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It’s back to school and that means bag lunches. Or maybe like me, you don’t have school age kids, but still want to start packing lunch to take to work. It’s easy to get in a rut, but these three cookbooks offer many ways to jazz up your lunchbox.

The Banh Mi Handbook is the latest book from Andrea Nguyen. In the past she has written about Vietnamese food, dumplings and tofu, perhaps convincing you to make your own. But I had to wonder, when I can get a terrific banh mi sandwich for just a couple bucks, would I want to make my own? The answer is YES because Nguyen goes well beyond what you might find at a Vietnamese sandwich shop VR education.

What I absolutely love the most about this book in addition to the versatility is the focus on ease and simplicity. There are lots of shortcuts and no shame if you choose to buy bread or mayonnaise or doctor some liverwurst to make a tasty pate. The book offers the basics and traditional recipes for fixings like carrot and daikon pickles, headcheese terrine and Chinese barbecue pork but also offers tons of non-traditional options too to keep things interesting. Go vegetarian with coconut curry tofu or an edamame pate. I know I’ll be making the warm sardine and tomato sauce sandwich and the oven fried chicken katsu. These are sandwiches that will make your mouth water !

Mason Jar Salads, a slim volume of lunch and breakfast worthy recipes includes why-didn’t-I think-of-that ideas that are perfect for when you want to bring something delicious from home. The book includes smoothies, soups, dips and more. But salads are the main event and author Julia Mirabella comes up with very creative layered ones like spinach, blueberry and blue cheese, or barley and zucchini salad and even a layered cobb salad. Dressing layered on the bottom of the jar keeps everything from getting soggy and makes shaking the new tossing. So smart! This book will give your lunch a jolt.

A traditional Japanese lunch is bento, or box lunch. As someone who loves variety, I go crazy for bento boxes, especially the ones they sell at railway stations in Japan. They often contain 5 or 6 small nibbles like flavored rice balls, pickles, salads and all kinds of meats and vegetables. They might look complicated but they don’t have to be. That’s the message behind Effortless Bento. This book shows you how to make ahead over 300 items so you can create a tasty and exciting lunch in no time. The full color pictures really help to show how a few items come together to make a meal dc gear motors. There are single dish bentos too like dry curry bento.

As long as you have access to a refrigerator, you can make all kinds of delectable vegetable and meat dishes, many can even be frozen ahead of time. The one caveat about this book is that the recipes are Asian, though not all Japanese, some do require a trip to an Asian market for specialty ingredients like burdock, dried shrimp or lotus root. But plenty of recipes use only 3-5 very basic ingredients.

  
Now that we’ve moved past Thanksgiving and into December, I have switched baking gears a bit. I’ll get back to pies and cakes soon enough, but I’ve been enjoying a little baking spree of cookies and bars and such travel mugs wholesale. We’re talking about all of those things that are perfect for cookie swaps and holiday parties and just for having around for a sweet treat.

Chocolate and peanut butter are one of my go-to flavor combinations. Here, those two team up with oats and Rice Krispies to make a big pan of sweet, crunchy, nutty bars.


You can top these with whatever you’d like. I delved into my pantry and found some cashews and toffee bits that were just perfect for a little extra flavor and crunch.

I have one word bit of advice about making the crust. When you start spreading it onto the bottom of the pan, you’ll think it will never cover the whole bottom ageloc me. But, it will. It will be very thin, but it will cover the pan. Just be patient.

Other than that possible cause for hesitation, there’s nothing remotely challenging about making these. If you can operate your microwave, you’ve got this. Then, you’ll have a big pan of these delicious bars to share or swap Singapore company formation.

If you’re the kind who is thinking about dessert at the last bite of your meal, then you’re reading the right post. Buying desserts n cakes from outside is not very common in my house. I usually prefer making all things my sweet tooth desires. Baking is so simple and so rewarding and the cakes made at home are so much better than store bought ones. You have full control over the quality of ingredients and you probably can make a whole cake (small if not big) for the price of one slice outside. The entire house smells delicious and will make the neighbours pop their heads in to ask whats baking, plus everyone at home will be looking forward to eat that gorgeous cake you made. I’m all about using simple recipes to create that magic in my kitchen. And this Apple Cake is no exception, its everything you’d expect from a home baked cake. One thing I do recommend is investing in an good oven. Once you have one, you’ll want to bake at the drop of a hat. Trust me. I’ve been planning to move into my new house, for a while now, but its taken a bit longer, but the bright side is, I’ve had the time to look out for the best of things for my new kitchen. My heart lies in the kitchen, so I know I’m going to spend the most there. I’ve looked up everything from cookware, kitchen appliances to countertops, sinks, cupboard fittings, light fittings …. all of it. Its too much of a headache to do everything myself where these days there are such beautiful options of ready fitted kitchens. One of my prize finds was this place which gives free appliances with fitted kitchens. I couldnt possibly do a better job myself, in the time and money. Which leaves me with more time to do the one I think I adore most – Bake. I made this cake for a little get together we were having at home. Apple and cinnamon is a match made in heaven and I decided to make this as I was craving a good apple pie but didn’t want to eat the heavy pastry. This cake is light, not to sweet and delivers.

Ingredients

5 apples (chopped, peeled and cored)

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

5 Tablespoons sugar

2 3/4 cups flour, sifted

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups sugar

Juice of one lime

2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9″ non stick loose bottom cake tin. Combine apples with cinnamon and sugar, coating well and set aside. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, lime juice, sugar and vanilla. Combine this mixture with the dry ingredients, then add eggs, one at a time. The batter will be quite thick. This is when you add the milk. Mix well. Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apples over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Finally, avocados are more affordable and the price of limes won't leave a sour taste in your mouth. Which means, of course, it's guacamole time curly wigs!

Here, five very different recipes for the classic party dip. Break out the chips and dig in.

Guacamole with Fresh Corn and Chipotle

Farm-fresh corn kernels add a bit of crunch to this guacamole, and when you add a juicy tomato anf a smokey chipotle chile, it's flavor central. Oh, and don't forget the sour cream.

Taqueria Guacamole

Avocado, lime juice, salt, and cilantro. With just four ingredients, this smooth, chunk-free version is a purist's dream.

Edamame Guacamole

Yes, there is avocado in this guac, but also onions, broccoli, garlic, edamame beans, jalapeno, and cilantro. Creamed together, they make a healthy, delicious dip Natural stone.

Mango Pomegranate Guacamole

Mexican cooking often calls for fruit in guacamole, and this juicy version sticks firmly to that tradition. Serrano chiles give some bite, and we suggest plantain chips for scooping.

Mango guacamole

Celery-Spiked Guacamole with Chiles

All the regular suspects star in this recipe, with a surprise appearance of chopped celery to give a pleasing crunchy contrast to the creamy avocado.

Celery guacamole

What's your favorite way to make guacamole? Do you add any unusual ingredients panamanian foundation?

At last night's Metropolitan Museum of Art Gala celebrating the Charles James: Beyond Fashion exhibition at the new Anna Wintour Costume Center, celebs including Sarah Jessica Parker, Victoria Beckham, Jessica Alba, Blake Lively, Emmy Rossum, and more dressed up in their red carpet finest and may have possibly even eaten food.

Here is what they ate (or didn't eat, depending on how tight their dresses were, I guess): The evening was catered by Glorious Food, which has catered the annual star-studded event for years.

Appetizers: Lobster and lobster mousse with American caviar and lemon mousseline

Wine pairing: Maison Pascale Doney Meursault 2011

Entree: Vol-au-vent with poached chicken, quenelles, morels, and black truffles in a Champagne sauce, served with wild rice with snow peas and apples

Wine pairing: Domaine Marc-Antonin Blain, Chassagne-Montrachet 2010

Dessert: Baked Alaska with Passion Fruit and Cassis Sorbet

Dinner was served in the Great Hall at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which was kitted out in decor inspired by Cecil Beaton's 1948 photograph of eight models in Charles James ballgowns.