The Snacky Lunch is just that – a lunch of snacks. Assemble a variety of proteins, vegetables, fruits, and breads for a DIY meal to please the masses.
You need a quick and easy meal to feed your family. You don’t want fast food, but neither do you want a messy kitchen when you’re done. Where can you find a healthy, convenient meal that will please the whole family?
And can you get that to-go, too?
Luckily for us all, the Snacky Lunch is the answered prayer of busy parents everywhere.
In fact, the Snacky Lunch is one of my go-to meals around here. It’s fast. It’s easy. It’s highly portable. And the kids love it.
Bonus: so do my husband and I!
When the kids were little, they were enamored by the commercial “lunchable”. Sure, I bought a few whenever they were on sale and I had coupons, but once I read the labels a few times, I realized those snack boxes just weren’t worth it.
Moreover, I learned that I could easily sway the children away from the lunchable section of the grocery store — it’s now become a veritable AISLE! Have you noticed?! — without a fuss.
The homemade Snacky Lunch serves the purpose and is just as fun. Throw in a few treats/fun food, and your kids are extra jazzed.
This isn’t a fancy bento box, though a homemade lunchable is easy enough to make. There are no sandwiches cut into works of art. It’s just simple, fun, yummy food that kids love. Heck, adults do, too.
The Snacky Lunch is so easy that I often serve it for Sunday lunch or dinner since it’s so easy and quick to prep. In fact, this is what it looked like last Christmas Day! Yep, I served a snacky lunch. We all love it, and it’s easy. So, why not?
In fact, it’s pretty simple to keep the ingredients of a Snacky Lunch on hand all the time. You don’t need a lot of any one thing. In fact, small dishes of a variety of fruits, vegetables, crackers, cheeses, meats, pickles, and nuts are so versatile and mix and match, this makes for a great clean-out-the-fridge meal.
One of the many beauties of the Snacky Lunch is that you can dress it up or dress it down. Give it a fancy name like a Plowman’s Lunch or Charcuterie Board and you can serve it to adults with wine, beer, and cocktails.
Pack it away in divided boxes and you’ve got a picnic for the kids to brag to their friends about.
The Snacky Lunch
A Snacky Lunch contains any of the following:
- crackers, bread, rolls, croissant, pretzels, or sliced baguette
- a variety of cheese, either in blocks, wheels, slices or sticks – slices and sticks work best for kids
- sliced deli turkey, roast beef, ham, or salami – either rolled or cut into cracker-sized pieces
- veggie dippers and hummus, ranch, or sour cream onion dip
- seasonal fruit or fruit salad
- various spreads like butter, mayonnaise, mustard, or preserves
- Optional Extras: pickles, chips, juice, and a “lunch dessert”
The Snacky Lunch
Ingredients
- 12 crackers, bread, rolls, croissant, or sliced baguette
- 8 oz a variety of cheese either in blocks, wheels, slices or sticks - slices and sticks work best for kids
- 8 oz sliced deli meats such as turkey, roast beef, ham, salami either rolled or cut into cracker-sized pieces
- 4 cup veggie dippers
- 2 cup Ranch dressing
- 4 piece seasonal fruit
- yellow mustard and other spreads like butter, mayo, or English pickle
- extra treats for a snacky lunch , such as: pickles, olives, chips, juice, and a "lunch dessert"
Instructions
- Lay out plates or bowls of each ingredient.
- Allow dinners to assemble their own snack plates.
Notes
Nutrition
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What goes in YOUR snacky lunch?
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Gerolyn
These have been our quarantine lunches for me and my three kids. We do it buffet style on the island. Put out a variety of veggies, fruits, crackers, yogurts, cheeses ect. Some days we do a bake potato bar with sides. Some days it’s build your own salad. Some days it’s just rolled lunch meats to choose from with all the extras. Makes it easy when everyone has online classes and lunch is at different times. I set it out and they grab it when it’s their break.
Jessica Fisher
Great system!
Katie
We have this for lunch Every Single Day. Bread, a few varieties of cheese, ham and mayo are the staples, usually also salami, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and whatever else we find in the fridge – leftover meats, pate, corned beef, sausage and bacon, pickle…. The kids can get it all out and put it away (and sometimes they even do :D) and everyone gets to make their own favourite. Win win win.
Jessica Fisher
Did you see my recipe to make your own English pickle?! I know it’s probably really easy and cheap for you to buy it, but I was so proud of myself! 😉
Ali
I love to do this and probably don’t do it often enough. Thanks for the reminder. Your tip that you have shared about presentation really helps with this one and making it a special dinner (or lunch!). It’s always a hit because there is at least something everyone will like.
Jessica Fisher
So glad you love it, too!
Lisa
When my son was little, I started making a “graze tray” (before the brand name snack was around) in a muffin tins. Cupcake liner for the peanut butter (I’m lazy). Apple slices, graham crackers, pretzels, raisins, baby carrots, ham cubes and cheese cubes (toothpicks make it fun).
My son has ADHD and rarely has the patience to sit for a full meal. These work great for those distracted days, when he can’t sit still long enough to eat.
For the mom who said it’s tricky to find enough muffin tins for all the kids, grab some at the dollar store. They’re kinda crap for baking, but ideal for snack trays.
Jessica Fisher
Great strategies!
Lizzy
I love your cheese plate! My friends and family would either laugh or groan (I’ll take either!) at the sight of it. Where did you get it?
Jessica Fisher
It’s from Mudpie. I’m not sure if they sell it anymore, but you can search their site or Amazon.
Karen J
We have snacky dinner probably once a week in the summer. No kids here. Ours consists of kalamata olives, feta cheese, hummus, carrots, pepper strips, summer sausage, sharp cheddar and crackers. And usually an adult beverage.
Jessica Fisher
Sounds great!