Lunchbox Snacks Recipes

Steps:

• Bean dip with veggie sticks 5 of 5-a-day, low fat. Whizz 215g can drained butterbeans, squeeze lemon juice, 1 small crushed garlic clove, 1 tbsp each chopped parsley and mint, 2 tsp olive oil and 1 tbsp water. Serve with vegetable dippers made from 1 celery stick, 1 carrot and ½ red pepper - wrap in a damp piece of kitchen paper to stop them drying out (serves 1).
• Raspberry banana smoothie Whizz 85g raspberries together with 1 chopped banana and 150ml orange juice until smooth (serves 1).
• Cinnamon custard plums Put 1 tbsp honey, 1 tsp butter, 2 quartered plums, few drops vanilla extract, pinch ground cinnamon and 2 tsp water in a dish. Cover with cling film, pierce, microwave for 3 mins on High. Once cooled, put fruit in a container and spoon 2-3 tbsp custard on top. Seal and refrigerate (serves 1).
• Apricot yogurt granola pots Mix 200g oats, 2 tbsp honey and 1 tbsp sunflower oil in a baking tray. Spread out and bake at 200C/180C fan/ gas 6 for 7 mins. Stir, bake for 7 mins more. Cool. Mix with 150g dried fruits (enough for 8 servings). For one serving, mix 100ml natural yogurt with 1 tbsp sugar-free apricot jam in a container. Store granola in an airtight container and portion into a small bag when packing lunchbox.
• Carrot & pineapple muffins Sift together 140g self-raising flour, 85g wholemeal flour (reserving about 2 tbsp of the bran), ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda, 2 tsp ground cinnamon and a pinch salt. In another bowl, beat 150ml sunflower oil with 100g golden caster sugar. Add 200g mashed cooked carrots, 3 canned pineapple slices, cut into cubes, 2 tbsp pineapple juice from the can, 1 egg and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Mix in 50g sunflower seeds. Fold dry mix into the wet one. Cut out a dozen 10cm squares of baking parchment and place in the holes of a muffin tin. Spoon mixture into tin, sprinkle with bran and a few sunflower seeds. Bake at 200C/ 180C fan/gas 6 for 20-25 mins or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool (makes 12).