This is such an easy lunch to whip together on a weekday for school. If you don’t think your child would eat it, start to introduce it as a side salad at home on the weekends. There are ways, outside of my ingredients, to spruce it up if you needed to (parmesan, cucumber chunks, mango, other favourite herbs, avocado, etc..).
Below is just my basic, whip it together and go recipe. It is really basic, but basic is what I need when I have minutes to pack lunches. Fresh bread to soak up the dressing after is always a hit. I feel good knowing my kids will have lots of protein and fibre to help get them through the school day, as well as something different.
All you need is to keep a few cans of organic beans in your pantry (you want to stay away from all of the gnarly stuff that canned products can have, like BPA in the lining so be sure your brand is healthy). The dressing is made up of staples (though you might need to purchase a nice aged balsamic that you use for salads only, not cooking). The key flavour that makes this is the fresh dill. Check out my link to store fresh herbs otherwise it’s not really something many are likely to have on hand.
I did not measure the dressing, and it depends how wet (or not wet) your kids like this type of salad. I simply put a few glugs of balsamic along with extra virgin olive oil (always a good glue more than the vinegar). You could use your favourite balsamic dressing here (with honey and mustard is always nice) instead of just straight up oil and vinegar. But again, this is just quick and simple. Got to keep Mom sane on those weekday mornings and bellies full at school.
gluten free, dairy free, vegan, paleo, nut free
quick school lunch bean salad
• 1 can organic mixed beans
• aged balsamic vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil
• veggies to dice (cucumber, red pepper, celery)
• fresh dill (second option would be dried)
• salt
Mix beans, veggies, dill and salt. Add the dressing. Throw it into a leak proof container. Done. Hurry out the door. Drop off. Breathe 
