Easy Lunch Box Ideas

I cannot believe I haven't posted anything since the beginning of this year. I guess I got so caught up in the daily routine - office, kid's school, home work, extra curricular activities, volunteering etc. that this blog got put on the back burner. Now that summer vacation is here, I feel so relaxed, like a load has lifted off.

 

Here are couple of quick and easy lunches that featured weekly in my kid's lunch box when school was on.

 

Pesto Cucumber Sandwich

 

 

 

Take 2 slices of bread. Butter one slice on one side and generously apply pesto on a side of the other slice. I use Costco's Basil Pesto. Make few thin slices of cucumber, pat dry on a paper towel. Sandwich between the 2 slices of bread. That's it. Ready in 2 minutes flat.

 

 

I have also taken this to picnics and parties (my daughter's 5th grade graduation party at school) and it carries well and is appreciated by all.

 

Mini Paneer & Peppers Skewers

 

Cube paneer pieces and cut green and red bell peppers into squares. Sprinkle some salt, cumin pwd, coriander pwd and a tsp of oil over the paneer and peppers. Mix gently. Let sit for 5 mins.

Then roast in a non-stick pan on medium high heat for 3 to 5 mins until paneer cubes are lightly browned and peppers are slightly cooked but still firm. Take off heat and sprinkle some chaat masala.

Let cool for 5 mins, then thread on to toothpicks. Pack in lunchbox or serve immediately. If making for young kids probably better to avoid the toothpicks altogether.

Picnic Food - Pasta Salad and Fruit Salad

With the Memorial Day weekend just behind us and summer ahead, thought I'd post some of my fave picnic food recipes....starting with this Pasta Salad and simple Fruit Salad I took to a picnic recently.

Here's how I made the Pasta Salad:

1 cup uncooked rotini pasta - cook per package directions
1 to 2 cups chopped veggies - onions, tomatoes, colored peppers, zucchini, mushrooms
Dressing - 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves garlic - minced, 1 tsp black pepper pwd, 1 tsp fennel pwd
1 tsp chopped basil (fresh or dried)
2 tbsp prepared pesto (I used Trader Joe's)
2 tbsp Italian dressing (optional)
2 tbsp parmesan cheese (optional)

Mix the ingredients for the olive oil dressing in a small bowl. Pour over the chopped veggies. Spread the veggies in a glass baking dish. Bake in a preheated 400F oven for 20 mins. Sprinkle the chopped basil and stir the veggies around. Bake another 20 mins, stirring in between. As the veggies are roasting, cook the pasta. Drain and mix with the roasted veggies. Add the pesto, Italian dressing and parmesan cheese. Adjust salt/pepper as needed.

This pasta salad tastes good warm, at room temp or cold.

The Fruit Salad I took along is really simple. I used a dressing of 3 tbsp honey and 2 tbsp lemon juice, poured over fresh cut fruits I had on hand - strawberries, blueberries, oranges, apples, mangoes and watermelon.

Methi Bhaji and Methi Parathas

Methi Bhaji (Subji)-

This is a dry subji. We call it 'Methi chi peeth perleli bhaji' meaning methi subji with gram flour. I have always loved this item, so much so that whenever I visit my Dad in Mumbai, I always request the cook to make this bhaji the first day I arrive & then atleast once every week while I am there. Methi leaves have a slightly bitter taste and combining them with gram flour and jaggery in this subji wonderfully balances out all the flavors.

Luckily I found fresh methi at the Indian store this Friday, hence got 4 bunches (they were rather small) as I wanted to savor this bhaji and make the parathas too. Here's how I made the bhaji:

4 small bunches of methi leaves - after discarding the stems/roots, washing (very well as it tends to have some mud stuck between the leaves), and chopping in the food processor, it made about 2 cups. If fresh methi is not available, frozen can be used too.

3 tbsp oil (this veg. does need more oil than I normally use)

For the phodni/tadka - 1/2 tsp mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp hing, 1/2 tsp turmeric pwd.

1 tsp coriander pwd

1 tsp cumin pwd

2 tsp Maharashtrian Goda Masala

3 tbsp jaggery/gul

Salt to taste

1 cup gram flour

Heat half the oil. Add mustard seeds, when they splutter add cumin seeds, hing and halad. Immediately add the chopped methi leaves. Add about 1 cup of water. Cover & cook on medium high for 7-8 mins. Then go in the masalas - coriander pwd, cumin pwd, goda masala and the salt and gul. Stir well & let it cook for another 5 mins.  Give it another good stir. Then sprinkle the gram flour over the bhaji, mix very well, add the rest of the oil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for another 7-8 mins. so the flour gets steamed.

Thats it. The bhaji is ready. Before I go on to the parathas, let me warn you folks - we rarely have any bhaji left over to make the paratha stuffing. The methi leaves, though they seem like a big pile when cleaning, shrivel up when cooking. The addition of the gram flour does help increase the quantity of the bhaji, but rarely enough to have leftovers. Usually I get 2 bunches of methi leaves and the bhaji with that is good for 1 meal for 3 to 4 people. This time I wanted to have leftovers, hence bought 4 bunches.

Methi Parathas -

Really just an extension of the above dish. Like I mentioned earlier, this subji is fairly dry and as it cools, it becomes dry enough to use as a paratha stuffing, without fear of it oozing out. For the paratha dough, you need -

1 cup whole wheat flour

pinch of salt

water to knead to a soft pliable dough

few drops of oil

Mix the salt with the wheat flour, gradually add water to form dough. Drizzle a few drops of oil & knead some more. Leave it covered with a damp cloth for about 1/2 hr.

To make the parathas, divide the dough into 6 to 8 balls. Flatten each slightly. Cup in the palm & fill about 2 tsps of the methi bhaji. Bring the sides together & seal closed. Press between the palms. Stuff all the dough this way. Then roll out each into parathas dusting a little flour as needed. Roast on medium high tava on both sides using one or two drops of oil until golden brown spots appear. Enjoy hot or roll and pack in aluminium foil for lunchbox. My 5 yr old daughter likes this with boondi raita. I served it with a simple raita of red radishes and green onions in the above picture.

This Methi Subji and Methi Parathas are off to Redchillies Herb Mania Fenugreek event.

Updating this post to send it to the Fenugreek event at What's Cooking, this event was started by PJ.