some inspiration, plus links to my recipes for Pink Smoothie Pancakes and Pink Smoothie Waffles. Trust me on this one… your kids are going to love it!

First up, we’ve got Pink Smoothie Pancakes (recipe here)

Pink Smoothie Pancakes

You can whip up a batch of those pancakes and use them instead in your waffle iron to get this lovely lunchbox! (recipe here)

Pink Smoothie Waffles in the lunchbox

How about some pink sushi? All you need are some roasted beets to get that amazing color. (Recipe here)

Pink avocado sushi makes a fun lunchbox for kids!

Here’s a super quick idea: use a heart cookie cutter and cut out a bit of your sandwich with it to add some love. Fun toothpicks also accessorize this lunchbox nicely.

Heart cut out sandwich for Valentines Day lunchbox

If you like these ideas and make them yourself, tag me on social media @lalalunchbox so I can see!

Happy Valentine’s Day!