The Tasteful Tribe’s Kids Lunch and Fall Meal Prep Recipes

Kids Food Art

It’s easier than you think to be creative with your kids’ lunches and make them fun! Here are two easy-to-follow guides from regular Kimberton Whole Foods shopper, Sarah Troester of The Tasteful Tribe, to turn regular sandwiches into something spectacular with Dinosaur and Mermaid themed bento-box style meals.

Dinosaur

What you’ll need:

• 2 slices preferred bread
• 1 slice cheddar cheese
• 1 slice black forest ham, optional
• avocado cut into triangles
• ¼ cup green grapes, halved
• ¼ cup blueberries
• 3-4 strawberries, cut into hearts (optional)
• Letter Cookies, optional for the letter “D”
• Dinosaur cut-outs, optional
• 2 Candy Eyes, optional (you can also use blueberries or black sesame seeds)

Instructions:

Place the halved green grapes into the main compartment of the lunchbox.

Make the sandwich; place cheese and ham slices (if using) in between 2 slices of bread. Using a knife or dinosaur head food cutter, cut-out the dinosaur head and place on top of the grapes.

Cut-out triangles from the crust of the bread and place around the backside of the dinosaur’s head.

Place the avocado triangles inside the mouth to form the dinosaur’s teeth. Place the top of a blueberry to form the nose. Place the candy eyes or blueberries to the upper right to form the dinosaur’s eyes.

Using the leftover sandwich, cut-out dinosaur bones or foot with the Dinosaur cut-outs and place into the side compartment along with some blueberries.

Into the other side compartment, place the strawberry heart cut-outs and top with the letter “D”

Mermaid

What you’ll need

• 2 slices preferred bread
• 2 slices cheddar cheese
• 1 slice turkey, optional
• avocado cut into triangles
• 3-4 strawberries cut-into flowers, optional
• 1 clementine cut into rounds
• ¼ cup goldfish crackers
• Letter Cookies, optional to spell out “SWIM”
• Edible Markers, optional for the mermaid’s eyes and mouth (you can also use blueberries or black sesame seeds and a piece of strawberry for the smile).

Instructions

Place the blueberries into the main compartment of the lunchbox.

Make the sandwich; place cheese and turkey slices (if using) in between 2 slices of bread. Using a knife or shape food cutters, cut-out a circle, square and two rectangles. Place them on top of the blueberries to form the mermaid’s body and create a triangular path to form the mermaid’s tail, placing the avocado triangles inside it.

Cut-out an oval shape from the cheddar cheese slice to form the mermaid’s hair. Using either a knife, create waves in the hair. On the top of the mermaid’s head, place a strawberry flower cut-out and a cheddar cheese star cut-out. Place two cheddar cheese stars on the square for the mermaid’s bathing suit.

To create the mermaid’s face use Edible Markers or black sesame seeds for the eyes and a piece of strawberry for the smile.

Place the goldfish crackers into a side compartment of the lunchbox.

Into the other compartment, place the clementine rounds, strawberry flower cut-outs and the letter cookies S-W-I-M, if using.

Falafel Waffles with Chickpea Salad

This fun take on classic comfort food has it all — it combines flavorful ingredients and LOTS of veggies with simple preparation, resulting in a great addition to your meal-prep repertoire.

What you’ll need

Waffles:

• 1 15 ounce can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 3-5 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground gloves
• salt and pepper to taste
• zest of 1 lemon
• juice of two lemons (about 3-4 tablespoons)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot or cornstarch
• 1 egg

*This will make 7-8 mini waffles

Creamy Cucumber and Chickpea Salad:

• 1/2 cup honey Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 large cucumber, diced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh mint, finely chopped
• 1 15 ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

To make the waffles; add the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth yet still a little chunky.

Preheat and season a mini waffle maker with nonstick spray. Add the mixture, about 2 tablespoons at a time to the waffle maker. Cook for 6-7 minutes and set aside.

For the salad; in a medium-sized bowl combine all ingredients making sure to coat with the Greek yogurt and olive oil.

Assemble into 4 meal prep containers; Add 1-2 waffles in the main compartment and the salad mix into the other. Serve with Tahini, optional.

What you’ll need

Chipotle Turkey Meatballs with Cilantro Lime Rice