Back-to-School Letters and Numbers Lunch

This is a sponsored post in partnership with California Walnuts. All opinions are my own.

If you're a parent back-to-school time means back-to-lunch time. This means it's not only time to go shopping for school supplies, it's time to start thinking about meal prep! Did you know that 45% of Americans don't plan what they are going to eat for lunch at all? This is the year that you can change that and "Choose Lunch" with the whole family. What better way to start than with this letters and numbers school lunch complete with a pencil shaped California Walnuts chewy trail bar!

I love this lunch because it will help your child feel special when they begin school and is so easy to make. For the mini number sandwiches, I just cut circles out of a tortilla and cheese slices. Then I cut out the numbers from cheddar cheese using cookie cutters. You can also stuff the mini sandwiches with your child's favorite lunch meat. Finish by surrounding the sandwiches with toasted California Walnuts and your kid's favorite fruit. Did you know that walnuts are a great source of Omega-3 fatty acids - a good polyunsaturated fat - which makes them perfect for lunches!

The California Walnuts chewy trail bar pencil is my favorite part of this lunch! You can find the super simple recipe for the basic bars on the California Walnuts website here. Once you make them, and they are cooling, continue below to see how I turned them into a pencil!

After the mix is cooked, cooled, and sliced into bars, just cut one end of a bar into a triangle shape. Spread cream cheese on the triangle part. Place bar into the lunchbox side compartment. Slice a strawberry and put on the flat end of the bar for the eraser. Then, cut a narrow strip and a small triangle from a piece of fruit leather. Finish the pencil by laying these two pieces on top where shown in the photo. Your kids will love it!

I found this cute letter-shaped pasta at my local grocery store. Feel free to substitute with other fun shaped pasta if needed. Make sure to sprinkle some cheese on top!

Well that's it! I hope that your kids' school year starts off with a bang and that assembling school lunches is fun instead of exhausting. Remember how important it is to make sure that your kids, and you, choose lunch so that you can make healthier choices and have the energy to make it through the day. Learn more and get recipe ideas at www.walnuts.org!

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