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f Page Ten The McHenry Plaindealer Thursday, September 1^ 1955 NoonDay Meal Mother's Key to Healthy School Diet] MAKING sure the youngsters get a balanced diet every day becomes a more complicated problem for mother with the return of sofipol days. \ j i Key to the problem ii to know "Wftat part of the daily food requirements are supplied by the school lunch, so that other meals cqp be planned to round out the balanced diet. i Since lunch is usually eaten away from home, mother often needs to play the role of a skillful --and tactful--detective. First, she must find out what is provided^for the school lunch; then she has the more difficult task of discovering what Johnny and Susie actually eat. Checking up on the school lunch is easiest when the lunch is packed at home. Foods that go into the lunch box can be selected to do their share in the child's over-all diet, and they can be planned for variety and plenty of appetite appeal. When lunch is supplied at school through a cafeteria or- the National School Lunch Program, mother should check with the school to learn About- lunch facilities and menus. Some schools send weekly menus home for mother to see in advance. In some types of school lunch programs', the meal must be supplemented. by foods brought from home. Again, careful planning is required to be sure the additional foods do theft part in balancing* the diet At a minimum, the lunch program will provide the al.ways important and popular beverage, milk. . Detective skill comes into, play in learning what the children actually eat. "What did you eat for lunch today'" should be a casual question, asked in a variety of ways and with cheerful interest. Even when a child carries Jiis lunch, he may trade with other youngsters, so the check-up on what is eaten is always important. When good eating habits are' formed at home, children will al*| most certainly eat properly away; from home. Mother can help toti achieve the balanced diet by mak*j ing every meal at home meet twoj requirements. Each meal should be coordinated with all other meals, so that nonqi of the diet essentials are overV looked. Then, every meal should! be interesting as well as notritou?1 --planned to stimulate appetitq and encourage eating. Hot Frankfurter Can Be Surprise Lunch Box Tidbit surprises 1 " JL " K-J • • JL Be. Packed in Lunch Box j, -- - Sandwiches Should "Grow" Along with Youngsters Who Are Going Buck to School By BLANCHE M. STOVER Family Food Editor, Parents' Magazine OW, WHILE planning to get the children ready to go back to 'XN school this fall, is the time to start gathering information you"ll need to make certain yours get a good lunch every day. Since most children carry their lunches to school, let's start with some suggestions that will help you pack interesting and well balanced meals. Sandwiches are the mainstay of the packed lunch. They're easy to make, easy to pack and easy to eat. They're high in food value, too. #1 Sandwich combinations are practically unlimited. There are so many kinds of bread from which to choose: enriched white; rye; pumpernickel; whole wheat and cracked wheat; all of the tea breads-- banana, raisin and date--to name only a few; plus French, Swedish and regional breads," and a variety of rolls, biscuits and muffins. J B. M. Stover Spread? and fillings can be even more varied. Most youngsters like all kinds of meat and poultry fillings, including cold $uts and meat spreads. They go for peanut butter--plain or blended with grated carrot, crumbled bacop, raisins, honey, jam, whipped m ^ r s h m a l l o w t o p p i n g , c r e a m cheese, applesauce, mashed banana, cranberry "sauce, crushed pineapple or chili sauce. I They also like such combinations as shredded American cheese aqd pickle relish; cream cheese -with jelly, olives or pineapple; minced liver, celery and mayonnaise; tuna fish, shredded carrot and Russian dressing; salmon, lemon juice, mayonnaise, chopped chives and green pepper; egg and olive salad. S Vary Sixes and Shapes !) The size and shape of sandwiches also can be varied. For a change, cut sandwiches into squares one day, triangles or strips jth<e next. Or use cookie cutters to 'make round sandwiches, animals, hearts - or whatever shape suits your child's fancy. The odjls and ietjds of bread can go into poultry : staffing or bread pudding or be [dried for crumbs. M Sandwiches should "grow up" along with children. Members of I the younger set usually prefer I bland fillings. They like small ! sandwiches which make them feel | master of the task at hand. Furthermore, the smaller the sandjv^ ches, the more they can boast l ayout the number they have eaten. f As children get older, their tastes jb^come more sophisticated. They lli^e fillings with more zip and texiture interest; for example, crumjbljed bacon added to a cheese ispread or chopped celery mixed jvtjth a meat spread. Girls like ; fancy sandwiches almost indefinitely but boys, by the time they are nine or ten, want more food aqd less frills. They'll ask for heartier sandwiches, with the crusts left on, and more of them. In addition to two or more sandwiches, the usual school lunch includes a dessert and a beverage-- milk, cocoa or a juice--carried lrpm home in a vacuum bottle or i bought at school. ;Use Crisp Vegetables [j Most youngsters^ike to nibble iicrisp vegetables with their sandwiches or hot dish. Carrot sticks or a small young^arrot, celery strips :or a chunk crisp ^cabbage are favorites. Peas .in the pod, young i green beans and cauliflowerettes . {are good, too. Small, firm tomatoes ican be cufcillfi) quarters for ease 'id eating. Children love hot frankfurters in a roll. Good ones are nourishing food. With the aid of a wide mouthed vacuum bottle, you can furnish them wtih a hot one for an occasional surprise. Here's how. Put the hot boiled frankfurter in the vacuum bottle. Fill with a hot soup such as cream of tomato. Split a frankfurter roll andspread with butter or margarine on one side and a little mild mustard on the other. Then wrap in wax paper or aluminum foil and be sure to include a toothpick. At lunch time, the child uses the toothpifk to spear the frankfurter out of the soup and pop it into the roll. And Jthe hot frankfurter is ready to eat, with the hot soup. "LEAVE SOME FOR DADDY!" Sister warns as she helps Junior fix a "baby submarine" ham, cheese and peanut butter sandwich. Brother and Sister both need a hearty, nutritious school lunch like this soup, sandwich and fruit menu. Chef decals, 'inspired by Campbell Kids, on lunchbox and vacuum bottle help make eating more fun. Hunches for School Lunches Desserts for the lunch that goes 'to'school should meet four qualifications* They should travel well, keep in good condition without refrigeration and be easy to cat And, of course, they should be tempting to both eye and palate. Fresh fruits that can be eaten out of hand are perfect for the school lunch. Older children like to munch an apple or orange with chums on the school grounds. > LUNCH TASTES TWICE AS GOOD to little Sally because it tooks good, too. A nutritious soup, made with milk, a peanut butter and Jelly sandwich, a peeled orange, cookies and milk add up a tall quota of noon-time nourishment, and figures inspired by Campbell Kids,-oa ^bcloth and sandwich plates, add *PPcUte f£BeaL Younger children may need to have their fruit partially prepared for eating. For them, cut an apple or pear into eighths, remove the core, dip the pieces in lemon juice so they won't turn brown and wrap well in waxed paper or aluminum foil. To make an orange bpth easy to eat and beautiful to behold, cut into eight sections with a sharp knife. Then cut rind from flesh at both ends of each section so that 8 child can easily separate flesh from rind in one bite. Before packing, tie sections together with a perky ribbon and fold under ends of rind. Cakes and cookies are lunch box stand-bys. They should be fairly plain to travel well but once in a while it's nice to surprise children with something different* For example, cut a cupcake into fourths, crosswise, and make two little "cakewiches" by spreading two of the cut. surfaces with jam or jelly; then close up and wrap. Make "crackerwiches" by filling two graham crackers with icing or peanut butter. To make gingerbread men, use your favorite rolled molasses cookie recipe but. add a bit more flour for easier handling. Roll and cut out little men using either a bought cutter or homemade pattern^ Decorate each little man with bits of raisin for eyes and nose, a slice of maraschino cherry for a mouth and raisins or currants for the buttons, on his' coat. Bake as your recipe directs. CHECK YOUR BRAKES Be sure your brakes are in good condition before the school season start*. Better Star $ Assured Them At Breakfast • I Nutrients Missing From « Morning Meal Seldom / Can Be Made Up -j i » SERVING the school child a goodj breakfast serves a double pur« pose, nutritionists agree. Properly*' planned breakfasts get the child j off to a better start on each school day, and they help form eating j habits that are important for, better health and well-being all' through life. Breakfast should supply front one-fourth to one«-third of the dally, food requirements.. Even adults can seldom make up at other meals the nutrients missed at breakfast,1 „ and it is especially difficult fori children to try to "catch up" on I nutrition, because of their smaller^ food capacity. \ Skipped or skimpy breakfasts may have an immediate bad effect' on the school boy or girl, causing' listlessness and irritability during the late morning hours, or even resulting in poor 'grades. Such danger signals may be a warning that early morning nutrition & being neglected. Results Show Up On the other hand, absence of' the danger signals doesn't necessarily mean the child is getting the kind of breakfasts he needs.' Results of inadequate breakfasts may show up later in the form of poor teeth, faulty bone structure or digestive upsets. Safest course is to plan the morning meal around these basics: fruit or fruit juice, hot or ready* to-eat cereal with plenty of milk,' whole grain or enriched bread with butter or margarine, and milk or a m i l k - r i c h c o c o a or c e r e a l d r i n k . 4 - For additional protein, add eggs, bacon, sausage, fish or cheese. The child should have at least three eggs a week, and preferably one a day. Breakfast offers a good opportunity to get these eggs in the diet. Good breakfasts bring rewards in better concentration, faster reactions and reduced . muscular fatigue, for_ adults and children alike. Learn It £arly Since eating is a habit, it's important that the child should leara early in life to eat and enjoy a + good breakfast. Making breakfast a family meal adds to its enjoyment and makes good eating habits easier to form. With the many easy-to-prepare foods available today, such as canned and frozen juices, and cereals the children love, mother can join the family in a quickly-prepared, hearty break-. fast. Gloves and Sox Now Have Growth Factor Sox and gloves made of the new stretch yarns are making an important contribution to the back to school wardrobes for children of .all ages this year because they furnish ,a "built-in" growth factor. ^ They offer a longer usable life since they need not be discarded because the child's hands or feet have grown a size or two. They stretch to fit.