Everything cookies, coriander chutney sandwiches shake up back-to-school lunches

Each September on top of geared up work, school and extracurricular schedules, parents are charged with the task of creating portable lunches to send off with their kids every day.

But it's usually the grown-ups who put pressure on themselves to pack an interesting and innovative array of meals. Meanwhile, most kids take comfort in the familiar.

For the most part, they just want something that tastes good.

Of course it's not just students. Most Canadians eat lunch away from home, which means they're either packing it or buying it.

Some of us can have a fairly rigid idea of what constitutes lunch. Perhaps it should be a sandwich, an apple and a granola bar — an idea often spurred on by the big food companies that make individually packaged, lunchbox-sized snacks.

In fact, lunchtime is a great opportunity to eat all kinds of interesting things. With the wide variety of insulated lunch containers available these days, it's possible to pack just about anything you like to eat.

• For more of Julie Van Rosendaal's tasty meals, bookmark cbc.ca/juliesrecipes

Consider what your kids like to eat at home, whether it's spaghetti or salmon or curries or hummus. Most of it can be packed to go.

If you have kids with little fingers who can be overwhelmed by a big sandwich or Thermos of soup, try tucking bite-sized nibbles into paper muffin liners. Filled with cheese, salami sticks, crackers, grapes, baby tomatoes or dried fruit, the paper liners can be nestled into a flat container for them to munch while they play with friends.

Of course anytime you eat with a group, there's an opportunity to discover potential new lunch ideas. These coriander chutney sandwiches were a staple in my friend Vanessa's childhood lunchbox. Now they're one of my favourite things to eat at my desk or pack to go.

Theresa's coriander chutney

My friend Vanessa's mom, Theresa, makes a spectacular fresh coriander chutney. She spreads it on soft buttered white bread to make sandwiches. They are phenomenal, compact and don't get soggy or drippy. They're wonderful to nibble at your desk.

Ingredients

• 10-20 raisins.
• 2 bundles of fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves. Save the stems for your curries.
• 1 small onion, chopped.
• 3 small green chilies, chopped. Remove seeds and membranes for less heat.
• 2.5-centimetre or one-inch piece of fresh ginger, chopped.
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled.
• Juice of a lemon.
• 1/3 of a package of coconut cream.
• ¼-½ cup ground almonds. These are optional, if it's going to school.
• 1 tsp salt.
• ½ tsp cumin.
• ¼ tsp pepper.

Preparation:

In a small bowl, soak the raisins in some warm water while you get the rest of the chutney going.

Into a blender, put the coriander, onion and chilies. Theresa keeps the seeds and membranes where most of the heat is. Also add ginger, garlic and lemon juice to the blender. Pulse while scraping down the sides until it's partially blended.

Drain the water off the raisins and add them along with coconut cream, almonds, salt, cumin and pepper. Blend, pouring in a bit of water as needed to help turn it into a fine paste.

Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Serving: Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to four days. Freeze for longer storage. Makes about two cups.

Everything cookies

Remember the Heartland Cafe in Sunnyside? They sold these grainy "nutri-cookies" that were loaded with oats, chocolate, nuts and dried fruit. Everyone loved them.

These are an adaptation of that cookie. The originals were made with margarine and had a couple tablespoons of buttermilk in them, as well. The recipe was published in Heartland Country Store Cookbook, circa 1993.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, at room temperature.
• 1 cup packed brown sugar.
• 2 large eggs.
• 2 tsp vanilla.
• 2 cups all-purpose flour or half all-purpose and half whole wheat, or oat flour.
• 2 cups oats.
• 1/3 cup bran, oat bran or ground flaxseed.
• 1 tsp baking soda.
• 1 tsp baking powder.
• 1 tsp salt.
• 1.5 cups chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips.
• ½-1 cup dried cranberries.
• ¼ cup sliced or slivered almonds, optional.
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional.
• ¼ cup sunflower, sesame and/or pumpkin seeds.

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 177 C/350 F. In a large bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar for a few minutes until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. It may look separated but that's OK.

Add the flour, oats, oat bran, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir or mix on low speed until almost blended. Add the chocolate, cranberries, nuts and seeds. Stir just until combined.

Drop large, roughly ¼ to 1/3 cup, scoops onto a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet.

Flatten each to a 1.25-centimetre or half-inch thickness with your hand.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until pale golden around the edges. It should be set but still soft in the middle. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Serving: Makes 1.5 to two dozen cookies.

Hear more about Julie Van Rosendaal's tips for back-to-school lunches:

• MORE RECIPES | Breakfast stew, popcorn chicken and waffles make for hearty brunches
• MORE RECIPES | Savoury pairing of grilled eggplant dip and lagana a fun foray into Greek cuisine
• MORE RECIPES | Delightfully fresh seafood ceviche perfect dish for light summer supper
• ​​Read more articles by CBC Calgary, like us on Facebook for updates and subscribe to our CBC Calgary newsletter for the day's news at a glance​.

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener.