Three days until the start of the school year so yes this mom’s back-to-school butterflies have begun. Our new labradoodle puppy has stolen our hearts and all of my time, plus my eldest is entering middle school. I’m realizing that mornings are about to get a helluva lot crazier and I need to have my back-to-school lunch game on point.

Below are a few “family tested” back to school lunches…the kind of lunches that get devoured in seconds, that can be made in minutes and that makes me want to pat myself on the back and say, “you got your sh@%t together this year! You go girl!”

Sweet Potato Toast

Ingredients:

• 1 medium-sized sweet potato
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbs of Sunbutter or any nut butter
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup of nut-free granola
• Maple syrup or honey to drizzle

Make-Ahead:

Cut the potatoes into 1/4 inch thick slices, sprinkle each slice with cinnamon. Place the slices in a toaster oven and set toaster for the longest amount of time possible. The sweet potato slices should be cooked through, but not mushy.

• 

• 

School Morning:

Slice a banana into 1/4 inch slices. I prefer to slice mine on the bias (cut diagonally) so that the slices are longer. When the potato slices are done, allow them to cool, then top each slice with; a nut butter of your choice, a few pieces of the sliced banana, and granola. If your child doesn’t mind getting a little sticky at lunch, drizzle on some maple syrup or honey.

RAMEKIN EGG TACO BOWL

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 piece of bacon
• 1/3 cup tbs of kidney or black beans
• 1 tbs of guacamole
• 2 tbs of shredded cheese of your choice
• Approx 8 crushed gluten-free tortilla chips + 1 whole chip

Make-Ahead:

Preheat the oven to 350. Place the piece of bacon on a plate, cover a piece of paper towel and place in the microwave for 1.5 minutes. When the bacon has cooled down, crumble into tiny pieces.

In a ramekin layer, the crushed tortilla chips followed by the beans and then the crumbled bacon. Gently crack the egg into the ramekin and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the egg has set to your liking. Allow to cool, cover with foil and store in the fridge overnight.

School Morning:

In the morning add the cheese and microwave the ramekin for 2 minutes. Pack the guacamole and sour cream separately and allow your kids to dress their egg anyway they’d like!

EGG IN A BREAD BOWL

For this recipe, my obsession with eggs and good bread come together to form an amazing back-to-school lunch.

Ingredients:

• Dinner roll preferable sourdough. Potato rolls are too soft.
• 1 tbs of avocado or guacamole
• 1 bacon strips
• 1 tbs of shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 egg
• Chives

Make-Ahead:

Cut a hole at the top of your dinner roll and set the top aside. To create the bread bowl remove some of the bread from the inside of the roll, but be sure to leave enough at the bottom. We wouldn’t want the ingredients of the bowl to fall out of the bottom!

Place the strip of bacon on a plate, cover with a paper towel and cook in the microwave for 1.5 minutes or until crispy. Once the bacon has cooled, break the bacon into tiny bacon bits.

To the bread bowl, add the avocado (or guacamole) and press down gently. Then add the cheese followed by the bacon and press down gently.

Place the top of the bread bowl back on top, wrap in aluminum foil and store in the fridge

School Morning:

Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 350. Open up the aluminum foil, remove the lid of the bread bowl and gently crack the egg into the bowl. The goal is to keep the yolk intact.

Leaving the egg in the aluminum foil, cook the egg in the oven for 20 minutes. This will get you a slightly runny egg. allow the egg to cook for longer if your child prefers a soft boiled egg.

If your child likes things fancy you can garnish with chopped chives otherwise just place the lid back on the bowl, rewrap in aluminum foil tightly and pack in their lunch box.

Ricotta Toast

Ingredients:

• 1 slice of sourdough
• 1/3 cup of ricotta
• 1/4 cup of grated parm cheese
• 1 tomato
• 2 tbs of olive oil
• 2 tbs of red wine vinegar
• 3 to 4 basil leaves
• Maldon salt to taste

Make-Ahead:

In a small bowl mix together the ricotta cheese and grated parm cheese, cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Cut the tomato in half, remove the stem, most of the seeds and then chop the tomato into smaller pieces. In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, add the tomatoes and basil to the vinaigrette, cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge overnight.

School Morning:

The morning of simply toast the bread. While the bread is toasting, put the tomato and ricotta mixtures in separate containers and instruct your kids to top their toast just before they are ready to eat.

For make-ahead dinner recipes check out Spaghetti and Zucchini Pie, Oh My and Garlic, Rosemary and Thyme Chicken Thighs.