Get Movin' Monday: Lunchbox Makeover Ideas

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- What do you pack for lunch? I'm sure most people say peanut butter and jelly, but not one local mother.

Molly Herrmann posts pictures of her amazing looking lunches to Instagram, so we wanted to know how we could makeover our lunch box to look more like hers.

So, she and her son, AJ, helped us Get Movin' this Monday so you have ideas for you and the kids.

When you have kitchen space, knowing your way around is important, but when you're a mom, knowing your kid might be even more important.

"I don't like sandwiches and cheese in my lunch," AJ said.

Molly is co-owner of Kitchen in the Market at Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis. Her Instagram is full of beautiful meals she serves herself along with son, AJ.

"I kept thinking 'why do I need to do this,' but a lot of people are like, 'this is inspiration for me every morning,'" Molly said.

Her secret: simplicity, planning ahead and letting AJ help.

"I like brats, I like lots of salads, cauliflower, lettuce, cabbage," AJ said.

So, we start with a brat salad for AJ. She keeps packs of them on hand, since it's his favorite. Then he adds the vegetables he wants -- radishes, avocado and tomato. She then locks it into a reusable lunch box, which sell for $14.99.

"I usually give him chop sticks, so they're more fun and not a boring old fork," Molly said.

That means AJ will hopefully enjoy every part of his lunch.

The best part for mom: Having the vegetables chopped for his lunch, makes packing hers easier.

However, instead of a brat, she uses a more adult protein.

"I'm going to put quail eggs for our protein," she said.

They only take 3 minutes to boil and can be found onsite at Midtown Global Market.

"If you have lunch meat at home, you can add it and you can make a chef's salad very easily," Molly said.

Pack a piece of fruit, a carb and both of you have a lunch that's tastier and more colorful than just peanut butter and jelly.

You noticed a lot of vegetables. Molly says buy in bulk. She is always re-using vegetables in the rest of her meals for the week. All this week, we're going to show you how she does that.