Back to School

Holidays a memory, schoolbags packed, shorter days ahead – Autumn may seem a dreary prospect, but there is such a good side too. Dreams about next year’s holidays, meeting up with good friends not seen over the summer, the gold and amber colours of beech trees and crunching crisp leaves underfoot, old familiar seasonal veggies and long slow delicious cooking.

The perennial query arises: what to put into school lunchboxes. Members of the Irish Association of Health Stores (IAHS) can offer lots of help and ideas, apart from mere sandwich fillers. How about packing wholegrain wraps or pittas with hummus (good for calcium and protein), chopped cucumber and sweetcorn or finely chopped celery? Or making sushi with toasted nori, tightly rolled with avocado slices, shredded carrot and cucumber sticks. The kids might enjoy making these, and food on sticks such as chopped cheese, grapes and veggie pieces can be fun to put together.

For dairy free children health stores can offer plenty of choice such as dairy and soya free cheeses and mayonnaise, and small cartons of non-dairy milks. Schools have banished peanuts, but there are plenty of other nut and seed butters to choose from which are also high in protein and minerals.