French Savory Cake Recipe (Smoked Salmon Cake)

Savory cakes ("le cake salé" in French) are the perfect dish if you want to serve a light, enjoyable lunch. Cake salé, as the name implies, is just a savory adaptation of a sweet cake. Sugar, chocolate and fruits are replaced with cold meats/ or fish (I used smoked salmon), olives and strong cheeses. For a nice contrast in texture, I added walnuts. Instead of baking the cake in a standard loaf pan, I used individual mini molds. So cute!

This cake is also ideal for picnics and potlucks, as it meets all the requirements for safe transport. No need to re-heat! I recently served cake salé with a salad and finished the meal with a fruit medley. It was a flavorful meal that no one felt guilty about afterwards!

Octopus Sushi (Cooked Sushi Recipe)

We've been setting up my little sis-in-law’s school lunch menu as she's about to enter 1^st grade tomorrow. She participated in the entire process. The little munchkin mentioned that she loves sushi and wanted to have some for lunch this school year. It's a fast and easy way for her to have a quick lunch, so I was happy to oblige. She also mentioned she loves baby octopus but she doesn't want to scare her friends away with weird food so I coarsely chopped them and used them as the filling along with other vegetables. I cooked each ingredient separately, let them cool completely and then combined then into sushi rolls. The sushi got an “A” from my sis-in-law, so I'll definitely be packing them for her this school year.

Involving children in preparing their own food encourages them to eat with more enthusiasm. Cooking in a fun environment is also a way to learn. If your kids aren’t adventurous enough for octopus, you can try some of my other school lunch recipe ideas.

Back to School Lunch Ideas: Fig Cheese Appetizer Recipe

My husband's youngest sister is starting 1st grade next Wednesday. We just met her new teacher and classmates during a lovely potluck picnic this week. Our first "homework" is to prepare a menu for her lunch box. She's very excited about what we will pack for her.

Our family friend Chú Quân had kindly just brought us humongous fist-sized figs from his garden. I immediately thought of a snack my little sis-in-law wouldn't be able to resist. This fig and cheese sandwich recipe is ultra simple. I pack separate containers of the ingredients (fresh figs, fig jam, camembert and pizelle anise cookies) and let her assemble the snack!

I'll be posting more B2S recipes next week as my little munchkin starts school, so stay tuned!

How to Make Mirchi Bhaji (Mirchi Pakora Recipe)

My father-in-law really loves spicy food, so I thought I would surprise him with stuffed mirchi pakora, which are whole green chile fritters. Before getting started, I had to estimate the level of spiciness of the chiles. It turned out the green chiles we bought from the Indian market this week were painfully spicy. So I made an incision in each chile and removed all the seeds.

The preparation method I learned from Lulu’s grandmother involves stuffing the chiles with tamarind paste, then dipping them in (besan) chickpea batter before deep-frying them until golden brown.

I have to admit I didn't try any, but in my defense, even Lulu, Daddy and the girls found the peppers really spicy. Don’t get me wrong; they really enjoyed them even though the girls ended up chugging milk to help offset the spiciness. I’m just saying, you’ve been warned!

Roasted Creamer Potatoes

Creamer potatoes are potatoes that are harvested while they're still young. I recently bought these apricot-sized potatoes at the farmers' market. They were so cute, I couldn't resist!

I roasted them whole with skins on and rubbed them in butter flavored with oregano flowers from our garden. The potatoes have a crisp-skin on the outside, while the inside is tender and moist. If you can't find creamer potatoes, you can use Yukons that have been cut into quarters, but it's not the same as having each bite wrapped in crispy potato skin. Mmmmmm.