Feeding Littles Lunches: 75+ No-Stress Lunches Everyone Will Love: Meal Planning for Kids

by Megan McNamee, Judy Delaware

75+ simple and delicious ideas for packed school lunches and snacks for kids of all ages, from the New York Times bestselling authors of Feeding Littles and Beyond.

In a lunch packing rut? Megan McNamee and Judy Delaware, the founders of Feeding Littles, are here to help with the ultimate lunch box resource. Feeding Littles Lunches is complete with 75+ lunches that are quick to assemble, safe and easy for kids of all ages to eat, and balanced in nutrients for growth, learning and play. Each lunch idea is easily modified for nine of the most common allergens and includes tips for picky eaters, plus vegetarian swaps and “I Can’t Even” tips to make lunch packing even easier. Feeding Littles Lunches is not a recipe book because, let’s face it, most parents don’t want to spend hours packing lunches. Rather, it’s an inspo book with a full-page photo for every lunch, meant to be used with your child as a visual reminder for delicious and easy new ideas that you can assemble from simple ingredients.
 
Feeding Littles Lunches also includes a lunch packing formula to help you plan your own lunches, grocery lists, tips for dealing with cafeteria and school settings, picky eating, food safety, and more! With creative and approachable lunches like Chicken Salad with Mini Brioche Toasts, Sun Butter Banana Roll-Up “Sushi-Style,” Build-Your-Own Naan Pizza, Leftover Burger Mini Sliders, Pesto Turkey Wrap Rounds, and more, you’ll bring joy back to lunchtime.

Genres: Cookbooks, Parenting, Nonfiction, Food, Cooking, Childrens, Adult

237 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 27, 2024

Reviews

[Traci Thomas]

I enjoyed this no frills guide to making kids lunches. It’s a cookbook but also not one bc there aren’t recipes just combos and philosophy behind kids lunches.

[Rizwana]

Cute book, with interesting recipes for little ones.

[Shannon Evanko]

The practical inspo we need! Well done.

[Kasandra]

Some great ideas that I would never have thought of. I struggle with making lunches. I just want to send a ham and cheese sandwich and a bag of chips. This book really helped me break out of the rut of sending the same thing every time a make my kid lunch.

[Emily Bourque]

This "cookbook" was more of an inspiration book - I've been *very* stressed about having to send my daughter with lunches to school every day starting in August, and this made me feel at ease. Definitely recommend if you're feeling burnt out or need inspiration for lunch prep!

[Md Reza]

★★★★★

Feeding Littles Lunches is a wonderfully practical cookbook for families looking for easy, enjoyable, and low-stress lunch ideas. With more than 75 recipes, it offers plenty of variety without making meal planning feel overwhelming.

What I especially appreciate is the focus on lunches that both kids and adults can enjoy. The recipes feel realistic for busy days, with approachable ideas that can make packing or preparing lunch much less of a daily challenge. There is a nice balance of familiar favorites and creative combinations, giving families plenty of opportunities to keep meals interesting.

The meal-planning aspect is another highlight. Having a collection of dependable ideas in one place makes it easier to organize the week and avoid falling into the same repetitive lunch routine. The overall approach feels encouraging rather than demanding, which is exactly what busy parents need.

This is more than a recipe collection—it is a useful companion for making everyday family meals smoother and more enjoyable. It encourages variety while keeping convenience in mind.

A thoughtful, accessible, and genuinely useful cookbook for families. If you are looking for fresh lunch inspiration without unnecessary stress, Feeding Littles Lunches is a fantastic addition to the kitchen. Five stars!

[Lynnette]

This book provides a practical, stress-reducing guide to creating child-friendly lunches with simple ingredients and adaptable meal formulas. Feeding experts Megan McNamee, MPH, RDN, and Judy Delaware, OTR/L, CLC, emphasize responsive feeding, exposing children to a variety of flavors, and giving parents tools to navigate picky eating without pressure.

There are plenty of visual examples, easy preparation strategies, and nutrient-focused ideas to help families make lunches that are colorful, satisfying, and developmentally appropriate—whether packed for school or served at home. Each lunch idea includes a prep tip, allergy tip, toddler tip, picky eating tip, and a vegetarian swap (if applicable).

The book incorporates practical tips on portion expectations, reducing food waste, addressing appetite differences, and managing mealtime dynamics in school settings.

This isn’t a traditional cookbook or a book focused on providing optimal nutrient-rich options. It’s about assembling meals from leftovers, ready-to-eat, or store-bought items. The reader is encouraged to adapt the lunches to their kids’ hunger levels, appetites, and location (home, daycare, school). This book is highly recommended for parents seeking lunchtime inspiration.

[Natalie Pietro]

I was a wee bit disappointed with this book. I was excited to find some new ideas to put in my children's lunches. All these meals look delicious, and I would eat anyone of them. However, they are mostly cold options, and I was hoping to learn to serve a few more hot meals to my kido's. They did have a couple soups in sealed containers but my experience they do not stay hot by lunch time (even with the hot water trick) and pasta dishes that they expect to be eaten cold. They spoke about using dividers and ice packs to keep the cold and hot items apart. Thats great and all but in my experience that never works. They do showcase all the lunches in cute bento boxes, but I feel these are two small for my growing boys and will not fill them up. Most boxes would be a snack for my boys. However, I did enjoy the colorful photos and verity of different options. Stuff I would have never thought to make like Ravioli Skewers and Strawberry Cream Cheese Sandwich. I will try a few of these lunch box creations and hope my little guys will love them. Maybe even make a lunch box for me.

[Jenny GB]

I really like this book! It starts with a lot of practical general advice and transitions into beautiful photos and tips to make lunches. I found a lot of ideas of twists on our current food to add some variety for my daughter. I appreciated the simple presentation of the food and the emphasis on not cooking for lunch and instead using pre made items or leftovers. There are no recipes since the emphasis is on already handy food. There are some nice tips on allergies, picky eaters, and toddler adaptations on each lunch. I also like the inclusion of the names of the lunch boxes on each page in case you like one and don’t want to spend forever hunting it down. I would love to go through this together with my daughter when she’s older to let her pick out some ideas that appeal to her.

[Kirsti]

Fun and useful book with attractive photographs. I never thought of making a cream cheese and sliced strawberry sandwich on whole-grain bread. (The authors say to spread a thin layer of cream cheese on each bread slice so the strawberries don't make the bread soggy.) Other ideas I hadn't considered:

• Apparently it's possible to buy really thin rice cakes for sandwiches.
• You can serve leftover tortellini cold with marinara dipping sauce on the side.
• You can put leftover ravioli (cold) on skewers with cherry tomatoes.
• When in doubt, cut food into small pieces, serve small portions of a variety of foods, skewer things, or serve "deconstructed" versions of grown-up favorites so kids can pick and choose what they will eat.

[Margot]

I read this book in preparation for sending my eldest off to first grade--where I would need to pack him a daily school lunch or else pay for expensive cafeteria food that I knew he wouldn't eat. (His previous school provided all meals.) While I tagged it as a cookbook, it's not really a cookbook per se. There are no recipes. Rather, each "recipe" suggests a collection of foods to put in a lunch to make a well-rounded meal. It was great for getting ideas of different foods that I either hadn't ever offered my kiddo or that I had previously overlooked as lunchbox options.

Feeding Littles Lunches also addresses the issue of kids often just not eating that much food in a lunchroom environment (it is comforting to know that is normal), and also gives suggestions for picky eaters.

[Amanda Orsten]

I didn’t “read” the book but skimmed it looking for toddler friendly, healthy lunch options. I loved the bento style and bought a bento box for lunches on the go. Amazing strategy- avoids having to find something toddler suitable while out of the house. Also really appreciated the strategy of food exposure which means incorporating something they like and something new. The recipes are honestly genius and offer creative twists for picky eaters.

[Kaitlyn Bender]

Read. Most of these were ideas I already implement and know from following their social media account, but there were some new ideas and inspiration. Small adjustments create variety without having to be innovative and create a different lunch each day. Simple changes like using a tortilla instead of bread for a sandwich or changing the spread on a sandwich or bagel create variety.

[Mandie]

I’ve followed Feeding Littles on Instagram since before my son (now 5) was even born - this book is so approachable for lunch ideas, and encourages on almost every page to tweak it to fit your family, and if they don’t eat something/anything, not to worry!

[Carolina Campoy]

Lifesaver

My kid just started preschool and this book has saved me so much time! I enjoy the menus and the pictures.

[Michelle Balacek]

I got mine today and flipped through it with my 4 year old. They yelled “I want that!” at 90% of the pages, and I’m feeling inspired to pack lunch.

Great book.

[Hala]

beautifully photographed ideas,

[Kayley Martin]

Pretty book! Cute ideas.

[Kirstie]

What a fun little book. My favourite part was my husband saying, “Kirst, this looks like something you could have written!” Warmed my dietitian heart.

[Kristen Barenthaler]

All the recipes look and sound delicious. I want to make them for my own lunches! Is that allowed?

[Chelsea Harper]

Great tips for making kids lunches (thinking for a kindergartener) - boils down to simple guidelines to make a lunch from anything. Not too cutesy

[Olivia Ambrose]

As someone without kids but looking for lunch ideas, this was no help. Not it's fault, I'm just the wrong audience.

[Emilee Baxter]

Perfect for ideas for what is probably the most mundane and repetitive chore besides laundry 🤣 Will update when we try some of the combos this coming school year!

[Denise]

Not a cookbook but full of great ideas for packing a lunch. No kids at home anymore, but I’ll use some of these ideas for myself to make lunch more fun and interesting!

[Jillian DiRienzo]

Not a cookbook. Self help book about how to help your kids eat! I loved it!

[Kristin Wickham]

Tried almost every single lunch in here! If you have to pack a lunch I highly recommend it. Removing forward I plan on using it like a menu. Totally kid friendly

[Natalie]

This is an immensely helpful resource! My daughter and I looked through this together to get some ideas for her school lunches, and having pictures of everything helped her a lot.

[Kate Bryant]

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Pictures to give ideas and inspiration for packing preschool snacks and lunches.

[Crystal Carranza]

Excellent book. I loved ot so much I purchased it after borrowing at the library. Visual ideas for lunch, and tons pf helpful tips.

[Kelli Slayden]

I love following their insta account and this was a fun book to breeze through, especially to reinvigorate ideas as we pack lunches for summer camp. The little reminders of and nods to baby Jack made me cry!