All Request Lunch

Usually when I suggest something the girls are quick to agree with a "sure, sounds good Mom" but tonight they both wanted different things.  Luckily, their requests were an easy fix or Mama might have tried to sway their choices.

Bean's lunch is leftover pasta with a little bit of butter and Parmesan.  We will heat it up in the morning before school.
Her veggies are cucumber slices, pepper rings and shredded carrots.  Her fruits are strawberries, fresh figs, kiwi and pomegranate arils. These are in a Lunchbots Duo.
Finally, her dairy/dessert is Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk Greek yogurt. (we love their new design!)

Molly's main entree is a super cinnamon raisin sandwich.  Trader Joe's makes this amazing cinnamon roll bread and we spread Peanut Butter and Company Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter.
Her veggies and fruit are the same as Bean's.We also put Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk in Molly's lunch.

MOMables Week, Lunch 3

Tomorrow's lunch is similar to a few things that we've tried before but different too.  The trick is to flatten your bread with a rolling pin.  Thanks to MOMables for coming up with such fun things to make for lunch.    ps - tomorrow is Johnny Appleseed's birthday so we threw a few references in for that too.

Our main entree is Italian Sushi.  It is salami with cream cheese on whole grain white bread.  I think that these may become a regular request.

Our vegetable side is purple cauliflower for Bean and cucumbers for Molly.  Bean's has a small container of ranch dressing for dipping.

Our vegetable side is a checkered apple in honor of Johnny Appleseed's birthday.  We learned this skill from our friend Jenn at Bento for Kidlet.

Our dairy side is a Babybel Mozzarella cheese.  We cut an apple shape out of some of the red wax for Johnny Appleseed.

Finally, our dessert is Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk Greek yogurt.  YUM!

*This is a screen shot of the MOMables menu for today. 

2 Different Lunches

There are days when the girls are so happy to have the same thing and then there are days when they don't exactly agree on the menu.  Today, we are doing a repeat for Molly and something different for Bean.

Molly enjoyed today's lunch so much that she requested more/bigger pieces of our Healthy Banana Bread with whipped cream cheese sandwiches for her main entree.

Her veggies are cucumber slices.

We mixed blueberries and prune plums for her fruit.

Finally, her dairy side is a Babybel with a little bear cut out of it.

Bean's main entree is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  We used one of our new Lunch Punches to cut out a fun little cupcake and then we used our food safe markers to decorate it. There are a few rainbow goldfish swimming around her sandwich in case she is still hungry.

Her veggie side is cucumber slices, just like Molly.

The fruit mix for Bean is prune plums and strawberries.

Finally, her dairy side is a Babybel with a little heart cut out of it.

Tomorrow is blue day in Bean's Kindergarten class so we skewered some blueberries and added an Archer Farms blueberry and pomegranate 100% real fruit bites.

Theme Week Lunch 4 - 3rd Grade!

We were going to save this lunch for the last day of school but Molly will be celebrating her un-birthday at school on Friday so we decided to switch up the last two days.  We can't believe that the 2nd grade is almost over and our big girl will be a 3rd grader in a few short months.  It is so exciting to think about all of the fun things that she has to look forward to next year.

Our main entree is a cheese quesadilla.  We melted cheese between two flour tortillas, cooled it down and then used a number 3 cookie cutter to cut out lots of 3s for our favorite soon to be third grader.  There is a side of Trader Joe's salsa verde for dipping because it is one of Molly's favorites.

Our vegetable side is cucumbers.  We have a small number 3 cookie cutter that we used to cut these out.

Our fruit side is green grapes, blueberries and apricots.  We used the same small number 3 cookie cutter to cut out the apricot to keep up with our theme.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is a Chobani Champions Chocolate Chunk Greek yogurt.  This is Molly's favorite yogurt so we had to include it.  We used some small Post-Its on the lid that say, "Look Out 3rd Grade, Here Comes Molly!"

One more lunch before summer vacation!!! ☺

Theme Lunch 3 - Summertime!

We can't wait until summer vacation begins.  We have grand plans of hanging out poolside at Grammy and Papa's house with fun in the sun, swimming, building sandcastles, hanging out at the neighbor's fire pit, eating great fresh fruits and vegetables and catching fireflies!

Our main entree is a salami and colby jack cheese sandwich.  We used a foot shaped cookie cutter to cut it out and then added a flip flop with our food safe markers.  Finally, we added a little sunglasses pick.

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  We used our crinkle knife to cut the cucumbers for extra fun.  We then added a beach ball pick to this container.

Our fruit side is watermelon.  Nothing says summer quite like fresh watermelon.  We used a small starfish cookie cutter to cut out a few pieces and then added some fun summer picks.  We have a sand pail and shovel, sunglasses and a beach umbrella.

Finally, our dessert is.....MONEY$$$$!  Summertime and ice cream go hand in hand.  We put a few quarters into a tiny container  form Molly to buy some ice cream.  We added it to a bigger container that we lined with a foil cupcake line and then added a cute ice cream cone ring.  Molly loves her rings!

Only a few days before it's summer all the time!!!  As Phineas and Ferb would sing, ♪♫ There's 104 days of summer vacation til school comes along just to end it.  So, the annual problem for our generation is finding a good way to spend it. ♫♪  This summer is going to be GREAT!

Dance Recital Lunch

Molly and her sister will be performing tomorrow night in their dance recital.  They are both very excited.  Molly will be in a ballet number and a tap number.  She loves her tap costume (black and blue with little black sparkles) and her ballet costume looks like a beautiful pink and yellow flowing flower.  They both get to wear make-up...REAL make-up and Molly's little sister just loves make-up.  (Daddy's not a fan of the make-up but he agrees that they look beautiful.)

We've made a very special dance themed lunch for the special day, along with a very special Fun Friday treat.

Our main entree is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  We used our ballerina cookie cutter to cut it out and our food safe markers to decorate it.  (Not my best effort.  It's quite an odd shape.)

Our vegetable side is star shaped cucumbers.  We know that Molly will be a star tomorrow night!  We used our micro cookie cutter to cut these little stars out.

Our fruit side is strawberries.  We used a larger star cookie cutter to cut these out.  We also added a ballet slipper ring to this container.  Molly will be so excited because she is giddy about rings every single time we put one in her lunch.  (We have one for her sister too!)

Our dairy side is a Babybel cheese.  We used the same micro cookie cutter that we used for the cucumbers to cut out a tiny star from the wax.

Finally, our Fun Friday treat is ballet slipper cookies.  We dipped nutter butter cookies in pink chocolate, let them set and then added some white chocolate embellishments.  Cute and delicious!

Brother's Birthday!!!

Monday is Molly's little brother's 3rd birthday!!!  We are so excited to watch him hit this milestone.  The year that he starts preschool on his own.  The year that he really becomes a little boy in his actions and looks.  (Yes, I had a hard time typing that since he's my baby.)

We have a lot of fun things planned for the day from homemade doughnuts (baked with our Babycakes doughnut maker) to plans for breakfast for dinner.  He LOVES breakfast.

Molly can't wait for the school day to be over so that she can participate in the celebration.  She and her sister made some beautiful birthday cards and are giddy with anticipation to give them to their little brother.  School first, then the party!

Our main entree is a turkey and smoked Gouda sandwich on 12 Grain bread.  We used some fun cookie cutters to make these shapes, then put smiley faces on the circles and a heart on the diamond with our food safe markers.
*We recently won a contest by Chef Corey at Family Fresh Meals and will be trying FunBites with one of our sandwiches in the very near future.  Thanks Chef Corey!!!  (Be sure to click on the link to check out her blog.  She has some incredible recipes and ideas.  Lots of inspiration!)

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers and small golden tomatoes.  Molly had some cucumbers today and requested them in her lunch.  We decided to add the tomatoes because they looked so yummy.

Our fruit side is sliced strawberries.  The smell of these strawberries just reminds us of summer and all of the wonderful flavors that await us.  (After we get 6 inches of snow overnight.  Yep, the northeast is supposed to be blasted with a winter storm tonight.  booo!)

Our dairy side is a cheddar/mozzarella cheese stick.  This will hopefully help to keep Molly full.

Finally, our dessert is a Chobani Champions Chocolate Chunk Greek yogurt.  Some things are always perfect!

Easter Week Lunch 2

We've cooked up something fun for lunch tomorrow.  We were reminiscing about last year's Easter lunch and decided to use it for our inspiration.

Our main entree is a bunny pizza.  We used Pillsbury Simply Biscuits for our crust.  It is a very simple biscuit recipe without any added anything.  We like that idea.  We added a mozzarella/provolone shredded mix, olives for eyes and turkey pepperoni for a nose and mouth.

Our vegetable side is a cucumber that we cut with a flower cookie cutter.  We think that Molly will really enjoy the new shape.

Our fruit side is sliced strawberries.  We added an Easter Bunny pick to keep with our theme.

Our dairy side is a Babybel cheese.  We used our star shaped micro cookie cutter to cut a star shape out of the wax.

Finally, our dessert is vanilla yogurt with some Easter egg sprinkles on top.

Easter Week Lunch 1

This is a short week at Molly's school because of the Easter break coming up.  Also, she has already decided that she would like to buy lunch on Tuesday (Taco Tuesday) so that only gives us three lunches for the week.  We like to go a little bit theme-y (word?) here at Molly's Lunch Box so this will be the first of three Easter lunches.

Our main entree is a salami and smoked pepper jack cheese sandwich on 12 grain bread.  We used some fun little cookie cutters to cut the sandwich into Easter themed shapes.  Then, we used our food safe markers to make them come to life.  (ps - the red one in the right upper corner is a tulip....looks kind of like Darth Maul to us though.  LOL!)

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  Molly requested these after having a few on her salad at dinner this evening.

Our fruit side is cantaloupe pieces.  Molly asked us to get a cantaloupe last week and we picked a winner.  This is so sweet and juicy.  We also added a cross pick so that she doesn't forget what we will be celebrating this weekend, the fact that Jesus gave his life for us.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is a Chobani Champions Vanilla Orange Greek yogurt.  This flavor reminds us of creamsicles.  Molly usually likes to put mini chocolate chips in it but we just didn't have room for them today.  She likes it just he way it is too.

Fun Friday

We have had a fun week this week.  Valentine's Day was awesome with special treats for the whole family.  Today was silly day at Molly's little sister's preschool so we were all acting silly all day.  Now, we're ready for our long weekend to be here.  We're hoping to get in some play time with the neighbors and maybe make some crafts.  Who knows?  We try to make the most of any extra days off of school, even if it just becomes a pajama day and we veg out and watch movies all day.  Family time is always fun.

Our main entree is a Buffalo chicken sandwich.  We stacked our Castle Wood Buffalo style chicken breast on our bread and added a slice of smoked Gouda cheese.  YUMMY!

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  We used a star shaped micro cookie cutter to take the seeds out of the center.  Molly will get a kick out of that.

Our fruit side is sliced strawberries.  Our kids can't seem to get enough of these lately.  They are very sweet and absolutely huge.  There are only two strawberries in that container.  Crazy!

Our dairy side is Chobani Champions orange vanilla Greek yogurt.  We put a small container of mini chocolate chips in the strawberry container for Molly to add to her yogurt.  She loved it when we did that last time.

Finally, our fun Friday treat is a Lindt white chocolate truffle.  We got all of the kids their favorite chocolates for Valentine's Day and this is Molly's.  

Easy Lunch

After a very full and fun Valentine's Day, we were looking for something easy to make for Molly's lunch tomorrow.  Sure, a classic pb&j is always a nice and easy option but we decided to mix it up a bit.  Then we threw in some other classics.

Our main entree is a Nutella and peanut butter sandwich.  We use a 12 grain bread for this because we think that it tastes awesome with any nut butter and since Nutella is a nut butter and so is peanut butter...no brainer!

Our vegetable side is cucumbers slices.  We used our crinkle knife to cut these into fun shapes.  Molly said that she really likes them this way because they are more fun to eat.

Our fruit side is a banana.  We cut a small chunk off of the top and then used cookie cutters to press in our special message to Molly.  It will be more visible when she sees it at lunch but it browned up pretty nicely while we were fixing her lunch.  ♥ U, Molly!

Our dairy side is a string cheese.  This is a great option for a little extra protein or a little extra something in case she is still hungry.

Our dessert is vanilla yogurt with mini chocolate chips.  Molly really enjoyed the mini chocolate chips the other day so we thought she'd enjoy them tomorrow.

Christmas Ornament Apple

We love Christmas at our house and we are always looking for some new and fun ways to celebrate.  Molly's little sister is going to be the snack person for the Christmas Party at her Preschool later this month, so we got our thinking caps on and did a little internet research.  We found some incredibly cute ideas and decided to give one of them a try in Molly's lunch.

Our main entree is a croissant sandwich.  We found these miniature croissants at Aldi during our last shopping trip.  We sliced the croissant in half and toasted it to reduce the soggy factor.  Then, we added half of a piece of provolone and some salami.  YUM!

Our vegetable side is cucumbers that have been cut with our favorite crinkle knife.  We sliced them pretty thin and they look a little bit like pickles.

Our fruit side is our Christmas Ornament Apple!  We sliced an apple in half, cored it and then cut it into three sections.  We spread a small amount of peanut butter on the slices, then stuffed some mini marshmallows between them.  Finally, we added a little piece of a small pretzel knot for the hook on our ornament.  If it were Fun Friday, we would probably have added some mini M&Ms to adorn the marshmallows and make them look more festive.  

Our dairy side is a colby jack cheese stick.  Molly has been extra hungry lately (growth spurt?) so a bit of extra bone strengthening calcium and some hunger staving protein seemed like a nice addition.

Finally, our dessert is vanilla yogurt with Christmas sprinkles.  We're going to be adding a little more Christmas cheer to each lunch.  Sprinkles are a great way to add some fun to any lunch. 

Simple Lunch

We had a very full weekend, including a trip to the doctor for Mom.  Yep, I'm the one with the sinus infection, etc.  The good thing is that I feel alright (I sound a little bit like Kathleen Turner) and I'm not contagious, the bad thing is that it is wearing me out.  Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in and I'll be back to my normal self in a hurry.

All of this lead me to make a nice simple lunch.  We're hoping that pb&j will be okay on pizza day.

Our main entree is a peanut butter and jelly uncrustable.  We keep these on hand for those crazy busy days and for Molly's little brother who is a picky eater.  This is his alternative option when he doesn't want what were are having for lunch or dinner.  They aren't the most nutritious but in a pinch (or when Mom is feeling tired) they do provide a decent amount of protein.

Our vegetable side is seedless cucumber slices.  A little bit of green to welcome in the Christmas season.  These will be a good palate cleanser for after the peanut butter and jelly.

Our fruit side is a small Empire apple.  We found these at Sam's club and they are grown to stay small so that they are a better size for kids.  A little bit of red to welcome in the Christmas season.  We cut this apple into quarters to make it more manageable.

Finally, our dairy dessert is vanilla yogurt.  We added a few fun Christmas sprinkles for a special treat for Molly.

Monday in the Middle

Molly didn't have school last Monday and Tuesday because of parent/teacher conferences.  Next week, there is no school on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday because of Thanksgiving.  This means that there were exactly ten school days between these vacation periods.  Molly's teacher is taking advantage of this by doing the normal weekly plans during theses two "weeks".  This also means that tomorrow will be like a normal Thursday for Molly with a spelling pretest, extra math and reading reviews.  This week and the few days next week will be a little confusing but I give Molly's teacher credit for actually getting these lessons in before the holiday.  I remember a lot of pre-holiday days at school being mostly wasted because the teachers didn't want to start something new.  Molly's teacher is on the ball and now she won't have to push through a lesson in a shorter amount of time.

Our main entree is a salami, pepper cheese and mustard sandwich on whole grain white bread.  Molly requested that we cut it into fun shapes.  We found this cool puzzle piece cookie cutter a few weeks ago and we added little moons to it because Molly is studying the moon in school right now.

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers.  We used the crinkle knife again and tried to cut them a little thinner.  When we turn the cucumber after one cut and then turn it again after the next cut, etc, the veggies look like waffles.

Our fruit side is a tangerine and pomegranate arils.  The tangerine has seeds in it so we need to remember to remind Molly of that, but then again, the grapes in Friday's lunch had seeds and she did fine with those.  She even brought them home to show us.  The pomegranate may be a little laborious in preparation but it is very worth it.  These arils are so sweet and they are a nutritional powerhouses.

Our dairy/dessert is Chobani Champions Verry Berry Greek Yogurt.  This has enough protein that no extra dairy is needed.  Also, Molly really enjoys it. ☺

Hello, Tooth Fairy!!!

Today was a very exciting day in our house.  Molly's little sister was the snack person and had a blast sharing her fruity froggie face snack at preschool.  (See Below)  Then, we had dance class for both of the girls.  Finally, Molly had a dentist appointment.  She had a fantastic report, no cavities, plus her smile is perfect.  The dentist said that Molly's tooth was really loose but we could leave it and let it fall out on it's own, which Molly seemed happy with.  But, when we got to the car, she started crying a little bit.  She said that she was having trouble eating and that her tooth hurt in school.  So, back into the dentist office we went and had the dentist take it out.  Now, we are pleased to report that the Tooth Fairy, herself, will be visiting our house.  A full report will be included in tomorrow's post.

Our main entree is peanut butter and jelly.  We cut these into fall fun shapes, including leaves and acorns. (The acorns look a little like bells to us)  We figured that these would be easy to eat for Molly with her missing tooth.

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers.  We used our crinkle knife to make Molly's favorite shapes.  She said that they taste better when they are cut like this.

Our fruit side is green grapes.  We added a few plastic cupcake picks in the shape of leaves to match our sandwiches.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is the return of Molly's favorite Chobani Champions Verry Berry.  She doesn't know that we picked these up at the store.  We think that she'll be very excited to see this.  Almost as excited as she will be with her visit from the Tooth Fairy!

*These are the Fruity Froggy Faces that we sent in for the Preschool Snack today for "F,f" day.  We try to keep our snacks healthy and fun.  These are apples, with cream cheese balls with an added mini-chocolate chip for eyes and a piece of fruit roll up for a tongue.  They were a big hit!  Nothing was sent home but the container. ☺

Though.....we did have one flattened frog........ Whoops!!!  No worries, we fixed it!  HAHA!

Thursday, By Request

We are looking forward to a fun weekend with more Fall traditions.  We're hoping that the weather will cooperate so that we can see some great fall colors, picnic and play outside.  The kids know that something is going on but I'm not sure if they realize exactly where we are going or what we are doing.

But, we have to get through the rest of the week first.  Molly requested everything in this lunch and it made it much easier to prepare.  So, only one more lunch to prepare before the weekend!  Can you tell that I'm excited? ☺

Our main entree is pasta salad.  We made some choo choo wheel pasta, added turkey pepperoni, provolone cheese, tomatoes, black olives and light Italian dressing.  This is a go-to lunch for Molly because she really likes any type of pasta.

Our vegetable side is cucumbers.  We used our crinkle knife to cut these up.  Molly had a huge smile on her face when I showed her.

Our fruit side is a Valencia orange.  This variety of orange is super sweet and juicy.  When I was living in Florida, Valencia oranges and Valencia orange juice was a must have in the fall/winter season.

Our dairy side is a cheese stick.  Molly requested this because she said it would taste good with the pasta salad since there was already cheese in it.  Interesting deduction but we'll take it.

Finally, our dessert is strawberry yogurt.  She has this the other day and really enjoyed it, so on the request list it went.

Sub Sandwich

We found a FANTASTIC two day sale at a local grocery store today.  It seems as if they will make no money on this sale since there are so many incredible deals.  We purchased so many staples (ie: bananas, pineapple, lunch meat, cheese, bread, eggs, etc) and paid less than half of the normal amount.  We even found deals on things that we don't normally buy but couldn't pass up.

Our main entree is a sub sandwich.  The store was selling loads of lunch meat for $2.98 a pound so we stocked up.  We also bought some soft fresh rolls.  I'm usually a whole grain type of Momma but these looked so delicious.  We split the roll, added salami, corned beef and pepper jack cheese for one yummy sub.

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  We figured that with the soft bread and fillings, the crisp, refreshing and juicy cucumbers would  be a great compliment.

Our fruit side is grapes.  Molly's Grammy purchased these for us at the same store yesterday when they were on sale for 88¢ a pound.  They are nice and meaty grapes that are super sweet.

Our fun Friday treat is a red velvet roll.  The store had these on sale for $1.44 for four of them.  It is red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, all rolled up like a HoHo.

Have a great weekend!

Blog Face Lift

A great friend of mine gave my blog a face lift!  We think it looks pretty awesome and we think that April is a design genius!  Let us know what you think.  Thanks again, April.

Molly's lunch today was planned way in advance today since our schedule is so packed this week.  I made some of our healthy banana bread, prepped the fruit and veggies for the week and relied on Molly's favorite yogurt and cheese sticks to round it out.

Our main entree is a banana bread sandwich.  We made our healthy banana bread recipe, sliced two pieces and spread cream cheese in the middle.  Then, we cut it into three manageable pieces to make it easier for Molly to handle.

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers.  We usually go for the seedless English cucumbers but out buddy Joe at the produce stand had regular cucumbers so that is what we're serving tomorrow.

Our fruit side is a large prune plum.  This particular plum is extra sweet.  We may have had a sample while slicing it up.

Our dairy side is a colby jack cheese stick.  We figured that Molly might need a little extra energy to get through the day.

Finally, our dessert is a Chobani Champions Honey-Nana Greek yogurt.  We figured that we'd stick with the banana theme when choosing this variety.

First Full Week Friday

It's finally Friday!  This week seems to have gone slowly because we are just getting back into our routine so there were plenty of  hiccups.  We are looking forward to a great weekend and some time off.  The great thing about Elementary School is that there usually isn't any homework on the weekend.  Happy Friday everyone!

Our main entree is a repeat of today, salami sandwiches.  Molly went nuts over these and asked for them again, plus she wanted more of them, so we added more.  She said that they were so good and that she could have eaten a "whole bunch more" of them.  So, again it is our Wonder Smart White Bread with Genoa Salami, Pepper-Jack Cheese and mustard, cut with a fun cookie cutter.

Our vegetable side is cucumbers.  This was requested by Molly since she hasn't had them in a while.  She always says how great they taste in her lunch.

Our fruit side is a clementine.  We had these for our dessert after dinner tonight and Molly made the request to have them in her lunch tomorrow.  She said that they are extra sweet.

Our dairy side is a Colby-Jack cheese stick.  This is just in case she's still hungry after everything else.  We think that Molly might be going through a little bit of a growth spurt.

Finally, our Fun Friday Treat is ThinAddictives Cranberry Almond Thins.  These are similar to biscotti but much more thin.  They have a wonderful crunch and a great flavor.  Molly's Grammy purchased these and Molly has been begging to have them in her lunch so we've been waiting for Friday and a nice treat.

Leftover Lunch

We have an awesome new produce stand within walking distance to our house and we couldn't be happier.  Joe has a great variety of products and his prices are incredible.  I purchased a 3 pound bag of green grapes, 3 cucumbers, 4 large multi-colored peppers, a 2 pound bag of onions, 6 peaches, 4 large prune plums and a large eggplant, all for $12.  He even threw in a different type of red pepper so that we could try it.  We have been enjoying this new place for the past several weeks and we are very thankful that we can walk down the street, 7 days a week, and get fresh fruits and vegetables at a very reasonable cost.

After saying good-bye to Joe, I ran to Sam's Club to get the rest of the week's shopping finished.  When I arrived home, I started cleaning my fruits and vegetables, chopped them up and then put them in containers in the refrigerator.  This will make it so much easier when preparing meals or when the kids want a snack.  It made making dinner this evening much easier.  Which brings us to Molly's lunch...leftovers.

Our main entree is Curry Chicken Salad.  I put the recipe below in case anyone wants to try it.  (The photo doesn't do it justice) This is a very flavorful and nutritious alternative to a regular chicken salad.  It is loaded with fruit, protein and dairy so it keeps you full much longer than you might expect.  We are serving this with round butter crackers.  We offered Molly some smaller multi-grain crackers that she normally loves, but she chose these instead.

Our vegetable is a pickling cucumber sliced into spears.  This was the last one of these left because our refrigerator got a little too cold and froze two others.  We were still very happy to have this one though.  They are so crunchy and the flavor is very mild.  The skin is even less firm than a regular cucumber so it is easier for a child to bite through.

Our fruit, well, is in our chicken salad.  It's loaded with green grapes and honey gold apples.  It gives a great sweet but not too sweet taste, nice texture and fills the salad so that it feels like you are eating a lot.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is Chobani Greek yogurt.  We found these Chobani Champions in our run to Sam's Club today.  They are tailored to kids so they are a little smaller and they are premixed so that the kids can just dig right in.  This was our dessert with dinner tonight and all three kids really enjoyed them.  The flavors available to us were Very Berry and Honey-Nana.  Molly chose the Honey-Nana tonight and wanted the Very Berry for her lunch.

Curry Chicken Salad

4 c. shredded chicken (we used a rotisserie chicken and chunked it up but we've also used chicken breasts)
1 c. chopped apples
1 c. grapes (halved)
1/4 c. chopped celery
1/4 c. slivered almonds

Mix together in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, combine...
1 c. plain greek yogurt (we used Chobani)
1/4 c. light mayonnaise
2 TBSP curry powder
salt and pepper to taste

Mix chicken salad with dressing and serve on a bed of lettuce, with crackers or on flatbread.  Tasted great the next day if you have any leftovers.