Big Kid Bento

Today is a first.

I’m posting my oldest child’s lunch.

Can I still refer to him as a child if he’s old enough to drive?

That fact makes my brain hurt. It’s just weird. Wasn’t he just 7 last week?

I can’t even handle it. He’s like this huge teenaged person with a man-voice that still plays video games and watches cartoons, so child seems like the appropriate term here.

Anyway, he’s always been a lunch packer.

I could give him money for school lunch (which would be a lot cheaper) but he’d most definitely buy pizza and pop-tarts every day and that kind of diet isn’t good for anybody.

He’s not so good at making wise choices when it comes to food.

He’s also an Aspie (a term of endearment for someone with Asperger’s Syndrome) so for many years, he would eat the same lunch every day.

Every. Single. Day.

Sandwich, chips, cookies.

That’s it.

No fruit, no veggies, no variation.

The only exception to this rule was if pizza, chicken fingers, or a sugary treat of some sort were involved.

It’s hard to get kids to try new foods but it’s next to impossible to get a kid with Asperger’s to do it.

And even if you’re lucky enough to make that happen, it will almost always end in tears, gags, or vomits (if not all three).

Nobody needs that drama.

All that changed over the last couple of years.

I became super persistent about getting him to try new things and I finally wore him down.

I’m no quitter.

Of course there was whining, crying, and gagging in the beginning, but over time the process became easier for both of us and he has a much more varied diet these days as a result.

Now, let’s talk lunch!

I try to make bread at least once a week. The recipe I use is fabulous because it’s so versatile. That one dough recipe can be turned into cinnamon rolls, garlic & herb rolls, swirled breakfast bread, pizza crust, hoagie rolls, sandwich loaves, and so many other things. One day I’ll get around to posting it on this site.

I like to take that dough, roll it out, top it with all-natural lunch meat and cheese, roll it back up, slice it, and bake it. Pretty much the same way you would make cinnamon rolls (see, versatile).

D just pops them in the microwave at lunch time and in about 20 seconds they’re all warm and soft again with crispy meat on the edges and melty cheese in the center.

Nuthin’ wrong with that.

For lunch today, he had two of those meaty/cheesy spiral thingies, fresh pineapple, and some Big Cheez-Its.