I had a suggestion from a friend recently to put up some recipes that are lunch box friendly for kindy or pre school. Ones that are quick to make and that can be popped into lunch boxes for morning or afternoon tea. I did a bit of research on kindy and pre school food protocols and boy oh boy will I be in for a treat when I have kids and have to make school lunches.

The rules seem pretty tight on what is allowed in lunch boxes, which is understandable in the fight against childhood obesity. I totally agree with where they are coming from but does it make it difficult for busy mums and dads to try and put a lunch box together?

I don't have children so I don't know what it is like to try and put a lunch box together everyday for weeks on end. Trying to keep variety, interest and cater to your childrens likes and dislikes.

I looked up a few pre schools food specifications and one schools list of discouraged foods was as follows:

Packet chips/twisties/corn chips/cheezels etc
Roll ups
Lollies
Jelly/Jelly cups
Sweet biscuits of any variety
Cakes/slices (Health cakes ok)
Chocolate Muffins
Sprinkles i.e. Fairy Bread
Chocolate bars
Choc chip muesli bars
Cereal bars e.g. LCMs
Dessert ‘cups’ e.g. Quick, Yogo, Danone
Fruit drops/jubes
Popcorn and Nuts
‘Fruit Snack Bars’
Peanut butter
Nutella

The encouraged foods were:

Sandwiches (on variety of breads e.g. pita, pocket, rye, multi-grain, Lebanese, mountain bread)
Salad
Vegemite
Egg
Salmon/tuna
Cottage cheese
Chicken
Ham
Baked beans
Fruit
Spaghetti
Fruit salad
Rice salad
Noodle salad
Yoghurt
Custard
Tinned fruit (no added sugar)
Cheese
Baked vegetable slices
Rice crackers
Dried fruit e.g. sultanas, prunes, dates, apricots, etc
Rissole/fish cakes
Salada/Vita Wheat
Vegetables e.g. cucumber, celery, tomatoes, baby beets, snow peas, carrot sticks, capsicum.

The recipe that I created with kids in mind was these Coconut & Blueberry Pattycakes.

So looking at the contents of this recipe I honestly don't know how it would hold up if it was scrutinized in regards to the nutritional content of the pattycake. I tried to make it low in refined sugar, high in fibre and low in white flour. It probably would be more appropriate for at home snacks. You will have to let me know if you make it for your kids and send it to pre school, what the verdict is on them.

Coconut & Blueberry Patty Cakes

{Download & Print Recipe}

Makes 24, Patty Cakes

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup lite coconut milk

1 cup coconut, desiccated

1 ½ cup wholemeal spelt flour (* You can substitute with wholemeal flour)

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

1/2 cup honey, warmed until runny

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 tsp coconut essence *optional

½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries

¼ cup macadamia roughly chopped.

Method:

Preheat oven to 175 degrees. Prepare muffin tins with patty cake papers.

In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients, sifting flour and baking powder & soda together.

In a small bowl place the egg, roughly beaten, coconut milk, honey, and essence and mix to combine.

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and add the blueberries and macadamias to the mixture. Mix until combined and place spoonful of the mixture into prepared patty papers. Place in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or a skewer comes out clean.