Nutritionist Jacqueline Alwill from @brownpapernutrition shares her favourite recipes for you and the kids.


 

This Asparagus Goat Cheese and Herb Frittata has been a staple in our house for years, and a recipe I lean into often when I know I have a busy work week ahead. It’s chock full of protein from eggs, milk and goat cheese to satisfy your lunchtime appetite and sustain your energy and focus throughout the course of the afternoon. It’s also one of the best recipes to whip up on a Sunday (bit of meal prep never goes astray!) so you’re set for healthy lunches to kick off the week.

 

ASPARAGUS GOAT CHEESE AND HERB FRITTATA

Serves 4

Vegetarian

10 eggs
⅓ cup milk
½ small (100g) red onion, peeled and finely sliced
1 bunch asparagus, woody ends trimmed and stalks cut in half
½ cup chopped fresh herbs
dill, parsley and basil all work well
½ cup (100g) goat cheese or sheep's feta, crumbled
Iodised sea salt and black pepper

Heat oven to 180C. Whisk eggs and milk together and season with salt and pepper. Line a 12x20cm loaf tin or ceramic baking dish with greaseproof paper. Layer half the red onion, asparagus, herbs and goat cheese and repeat. Pour egg mixture over and place in middle of oven to cook for 35-40 minutes or until puffy and lightly golden on top. Allow to cool slightly before serving and eating. Can be sliced and stored in fridge to enjoy the next 1-2 days.
 

Whip up this heavenly Hazelnut and Seed Loaf in minutes and you’re set for nutritious work lunches for a week! Rich in fibre and gut loving ingredients such as psyllium husk, sunflower seeds, linseeds and of course hazelnut meal, with a good hit of protein from eggs, nuts and seeds to support energy, growth, development, repair in the body, and of course keep appetite at bay. Choose topping such as fresh tomato and hummus; avocado and feta; smoked salmon and goat cheese; boiled eggs with herbs; smashed chickpeas with lemon, herbs and spring onions or any others you absolutely love, so that you keep your nutrition and lunches creative throughout the week.

 

HAZELNUT AND SEED LOAF

Makes 1 loaf, serves 8-10

Gluten free : Dairy Free : Vegetarian

¼ cup (65ml) extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
4 free range eggs, whisked
2 cups (215g) hazelnut meal*
3 tablespoons (24g) psyllium husk
½ cup (88g) sunflower seeds
¼ cup (56g) linseeds
½ cup water

Preheat oven to 180C (fan forced) and line a 1L loaf tin with greaseproof paper. In a large bowl combine olive oil, baking powder and eggs and whisk until creamy. Add hazelnut meal, psyllium husk, sunflower and linseeds and water and mix. Pour into lined loaf tin and bake 45 minutes. Cool in tin for 20 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Slice and enjoy with your choice of toppings. Store in fridge for up to 5 days or slice and store in freezer up to 2 months.

*Hazelnut meal is available in the baking isle of major supermarkets, right next to almond meal. If you can’t find it, almond meal is your next best option.  

One of my favourite, hunger busting, nourishing salads of all time and a perfect make once eat twice number to make lunching easy as you head back to work for the year. Mung beans are a dense source of vegetarian based protein and team beautifully with the sweet creaminess of pumpkin and tahini in this dish. If mung beans aren’t on hand, tinned BPA free chickpeas or butterbeans are an excellent option too.

 

MUNG BEAN PUMPKIN KALE SALAD

Serves 4 as a side

GF : DF : SF : VEGAN

1 cup mung beans, cooked until tender or sprouted mung beans*
2 cups marinated kale+
2 stalks celery, diced
1/4 cup mixed toasted sunflower seeds and pepitas
1/4 cup chopped almonds
2 tablespoons lemon juice + 2 teaspoon finely grated zest
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup mint leaves or other herbs on hand- coriander / parsley will work well, finely chopped
2 cups cooked pumpkin pieces
1/4 cup dukkah
1/4 cup tahini
sea salt and black pepper

Toss cooked mung beans, marinated kale, celery, sunflower seeds, pepitas, almonds, lemon juice, zest, evoo and herbs in a bowl with a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper. Lightly toss through the pumpkin. Arrange half the salad on a serving platter, sprinkle with half the dukkah and half the tahini then repeat and serve.

+To marinate kale: pull leaves from stem and into bite size pieces then place in a bowl, drizzle with lemon juice, add a good pinch of sea salt and massage in to ‘marinate’

+Sprouted mung beans are available at your fruit and vegetable grocer and supermarkets.
 

This Hot Smoked Salmon and Greens Sushi Bowl is an absolute bonza if you love sushi but are hungrier for something more wholesome at lunch. You can whip it together at home or in the office with a few ingredients on hand. A couple of secrets I’ll let you in on with these bowls… 1. Pump up your PROTEIN - I’ve used both hot smoked salmon and edamame in generous portions because that’s why a sushi roll often leaves you hungry, there’s not quite enough protein to satisfy your lunchtime appetite and 2. PICKLES!!! If you’re keen to pull deliciousness like this together quickly AND want epic flavours then some Japanese pickles and sushi ginger is a must! All these ingredients can be prepped in advance ready to throw into a bowl for a fast, delicious, nourishing lunch in no time at all.

 

WHOLESOME HOT SMOKED SALMON AND GREENS SUSHI BOWL

Serves 1

Gluten free : Dairy Free

1 cup cooked brown rice
1/4-1/2 avocado
80-90g hot smoked salmon or trout or 1x 90g tin tuna
⅓ cup steamed soy beans (edamame)
1x 5g pack toasty seaweed
½ Lebanese cucumber, sliced
Pickled Japanese veggies and ginger
To serve: Toasted sesame seeds / Japanese seaweed seasoning, tamari / soy sauce

Add brown rice to the base of the bowl. Flake the salmon or trout and place on top of rice with sliced avocado, cucumber, seaweed, edamame, pickled vegetables and cucumber. Sprinkle it with sesame seeds, extra Japanese seaweed seasoning and tamari / soy sauce and enjoy!
 

If you’ve not made jellies or gummies at home before then you’re in for a treat! They’re an incredibly easy way to solve the kids (and big kids aka adults!) cravings for sweets or lollies without refined sugars, and, with a good quality gelatin contribute valuable amino acids (the building blocks for protein) to a snack and diet overall. Protein is vital for growth, development and repair, and helps to stabilise appetite so these really are a great sweet, nutritious hit in one. Feel free to mix up the flavours to mango, banana, peach (any of your favourite fruits really) and coconut milk for dairy if that is what’s on hand. You’ll find good quality gelatin powder at your grocery store.

 

BERRY COCONUT JELLIES

Makes 20

Gluten free : Dairy Free

1 cup mixed frozen raspberries and strawberries
1/4 cup coconut milk or cream
2 tablespoons honey or maple
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoon gelatin powder (use a grass fed gelatin)
1/2 cup water

Allow berries to defrost then blitz with coconut milk or cream so it forms 1 cup liquid (if you need to top it up do so with some extra coconut cream or milk). Place in a saucepan with honey or maple and vanilla and heat on medium. Combine gelatin powder and water in a bowl and mix with a forth then set aside. Once berry coconut combination is hot, remove from stove and whisk in the gelatin. Pour into a lined tin of preference and set in fridge for 3-4 hours or overnight. Slice and enjoy from the fridge.
 

Keen for some new ideas for using leftovers to make a wholesome lunch for you and the kids? I’ve got you covered with these flavour-bomb, lunchbox friendly Mexican Bean Sausage Rolls. They’re an epic way to incorporate a few more vegetarian based meals / items into lunches without scrimping on flavour, not to mention a fab way to use Mexican Beans from dinner to make lunch the next day! I love using a variety of legumes in the Mexican Chili - lentils, black beans, kidney beans - but if you’re just starting to include beans in the diet you can mix half with mince, and then gradually increase and swap over time as the family falls in love with the flavours, textures and nutrition in these morsels of deliciousness!

 

MEXICAN BEAN CHILI SAUSAGE ROLLS

Makes 12-16 small sausage rolls

Vegetarian

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 small (100g) brown onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small (100g) red capsicum, diced
1 cobs (1/2 cup kernels or 100g) corn
2 tsp smokey paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
good pinch ground chilli flakes, or to taste
1/2 bunch fresh coriander, leaves and stalks finely chopped
200g cooked kidney beans or tinned, rinsed and drained
200g cooked lentils or tinned, rinsed and drained
200g cooked black beans or tinned, rinsed and drained
200g diced tomatoes
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
375g Careme Butter Puff or Wholemeal Spelt Pastry
1 free range egg, whisked + 1 additional for egg wash on pastry
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
sea salt and black pepper

Heat a large frypan on medium heat, add olive oil, onion, garlic, corn, capsicum and cook for about 4-5 minutes. Add spice blend and cook for a further 1 minute then add remaining ingredients (except for pastry) and season with salt and pepper. Bring to simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool then add breadcrumbs, grated cheddar and 1 whisked egg. Mix together. Heat oven to 180C and line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper. Lay pastry on chopping board and slice into 2 equal pieces. Divide the mexican bean mix between the two pieces, making a log / sausage down the middle of the pastry. Give the mix a squeeze with your hands to bring the ingredients together and shape it. Bring one side of the pastry over the top of the sausage and tuck in tightly. Bring the other side over and tuck it over tightly. Slice into desired number of sausage rolls and place onto the baking tray. Wash the top with egg using a pastry brush and place in oven to cook for 40 minutes. Serve with spicy salsa and guacamole if desired or enjoy just as is!
 

You’re going to have these delicious, lunchbox friendly Carrot Fritters on repeat this year! They’re simple to whip together and use wholesome, nutrient dense ingredients to ensure kids are topping up their veg intake; learning to eat foods that can sustain their energy throughout the day, and, of course, their health overall. When I think about building a nutritious lunch box I ensure there are still the trusty favourites (e.g. sandwiches), but I think creatively about how to get protein and lots of fibre rich foods in there. Whilst it’s important to serve veg straight up as it comes, so kids learn to eat it that way, it’s great for them to see how diverse vegetables can be and these fritters help do just that. Nutritional yeast is rich in Vitamin B12, which supports nervous system and brain function, and can be found in the health food isle of your supermarket. If you don’t have it on hand / can’t pick it up it can be easily swapped for some parmesan.

 

LUNCHBOX FRIENDLY CARROT FRITTERS

Makes 8 fritters

Vegetarian : Dairy Free

2 free range eggs
400g carrots, peeled and grated
1/4 cup spelt flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons Nutritional Yeast*
1 1/2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Crack eggs into a medium size mixing bowl and whisk, then add grated carrots, spelt flour, baking powder and nutritional yeast. Stir together until well combined. Heat extra virgin olive oil in a frypan on low to medium heat. Take 2 tablespoons of fritter mix and squeeze together with fingers into a small patty approximately 4-5 cm diameter. Fry in pan for 5 minutes each side, serve hot or store and pop in lunchbox for a nourishing colourful, vegetables and fibre rich lunchbox inclusion.

*If you don’t have nutritional yeast simply omit or use 2 tablespoons grated parmesan. If substituting parmesan for nutritional yeast this recipe is no longer dairy free.