The back-to-school season is here, and we all know how important it is to pack a lunch that will make our kids happy and satisfied. When it comes to delicious and easy lunch options, sandwiches are always a winner! Sandwiches are a classic lunchtime favorite, offering endless possibilities for creativity and flavor. I’ve rounded up my 15 favorite back-to-school sandwiches that are not only tasty but also a breeze to make.
Tips to Make Sandwiches More Interesting for Kids
While sandwiches are a tried and true lunchtime favorite, they can be a bit mundane after a while. Making sandwiches more interesting for kids can be a fun and creative way to get them excited about lunchtime. Here are some tips to make sandwiches more enjoyable and appealing for kids:
- Use Fun Shapes: Make sandwiches visually appealing by using cookie cutters to create fun shapes like stars, hearts, or animals. These playful shapes will instantly spark joy and have your kid excited about what shape they’re getting that day!
- Add Colorful Ingredients: Brighten up sandwiches with colorful fruits and veggies like strawberries, blueberries, cucumbers, or bell peppers. The vibrant hues will make the meal more enticing. After all, we eat with our eyes first!
- Try Unique Spreads: Experiment with different spreads such as flavored cream cheese, hummus, guacamole, or pesto. These tasty spreads will add exciting new flavors to their sandwiches.
- Build Your Own: Give your kids a sense of ownership by providing an assortment of ingredients and letting them build their own sandwiches. This hands-on approach will make lunchtime interactive and enjoyable.
- Mini Sandwich Fun: Make lunchtime fun-sized with mini versions of their favorite sandwiches using slider buns, small rolls or just cutting them into little “sammies” as we like to call them. These adorable mini sandwiches are perfect for little hands.
- Add a Sweet Twist: Add a touch of sweetness with sliced apples, a drizzle of honey, or a honey mustard dressing. This delightful contrast will elevate the taste.
- Serve as Kabobs: Thread sandwich ingredients onto skewers to make sandwich kabobs. This presentation adds a playful twist and makes eating more enjoyable!
- Make it a Wrap: Swap regular bread with tortilla wraps or lettuce leaves for a different texture and presentation.
Sandwiches Kids Love for Back-to-School
Get creative when it comes to sandwich making and don’t be afraid to think outside of the box. If you need even more tips for school lunch, get my Weelicious Lunches Cookbook filled with innovative solutions for quick, delicious, easy-to-make, kid-friendly lunch box meals that are perfect for back-to-school!
the best samwitch ever!!!
Those banana dog bites look so cute. All the sandwiches look amazing!
I am tied of my son’s excuses for not eating n hope u can help me with it.
Check out my Facebook page! I post a photos of my son’s school lunch every day! These are the actual foods that we pack in his lunch box and he eats at school. He is currently in a nut-free class so the most recent photos are nut-free! I have 4 different school lunch albums on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151207269101609.495197.248062301608&type=3
I love your blog but would like some lunch ideas that taste good after being packed for a few hours and also nut free choices as my childrens school is a nut fre zone do to allergies,thank you
I need good recipes ,some with chicken and vegetables for my toddler baby
my daughter doesn’t like ham and cheese sandwiches or pb&J’s. but she likes cucumbers…I made her the cucumber cream cheese sammie for lunch today…she loved it!
Thats mean to even suggest that a child should be forced to sit alone in the hall because of something beyond their control. We shouldn’t make them feel different, but instead be a little self-sacrificing and go nut free. It’s only for 6 hours. You’ve got nothing to lose and a child’s heart to gain.
We’re in Canada, and neither my daughter’s preschool or daycare is nut free. Thank God! Also, I’m a teacher, and my school isn’t nut free. If a child has a nut allergy and isn’t comfortable in his classroom at lunch time because of possible nuts around, he could eat in another part of the classroom or in the hall. If it’s an extreme allergy, then just that classroom has to be nut free.
I love these!! I just told the hubster I want to be super mom and make my girl cute little sammiches for school. This is perfect. OMG waffles, brilliant. I’m going to make these for me too 🙂 yum!!!
Such fun ideas! I’ll be testing them on my niece and nephews this fall!
These are GREAT ideas!! Definitely taking note of these for future sandwich eating 🙂
I love the idea of the banana tortilla with peanut butter. I think it would hold up great. You can even leave out the banana and just have a peanut butter tortilla wrap. I would eat these all the time when I had the metabolism of a 20 year old. They are especially yummy if you warm them in the microwave.! Maybe raisins instead of bananas.
It is time for me to try some of these sandwiches again now that my toddler is more adventurous. I certainly want to try them! There’s no lunch at his nursery school (mornings for just 2 hrs), but we love to pack a lunch & picnic at the park or zoo about once a week. Your site continues to be our favorite go-to recipe finder for the whole family. I’m so grateful for it (& the pre-ordered book!) Many thanks Catherine!
I love these ideas but my kids won’t eat any of this. I agree they would think the bread is soggy and bananas have to be just right. I don’t blame them i am kind of the same way. Maybe it is my fault. My 9 year old just started eating bread otherwise everything has always be deconstructed. It is hard when a kid won’t eat a sandwich ever! I love your ideas but it would be great maybe for some more basic type of things. Maybe i could deconstruct the sandwhiches. Hmmmm. It is hard my kids eat a lot of great food but plain plain plain. They like no sauces or flavors and lots of protein. I love your blog just wish my kids we less picky about consistency and how food looks.
Love your ideas! Thank you!
You are very lucky!! Everything is nut free in Canada now – playgroups, schools, camps, everything. It can be annoying but I get it.
How do your schools, etc handle nut allergies?
Wow. Nut free schools? Glad I am in Europe. That would annoy me.
We use sunflower seed butter as an alternative to peanut butter. It’s allowed at schools and tastes delicious!
YUM!
Love some of these ideas and if I could put one of my own in….finely chop some cooked chicken breast mix with sweetcorn and mayo and crispy bacon bits if liked then spread over either bread or cold pancake, cut up how they like it…add a few little cherry tomatoes and seedless grapes to eat with it.
At home I add lettuce leaves before rolling pancake/crepe but this tends to go soggy so not ideal for p/lunch.
yep – wondering if you serve those cold as well. how well do they do in a lunch box after a few hours ? also wondering how well that banana dog would hold up or if it would get brown and mushed up in a lunch box. Love the ideas though. Worth trying to see.
It is true that paninis will be different in school lunch than right after they’ve been cooked. I let it cool completely before packing and don’t have a problem with it getting soggy! You could try wrapping it in foil to keep it warm, although that might make it more soggy.
I should clarify the ‘soggy’ … not super wet, but just ‘humid’ and not crisp, if that makes any sense????
Love the idea of a panini, but according to my daughter, anything toasted/grilled ends up soggy. I usually let it cool off before I put it in her sandwich container, but even still, it is never as good as ‘hot off the press’. Anyone have any suggestions, or feedback on this?
We used to substitute soy butter for peanut butter and it worked well… until the school banned the substitutes too… apparently allergic kids saw the butter and freaked out and it caused “panic”. Sigh. It was good while it lasted.
Would like to hear more about the hot sandwiches too!
I let them cool completely before packing in the lunch box, pack an ice pack in lunch, and everything is eaten at room temperature!
Hey, I love the ideas but I was curious, do you serve the hot sandwiches cold or do you pack them in a thermos or other container to keep them warm? I have a hard time believing those sandwiches are good cold.
Replace the peanut butter with the alternative of your choice!
Sunflower butter is a great peanut butter alternative!
Great ideas but just wanted to point out that most schools are nut free. Would love to see some more PB alternatives!
Today was BBQ pork on a Hawaiian roll. Tomorrow, the always popular pb&j pancake Sammie! Maybe pizza rolls or turkey tacos this week too. School lunch definitely doesn’t have to be boring! Thanks for the great ideas Weelicious!
I love all these fun ideas!