Lunchbox Love: Egg Salad Sandwich

Most parents can agree: packing school lunches is a pain. Obviously, you want your kids to eat, but putting together a midday meal that is nut-free, nutritious and won't come back warm and squished hours later is a challenge.

That's why we turned to registered dietitian Noelle Martin. She's put together three easy-to-make, balanced lunches your kid might just enjoy. No promises, but it's worth a try, right? This lunch not a hit? Try one of these.

Are packaged snacks okay to send for lunch?

Just because something comes in a package doesn't mean it's not healthy. While there's more waste with snacks like granola bars, sometimes the convenience makes them worthwhile. Just make sure they bring home the package so you can put it in the recycling bin.

Martin recommends letting your child know that the unpackaged foods are best eaten fresh, so kids should start with those first and save the packaged snacks for later in the day. "This is also a great way to help children learn to understand perishable and non-perishable foods," she says.

For younger kids, it's usually better to take the food out of the package and put it into their lunchbox, says Martin. First, kids don't need to struggle to open the packages. Second, this takes those snack foods off a pedestal, making them less exciting or special.

If you're concerned about overly processed food, look for snacks that are low in sugar and have real-food ingredients you recognize. Bonus if they're high in protein, fibre or come with extra nutrients, like the probiotics in Yoggies fruit and yogurt bites. Find more healthy packaged snacks.

Egg Salad Sandwich on Whole Grain Bread (vegan option below)

What's inside?

• Egg salad or eggless egg salad (recipes below)
• Carrots and hummus
• Grapes (cut into halves or quarters for younger children)
• Made Good Red Velvet cookies
• Yoggies
• Kashi Bar

Egg salad recipe

• 4 hard-boiled eggs
• 2 Tbsp. mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
• 1 tsp. honey mustard

Makes 2-3 sandwiches

Eggless egg salad recipe

• Shredded firm tofu
• Veganase
• Dijon mustard
• Nutritional yeast
• Chopped cucumber and/or celery
• A touch of Sweet Curry powder

Makes 2-3 sandwiches

What makes this a balanced lunch?

“Eggs are a great source of complete protein, choline, several B vitamins, vitamin A, iron, and more nutrients that are important for kids' growing bodies and brains,” says Martin.

Plus, carrots really are good for your kid's vision, says Martin. They contain beta carotene, which is an antioxidant and also used by the body to make vitamin A, an important vitamin for eye, bone, and cellular health.

Why is it appealing to kids?

Small lunchbox, major kid points. Martin points out that a big spread of food might be overwhelming for some kids. This makes it easy to choose what to eat, and including dip for the carrots makes it more likely that they'll get eaten.