Summer is winding down ever so fast. I’m soon going to have to brush the dust off of the lunch bags. Well, there’s not that much dust. I did spend four weeks in July packing snacks and lunches for two kids out of three.

If I left my kids to their own devices, they’d pack ham sandwiches for lunch every. single. day. The lunch that gave me childhood trauma from receiving it way, waaaaay too often is now their most requested item. I’m not sure how that happened. But I do try to make an effort to change things up for them.

If I can get organized, I’m going to do some baking and cooking next week so that I can freeze a bunch of goodies that I’ll put in their bags to defrost in time for lunch or afternoon snack. Thanks to the Life Made Delicious website, I can find lots of ideas for freezable items. These pizza pinwheels sound perfect.

Ingredients:

1 can (235 g) Pillsbury* Crescents
2 tbsp (25 mL) grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup (75 mL) finely chopped pepperoni
1/3 cup (75 mL) finely chopped green pepper
1/2 cup (125 mL) shredded Italian cheese blend
1/2 cup (125 mL) pizza sauce

Method:

STEP 1 – Heat oven to 350°F. Unroll dough and separate into 4 rectangles; firmly press perforations.
Step 2 – Sprinkle Parmesan cheese, pepperoni, pepper and Italian cheese blend over each rectangle. Roll up each rectangle (starting from the short end); cut into 6 slices and place on a lightly greased baking sheet.
STEP 3 – Bake about 15 minutes or until edges are golden brown and cheese is melted. Serve with warmed pizza sauce for dipping.

The great thing about this recipe is that, of course, pizza toppings are so versatile.  Oliver loves pepperoni and green peppers. And olives and sun-dried tomatoes and whatever I could possible think of to throw in there. But Callum prefers plain old cheese, or bacon and pineapple. So I could do a couple of batches of pinwheels and have instant lunch for either of them straight from the freezer! No frantic sandwich assembly required.

The website can give you some other ideas if you’re beginning to get the school lunch planning headache – particularly the recipe collections section, like the Top 10 Homemade Baking List or the Snacks for Kids list.

Okay, putting my shopping list for next week together now…

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