Adding Lunchbox Love is easy with these simple tips from @Lunchboxmafia!

Hello friends! It’s Jenny from @Lunchboxmafia sharing some easy Valentine’s ideas to make your kiddo’s lunch box extra special—and delicious. Check out these ways to bring hearts, pink and red, and everything sweet into your little one’s Valentine’s Day breakfast and lunch.

Valentine’s Day Lunchbox Ideas: A Pop of Flavor

These mini pop tarts taste nothing like the ones that come out of the box but are just as (even more?) delicious and easy to prepare.

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Ingredients:

• Store-bought pie crust cut into 24 equal rectangles to make 12 mini pop tarts
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup raspberry preserves, divided
• 1 cup of confectioner’s sugar
• 2 tablespoons of half and half (or milk of choice)
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup freeze-dried raspberries, crushed to sprinkle

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Roll out your pie crust and cut into rectangles.
3. Spoon 1-2 teaspoons of preserves onto each rectangle.
4. Cover the preserves with another pie crust rectangle.
5. Seal edges with a fork, poking some holes on the top crust.
6. Brush the entire pop tart (including edges) with egg wash.
7. Bake for 12 minutes and let them cool.
8. Combine sugar, half and half and vanilla extract.
9. Spread icing onto pop tarts, sprinkle on your crushed freeze dried raspberries and enjoy!

Store in an airtight container for no more than two days.

Add Some Love: The Quickest Cinnamon Rolls

We like to start every holiday morning off with cinnamon rolls, and Valentine’s day is no exception! Here’s a hack that’ll save you some time in the morning:

1. Open your cinnamon rolls and place them upside down in your air-fryer.
2. Bake at 320 degrees for 6 minutes.
3. Flip and bake your rolls for another 6 minutes.
4. Remove from the air-fryer and top with icing. Enjoy!

PINK is the color of Passion

Last year, we shared some yummy red-themed lunches, so we’re switching things up with some PINK inspo this Valentine’s:

• Include fun pink foods in your lunchbox, like pink beet hummus, limited edition Cheerios, Le Blanc strawberries, raspberries, watermelon and dragon fruit.
• Add pink color to icing with freeze-dried strawberries.
• Line lunchboxes with pink, red and white doilies (available at Dollar Tree). You can even write little notes on them!

Heart-full of Love this Valentine’s Day

Another easy idea for some extra love in the lunchbox is to add heart shapes any way you can. We’ve been doing it for years with fruit and veggie cutters and of course, cookie cutters that we use for our sandwiches. Here are some ideas:

• Create a heart-shaped pizza on an English muffin with heart-shaped pepperoni.
• Use the small heart-shaped veggie cutter to cut off the wax from your Babybel cheese!
• Bake chocolate chip banana muffins in a heart-shaped baking pan.

Originally published in February 2024 of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine.