Section 9: sample menus

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Menu planning checklist

Student Nutrition Program (SNP) menus should meet the following requirements:

Menu requirements
All meals are made up of at least: 1 vegetable or fruit, plus 1 protein food, plus 1 whole grain food
All snacks are made up of at least: 1 vegetable or fruit, plus 1 protein food or 1 whole grain food
All foods and beverages are found in the ‘serve’ category of the food and beverages choice tables
Foods and beverages found in the ‘do not serve’ category of the food and beverage choice tables items identified are not included
Items listed as minor ingredients in the food and beverage choice tables are used in small amounts
Drinking water is always available

Grab and go ideas

Vegetables & fruits	Protein foods	Whole grain foods
Cucumber slices Baby carrots Cherry tomatoes Snap peas Apple Berries Celery Broccoli florets Bell Peppers Grapes Pears Peaches Melon Bananas Oranges Oranges, clementines	Boiled eggs Bean dips (for example, hummus, black bean, lentil) Mixed seeds (for example, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and flax seeds) Milk Fortified soy beverage Yogurt Cheese strings, cubed hard cheese Canned fish, canned chicken (low sodium)	Whole grain or whole wheat bread, buns, bagels, rolls, English muffins, pitas, tortillas, bannock, naan, roti, chapatti, lavash, cereal Whole grain crackers, breadsticks Plain popcorn Brown rice cakes Whole grain muffins, scones Grain-based bars

Follow the school’s anaphylaxis policy. Check food labels of these foods to make sure they fit in the ‘serve’ category of the food and beverage choice tables.

Grab and go meal menu

Day	Week 1
1	Apple Cheese string Grain-based bar
2	Baby carrots and mini cucumber Hummus Whole grain crackers
3	Peach Milk Cold cereal
4	Banana Yogurt Whole wheat bagel
5	Cherry tomatoes and celery sticks Boiled egg Brown rice cake

Grab and go snack menu

Day	Week 1
1	Snap peas, cucumber and bell pepper strips Black bean dip
2	Baby carrots and celery sticks Canned light tuna Whole grain crackers
3	Banana Yogurt
4	Orange Grain-based bar
5	Cherry tomatoes and celery sticks Boiled egg Brown rice cake

Breakfast or morning meal menu

A meal is made up of at least one vegetable or fruit PLUS one protein food PLUS one whole grain food.

Day	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3
1	Apple slices Cheese cubes Banana muffin	Pear Yogurt Apple cinnamon muffin	Cantaloupe Cottage cheese Whole wheat pita
2	Orange wedges Milk or fortified soy beverage Whole grain cereal	Broccoli Egg muffin (Eggs, low-fat milk, spinach, onion, red bell pepper, salt and pepper) Whole grain crackers	Celery sticks Quesadilla (diced green peppers, onions, cheese, salsa, black beans) Milk
3	Strawberries Mixed seeds (sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds) Strawberry pancakes	Cherry tomatoes and baby carrots Red lentil dhal Whole wheat naan bread	Fruit salad (grapes, honeydew melon, berries) Milk Oatmeal bannock
4	Veggie sticks (broccoli, carrots, celery) Hummus Whole grain crackers	Raspberry-spinach twist smoothie Whole grain toast	Egg and veggie scramble Whole wheat tortilla
5	Sliced avocado Boiled egg Whole wheat English muffin	Sliced cucumbers Swiss cheese slice Whole grain bagel	Apple slices Yogurt Grain-based bar

Snack menu

A snack is made up of at least one vegetable or fruit PLUS either one whole grain OR protein food.

Day	Week 1	Week 2
1	Sliced pears Marble cheese cubes	Carrots and celery sticks Bean dip
2	Guacamole Whole wheat pita wedges	Orange wedges Popcorn
3	Red bell pepper and cucumber slices Boiled egg	Berries Yogurt
4	Grapes Grain-based bar	Spinach salad with grated carrot Canned light tuna Whole wheat crackers
5	Apple Roasted chickpeas	Banana Cottage cheese Whole grain bagel

Lunch menu

A meal is made up of at least one vegetable or fruit PLUS one protein food PLUS one whole grain food.

Day	Week 1	Week 2
1	Coleslaw Mini pizza (Whole wheat English muffin, tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese)	Turkey chili Whole wheat chapatti
2	Vegetable curry Milk Brown rice	Salad (Baby spinach leaves, strawberries, red onion, balsamic vinaigrette, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper) Tuna salad wrap
3	Broccoli and cauliflower trees Mac n’ cheese with a veggie twist	Couscous with vegetables and chickpeas
4	Three sisters’ soup Whole wheat bannock	Fruit salad Egg muffin (Eggs, low-fat milk, spinach, onion, red bell pepper, salt and pepper) Whole grain bread
5	Carrot and celery sticks Egg salad sandwiches	Tomato lentil stew Whole wheat pita

Updated: February 02, 2024

Published: July 15, 2021