Fast & Healthy Vegan School Lunches

 

With the school year just starting, I thought I’d post an assembly of my favorite fast & healthy vegan school lunches you can take with you to keep you nourished and performing at your best all day.  As my friends will readily attest to, I basically bring fruit every day for lunch, and snack on large quantities of it all day.  

It wasn’t always this way though.  
Eating during the school year used to be a challenge for me. I can’t eat breakfast first thing after waking up without feeling nauseous, but I get hungry long before the lunch break.  When I was younger my mom used to pack my lunches, but I usually didn’t like the foods she packed, and my elementary school didn’t offer vegetarian lunch options.   Fast forward to my freshman year and I stopped eating lunch or breakfast at all. Most days I wouldn’t eat anything until 4 or 5 pm!  I would come home extremely famished and devour whatever I could get my hands on.  

I’m doing things a little different this year though.  Starting with packing delicious, fast & healthy vegan school lunches.  

 

1.  Oats, Oats, Oats!

 

I love to take oatmeal to class with me in a mason jar or a thermos style container. Some people might call oatmeal boring, but not I.  The toppings are so endless, from peanut butter and chocolate to fresh fruit that my oatmeal can never grow old.

 

My Quinoa Breakfast Cereal also makes a great option!

 

2.  Buddha Bowls 

Buddha bowls or Power Bowls are one of my favorite trends.  Basically, you add a grain, a protein, and lots of veggies into a large shallow bowl.  Add a sauce and devour.  I’m currently craving this Thai Coconut Quinoa Bowl from Fit Foodie Finds.  This Roasted Garlic Buddha Bowl from A Virtual Vegan also looks amazing!

 

3.  Balls  

At the start of the year I like to make a big batch of a few different flavors of power/energy/protein balls.  You simply combine nuts, dried fruit of your choice, protein powder(if you want), sometimes oats, and dates in a food processor and then form them into balls with your hands.  Some of my favorites are:  Matcha Pistachio, Maple Vanilla Nut Latte, and Almond Joy.  

These make a great snack in lunches.  They are a perfect alternative to granola or protein bars, which are often full of processed sugars and preservatives.  

 

4.  Cereal (healthy, I know :))

One routine of mine is to pack a Tupperware container of cereal, peanut butter, & fresh fruit and a separate container of almond milk to eat during 3rd period.  It’s tradition.  My all-time favorite cereal is Peanut Butter and Chocolate Puffins by Barbara’s Wholesome Cereals.  

 

5.  Smoothies

While smoothies aren’t my top choice to pack for later because they can get melted (and who wants a warm smoothie), they make a great on the go breakfast in a pinch.  Pro tip: they stay much better if you put them in an insulated container.  

 

6.  Leftovers

This may seem like an obvious one, but even if there is only a little bit of leftover dinner, I like to save it.  After a few days you can easily combine leftovers with some fresh veggies to make a delicious lunch.  Keeping a large pot of whole grains (i.e. quinoa, brown rice etc) in the fridge is also a great tactic.  

 

7.  Spring Rolls or Lettuce Wraps

Spring rolls make great, fast & healthy vegan school lunches because they are so versatile, you can literally fill them with anything!  My favorite summer roll recipe.  To make lettuce wraps, simply take a large lettuce leaf (romaine works well) and fill it with grains, veggies, sauce of choice, etc.  The options are endless!

8.  Fresh fruit

 

Of course, I love to pack HUGE bowls of fresh fruit for my fast & healthy vegan school lunches/breakfast.  Fruit is the ultimate fast food!  Just be sure to add some nuts or chia seeds on top for some healthy fat sources to keep you full and satiated all day.  

 

Recently I’ve Been Loving…

Coconut Cream Pie Larabars These have simple and healthy ingredients, making a perfect grab and go snack.

Creamy Coconut Oatmeal  My all-time favorite oatmeal. It’s fast to make and creamy.  It has no added sweeteners and is super healthy.  

PB Fit Powdered Peanut Butter  I love the flavor of this peanut butter, and its AMAZING mixed with maple syrup.  S/O to Claire Michelle for this amazing combo.  

My Ninja Blender/Food Processor  This blender is where it’s at.  It blends and crushes and is

My Hydro Flask Water Bottle  This water bottle is amazing! It keeps drinks hot OR cold for EVER!  My mom and I went hiking in the grand canyon over the summer (in nearly 100 degrees F weather) and our water stayed ice cold ALL DAY!  I linked to the bottle I have and love the size of for everyday use, but this company makes tons of shapes and sizes, from travel coffee mugs to big wide-mouth bottles.  

Comment below what your favorite to-go lunches are, I would love to hear!