Yes, it’s that time again – the beginning of a new school year.  Time for backpacks and lunchboxes.  Time to plan what snacks, drinks, and lunches to pack for your child each day.  I thought I would offer some help in this area.  I plan to have several future posts covering this topic.  But today, I thought I would focus on “the sandwich”.  Day after day, planning “the sandwich” and eating “the sandwich” can become both repetitive  and boring.  However, there is one little trick that can make “the sandwich” exciting, even if you use the same filling day after day.

What is that little trick?  It’s the bread.  Yes, the bread, if you think beyond the usual white, wheat, or whole grain.  Changing one little item, such as the bread, can make each day’s “sandwich” unique and appetizing.  There are so many options available you can plan a whole week’s worth of lunches and never have the same one twice.

Even if you have a finicky eater, let’s say your child will only eat ham, each day’s ham sandwich can be new with each new bread selection you choose.  My daughter likes to have turkey most days. In order to make the turkey new and exciting, sometimes I roll it in a tortilla with cheese, sometimes I use a butter crust sandwich roll or a submarine roll, sometimes I use a small cocktail roll, and sometimes I use King’s Hawaiian bread rolls.  Those are just a few different options, just the ones my daughter seems to like.

You can also use a croissant, which lends itself nicely to tuna salad, egg salad, and ham salad.  Bagels, Bagel Thins, and Pitas are another option. The King’s Hawaiian bread that I buy, are the small sweet rolls pack, which comes in a 12 pack or a 4 pack.  If you are not a fan of King’s sweet bread, their little rolls also come in honey wheat and savory butter.   These small rolls and the small cocktail buns I sometimes buy are nice because they are small – kind of like the ever popular “sliders” that are making an appearance at most restaurants these days.  You can pack one or two in your child’s lunch depending on their appetite.  And, maybe you could do one with turkey and one with ham, for even more variety.  The options are endless. 

So, that’s my hot tip for this week.  The “sandwich” is all about “the bread”.  So step out a little next time you go to the grocery store.  Don’t just reach for the usual sandwich white and wheat sliced loaf bread.   Think tortilla, think pita, think bagel, think rolls, think tiny rolls; just think different.