School Lunch Box -- What to pack for school lunch?

After two whole months of lazy summer, schools open up this week. Right after depressing stuff like setting the alarm clock to 5:30 in the morning, what looms large in my mind is "What to pack for school lunch?".

This year, I have a high schooler who has a strong dislike for lunches at the school cafeteria and prefers lunch from home. And then I have an elementary school goer who scans her school lunch menu to pick the days when the school will serve Mac & Cheese or a Pizza. While the first one eats her veggies and likes more of the pasta dishes, the second one loves fruits and prefers a ham sandwich. The first one will finish her lunch, while it is on a rare day that the second one will bring home a clean lunch thermos.

As you must know by now, I am not the Mom, who makes pretty bento boxes or egg faces for school lunches. I admire those lunches and look at them longingly on instagram but sadly that is not me. I also make sure that my kids never get to see those glorious lunch boxes on social media ;-)
The lunch boxes I pack have to be done the night before, packed quick in the morning, and not make me shed any of my remaining my gray hair!!!

Easy, Quick, Kind of Healthy-- those are the key words that describe our school lunch boxes.

Thinking of all the possible lunch options that my kids love, I decided to curate the lunch box recipes from my blog and present it in one post. Since both my girls have a hurried, small breakfast in the morning, they get hungry by lunchtime and want something "interesting"! I have tried to break down the lunches we pack in 4 broad categories.

1. Pulaos and Noodles
2. Pasta
3. Crepes, rolls and Quesadillas
4. Sandwich

Click on the Recipe Titles to get the recipe

I am hoping to have one more similar post soon as this list is not complete. Until then this will help me and you both. And then in-between there is always Costco raviolis to tide us over.

Eggplant Indiana -- the baked Imam Bayildi

It is uncanny how I often repeat a recipe after years and yet it is around the same time of the year that I last cooked.

Yesterday, I bought these lovely eggplants from Costco. Wondering what to do with them, I remembered Imam Bayildi. Guess when I had made Imam Bayildi last? 8 years back just before Big Sis was starting Grade 1.

It has been eight years since. Yes E-I-G-H-T. And Big Sis is starting high school next week. What are the chances that I will be making the same eggplant recipe, at the same time of the year, after a gap of 8 years? And this when Big Sis will not even eat eggplant. Uncanny right?

When I read my old post I realized next week there will be no uniform. I will not have to worry about sewing buttons or hems. I will not even decide what she wears to school. But there will be lots more to worry, things far worse than "buttons"!

So anyway, yesterday when I looked up the Imam Bayildi recipe, I didn't want to fry the eggplants like the original recipe. Instead I decided to do the whole thing in the oven. Like a faux Imam Bayildi.

Now, as you know Imam Bayildi, is a classic Turkish eggplant dish, and it calls for quite a large quantity of Olive Oil. The phrase Imam Bayildi translates to "the Imam fainted" and often the joke is that the Imam probably fainted seeing the amount of expensive olive oil that his wife used in this dish.
This version that I made in the oven is way lighter and the Imam would probably never faint seeing it. He could faint from the heat of my eggplants though.

In fact seeing all the green chilies, Big Sis named it "Eggplant Indiana", which seems to be a more apt name for this dish.

No-Bake No-Gelatin Super Easy Mango Pie

June has been an extremely busy month. End of school year means the school tries to fit in hundreds of stuff in there. Add to that fabulous warm weather which means lot of outdoor times. This June was extra special as Big Sis is going to high school and 8th grade graduation is a big deal in our school district. The graduating 8th grade class do not all move to the same high school but depending on their interests and performance get scattered among different high schools in the district. So while our parents probably never noticed our transition from 8th grade to 9th, here we had umpteen ceremonies to celebrate the graduation class. The school had a semi-formal 8th grade dance, a picnic by the pool, award days and then the graduation with gowns, caps and whole nine-yards. Not to forget the orientation for the new school and the placements.
Pheww, it was one thing after another, where it is kind of drilled into you the importance of high school!

When we could barely breathe and school had just shuts its doors, little Sis had her Bharatnatyam dance recital. That thing had me stressed more than high school; what with all the makeup, costume and hair do. Thankfully a dear friend came to the rescue(as usual) and took care of all the makeup and hair. Little Sis did the rest -- practicing and doing perfect dance routines. I did nothing. Wait, actually I did. I stressed!!!

I am so glad it all is done. At this point I am just trying to relax and not think what September will bring.

Meanwhile Big Sis has also been keeping up with her culinary endeavors. here is a super delicious recipe of Mango Pie that she learned from our neighbor. It is no-bake. It is no-gas top. It is no-gelatin. And the best thing that we have had with mangoes. This has been vouched by many people other than me so if you don't believe me, believe in the universe.

A slice of this cool mango pie on a summer day is better than any ice cream for sure.

What You Need

Two graham cracker pie crust -- store bought

One can of sweetened condensed milk -- Nestle carnation 14oz can

Same amount of mango puree as condensed milk -- Deep Mango Pulp from a can

Equal amount of greek yogurt as condensed milk and mango puree -- Fage greek yogurt

How I Did It

Blend the condensed milk, mango puree, and Greek yogurt until a smooth consistency

Pour into pie crust and freeze (put in freezer section) overnight. It is a good idea to cover it with a cling-wrap to prevent ice crystals from forming on the surface. But it is okay, even if you don't

Take out 6-8 minutes before serving. It will soften a little. Top with whipped cream for an extra taste

Serve cold

If you like what you are reading, get Bong Mom's Cookbook in your mailbox

Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner