Woodland Creatures Lunch

I've recently been trying to use less processed meats in Small Child's lunches - I think I've come to rely too much on ham as a source of protein, so I've been exploring other options where possible.  Ham isn't banned completely, as it's a big favourite of Small Child's, but I'm trying to use better quality meat when I do buy it, and less of it.  For this lunch I used roasted chickpeas for his protein portion, which I made using this simple recipe.  Chickpeas are a really great food to include in a lunchbox, as they provide calcium and iron as well as protein, have a low GI index (meaning that they help you stay full for longer) and are classed as one of your 5 a day too, bonus!

In this lunch Small Child had pitta crisps - which I made by cutting a wholemeal pitta bread into pieces, brushing with olive oil and sprinkling with a little cinnamon before baking in the oven until crisp.  He also had roasted chickpeas, in a squirrel shaped silicone cup, raw yellow pepper and carrot sticks, cucumber slices, which I shaped using mini bento cutters and turned into trees with cute tree trunk picks, grape and clementine segments, which I threaded onto mini plastic skewers to make fruit 'kebabs', organic natural yoghurt, topped with a few flower sprinkles, and some dried blueberries.  I decorated the lunch with rabbit picks, a bunny pick and a little duck pick to give it a woodland animal theme.

Small Child really enjoyed this lunch, especially the pitta crisps which he really raved about afterwards.  They were quick and easy to make, so I'll definitely use them again in future lunches!

Grace

Items used to make this lunch: