Dietitian has easy, healthy tips for packing lunches for back-to-school

FOX 2 - Back to school means for many of us, packing lunches for the kids. While some schools offer free lunch, sometimes it doesn't hurt to have that homemade touch.

How do we make them happy - and healthy? Registered dietitian Shanthi Appelo from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan dropped by to share some tips.

When you focus on lunches you want a good mix of fruits and vegetables, but also - protein is important.

"Protein is going to be so important to power them throughout the day," Appelo said. "It is so important to nourish their muscles and their growing bodies.

"And grains as well - that is going to give them the brain power they need to learn."

One of the lunches we have here involves cooked and shredded chicken -  you can just buy a rotisserie chicken if you want.

Deena: And what kind of bread do we have?

"This is a whole wheat pita. So that's where the whole wheat comes in," said Appelo. "And I've made them into triangles to make it a little bit easier to eat, you can throw a little bit of hummus in there, a little bit of veggies, and that chicken and it's a kind of a nice bite."

Another idea uses leftover meatballs with a little bit of rice, for a hearty lunch.

"Reheat the meatballs, and you can pack however many your kid needs," she said. "And again, the focus is, you want to get that balance. You've got the protein, you've got the healthy carb, or the grain and also some dairy and fruits and vegetables."

Deena: "One clever thing that you did with right here is you made a wrap using fresh berries and some kind of nut butter."

"To make it extra healthy, instead of your typical peanut butter and jelly sandwich, right, we're taking away a lot of the added sugar and adding more fiber into the mix by using real berries," Appelo said. "And of course, it tastes really nice and fresh. And I'm using cashew butter for this. You can use any kind of nut butter, but sometimes peanut butter, you know, isn't allowed in schools, just to keep students safe with allergies."

These are just a few really good ideas here to keep it interesting when kids head off to school or even to pack your own lunch, if you're trying to do that.