The back-to-school grind is a juggling act, but one that can be made a little bit easier when you’re not tirelessly pitting cherries for a toddler’s lunch like a footman at Versailles, or scrambling to make dinner from scratch. It’s hard enough to get your kids dressed and out the door by 7:15 AM, and often that means scrambling to slap together a PB&J (no shame, we love a PB&J) when we might have preferred a more diversified meal. As someone who has been on both the making and receiving end of countless lunchbox meals, it feels fair to say that I have learned from the masters (my own parents) and integrated their time-saving wisdom with my own tips for saving time and mental bandwidth during the back-to-school hustle.
The good news is that we have tips for ways to cut down on time spent cooking without skimping on the quality of your kids’ food. Specialized tools can help make late-night lunch preparation that much more bearable; if your kid really does love cherries, by all means, buy that cherry pitter; if Sally slams a lot of pineapple at snack time, get a pineapple corer to make the late-night lunch prep that much faster. And while late-summer temps are soaring, for an after-school snack that hits the spot with the under-10-years-old crowd, stash an ice pop in a fanny pack cooler for pick-up time — in my experience, it chills everyone out.
Below, I’ve rounded up several tips for streamlining the back-to-school grind, whether you’re looking for lunchbox-optimizing tips, deals on freezer-proof storage containers for weekly meal prep, or you’re (finally) ready to try out a meal kit subscription service for kids.
This clever bento box is 25% off
I want this charming little bento-style lunch box for myself. The BPA-free plastic design makes it a lightweight carry for your kid’s backpack (or my own farmers market tote), and it comes with five compartments for sandwiches, snacks, and dips that are designed with a special suction-style, leak-proof seal. The best part is that when you’re done using it for the day, you can toss it in the dishwasher along with everything else, helping you to evade what I call “weathered lunchbox odor,” and instead leaving you with a fresh and appetizing to-go container.
You can never have enough to-go bottles
Where there are kids, there are cups. Lots of cups. They seem to almost populate themselves, springing up in cars, friends’ houses, and park bags galore. If you get your kid a bottle they love, they’re way less likely to leave it on the playground. It’s worth noting that Hydro Flask is having a 25% off Labor Day sale, with plenty of deals on wide-mouth bottles for kids, but I’m also smitten with the playground swagger potential of this Minecraft water bottle.
Let a one-task gadget save you time
Don’t underestimate the power of a unitasker tool to make lunch prep easier. Something as simple as a stainless steel apple slicer can make child-size portions without the need for excessive chopping.
These rice balls molds are an Eater editor favorite
As our executive editor Erin De Jesus explains in Eater’s food-themed gift guide for kids, these rice ball molds are also an easy and fun way to have your children participate in cooking, too, all while making “rice easier (and more fun) for smaller kids to eat.”
This dicing and slicing machine is 48% off
Want your kids to eat more veggies, but hate dealing with all of that chopping, slicing, and dicing? Ah, the Fullstar veggie chopper. This trusty beast is BPA-free and dishwasher-safe, and comes with four interchangeable blades, including large and small dicing options, as well as a julienne cut attachment and a ribbon spiralizer (clutch for that dad making gourmet meals for his daughter on TikTok). It’s especially handy if you’re meal prepping multiple batches of food for the week.
Prep with freezer-safe containers
Work smarter, not harder. Freezer-safe, glass food storage containers are a meal prep staple for anyone trying to get ahead of the curve. This set of five is 21% off and each container has a 34-ounce capacity.
Load up on snacks (and supplies)
When I’m out with my 7-year-old nephew, I try to keep an ecosystem of snacks, coloring books, and general merriment in my purse for his entertainment, like a jester-ly auntie, especially if we’re posting up at a restaurant for a while and he’s going to be the only kid at the table. Martie has become an Eater staff go-to for buying fun snacks and pantry items (see: this Reese’s popcorn) online at a discounted price, and it’s filled with some handy — and dare I say, stylish; check out these Areaware chalk sticks — foods and tchotchkes for people of all ages. There’s an entire Back to School dedicated collection, but my pick is this (50% off) six-pack of lunchbox-ready Veggie Stix, which are made out of real tomatoes, spinach, beets, broccoli, and carrots.
If ever there was a time to try a meal kit, it’s now
I used to be a meal kit skeptic. Earlier this summer, however, I was happily humbled by Purple Carrot, the plant-based meal kit that swept me off my feet with its simple instructions and broad range of flavors (I still make versions of the kung pao cauliflower). We’ve evolved far beyond the helpful albeit uniform Meals on Wheels deliveries of yore; subscriptions from Sakara (think, the Goop of meal kits) and Green Chef (for those seeking plans with organic ingredients) can help free up more time for you during those first busy weeks. Right now, there’s even a 50% off deal on a meal subscription service designed for babies and kids, Little Spoon, that helps you design your own protein-filled lunchbox meal kits, at-home meals, and snacks. Again, I’m not saying you have to commit to these services for months on end (most have trial periods), but I am saying they would have been helpful for my own mother back in the day.
Have a great school year. Next up: we’ll cover how to avoid a soggy sandwich and achieve a structurally sound sammie.
