Lunch Box Series 15: Carrot Cake Cookies & BLT Pinwheels

We heard your lunch boxes were looking a little... same-same? You’re going to want to hang around for this! 

This week’s Lunch Box Series is packed with flavour (and a little fun), featuring two easy recipes made with little hands in mind. Soft and chewy Carrot Cake Cookies and tasty BLT Pinwheels that are perfect for popping into lunch bags or nibbling on at morning tea.

Quick to make, easy to pack, and 100% lunchbox-approved. Let’s not waste anymore time - find our step by step recipes below! 

Carrot Cake Cookies

Soft, chewy and just the right amount of sweet - these Carrot Cake Cookies are a fun twist on the classic cake. They’ve got a hint of spice, a little carrot (promise the kids won’t notice) and that bakery-style bite everyone will adore.

Bake a batch for lunch boxes, after-kindy snacks or a cheeky treat with your morning coffee. No cutlery or clutter required!

Bonus: These delicious cookies are freezer friendly. No excuses not to make a double batch and share with friends or freeze for another time! 

Ingredients: 

• ½ salted butter 

• ½ cup honey

• ½ cup brown sugar

• 1 egg & 1 egg yolk 

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 cups plain flour

• 1/2 tsp each of baking soda & baking powder

• ½ tsp sea salt 

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• ½ tsp ground ginger

• ½ tsp ground nutmeg

• ½ cup grated carrot

• ⅓ cup white choc chips 

Frosting:

• ¼ cup salted butter 

• 4 tbsp cream cheese

• 2 cups icing sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• ¼ tsp sea salt

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 180 and line a tray with baking paper.

2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.

3. Sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Mix until just combined.

4. Fold in the carrots and white choc chips. Using a deep dessert spoon, scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie. 

5. Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown and set, but the centre is still a little gooey.

6. To make the frosting, whip the butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract, salt, and powdered sugar and whip to combine. 

7. Top the cookies with the frosting and use the back of a spoon to smoothly spread out. Enjoy!

BLT Pinwheels 

Can you smell the nostalgia? That classic combo of crispy bacon, fresh lettuce and juicy tomato never goes out of style. These BLT pinwheels give it a lunchbox-friendly spin - rolled up in soft wraps and sliced into bite-sized pieces perfect for little hands! 

They’re fun to eat, easy to pack, and a guaranteed hit for daycare, kindy or even a speedy weeknight dinner. Our tip? Make extra… they tend to disappear fast.

Bonus: Customise to your (or your mini’s) liking! Swap to a gluten free wrap, falafel for vegetarians or change up the salads. There's endless combinations to have fun with!

Ingredients:

• Spinach tortillas/wraps 

• Diced & pre-cooked bacon

• ½ punnet diced cherry tomatoes

• Handful of shredded cheese

• Shredded lettuce 

• Garlic aioli 

• Salt & pepper 

Method:

1. Pre-cook bacon and store in the fridge until ready to make pinwheels.

2. Spread aioli over 1 side of the wrap.

3. Sprinkle with bacon bits, diced cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese and lettuce.

4. Starting from one side, tightly roll the wrap up then secure with toothpicks every 2 inches.

5. Cut the wrap in between each toothpick to give you pinwheels! 

Pack Lunch With Us

In this Lunch Box Series, our Carrot Cake Cookies were tucked neatly into one of our Medium Nesting Containers in Biscuit - the perfect size for keeping sweet treats fresh (and safe from squishing). Our BLT Pinwheels went into the large section of our 1400ml Stainless Steel Bento Box, leaving plenty of room to lay them out nicely.

In the smaller compartments? A handful of popcorn and some juicy grapes to round things out with a bit of crunch and sweetness. Everything was then packed into our Kids Lunch Bag and popped into an Arlo Backpack, paired with a 550ml Water Bottle - the perfect size for little hands (with a dedicated internal water bottle pocket in the Backpack!).

Whether you’re packing for kindy, daycare or a picnic in the park, these easy lunchbox ideas are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. Keep things simple, mix it up where you can, and don’t forget - a little prep ahead of time goes a long way.

Stay tuned for more fresh ideas in our next Lunch Box Series drop, and make sure you check out our Instagram @elaandearth to see which Kids Lunch Bags and Arlo Backpack we chose to cart these yummy recipes off to little school for the day!