A twist on classic challah for Rosh Hashanah or if you just want to impress your friends with what amounts to a very fluffy apple cake, this honey and apple challah is really good with a big cup of hot tea or coffee on a cold day. The honey gives it a nice sweetness without being overwhelming. I only used a single apple but I kind of wanted more apples in it, I might try using apple butter instead of regular butter for extra apple goodness next time.
By the time you read this I’ll be in sunny, warm Montenegro on vacation! It’ll be at least two weeks of no bentos but recipes will still publish for those weeks so you probably won’t even notice the passage of time.
chicken noodle soup, bread, grapes, orange
carrot-zucchini pancakes, apple butter, syrup, yogurt with nuts and raisins, apple 
pasta with red sauce, salad, apple 
chicken tikka masala, rice, apple
This is the last week before we go on vacation for two whole weeks (yikes!) so this is a bit boring as far as menus go because everything needs to be eaten up at the end of the week so I want to make familiar food so I know exactly how much it makes (and most of it can be saved if there’s leftovers).
Saturday lentils with naan
out @ ???
Sunday quesadillas
chicken noodle soup
Monday stir fry noodles, chickpea salad, fruit
potato cakes with fried egg, salad
Tuesday zucchini pancakes, yogurt with fruit, apple
tikka masala, rice
Wednesday chicken noodle soup, bread, salad, fruit
stir fry noodles
Thursday potato cakes, fried egg, carrots and hummus, yogurt with fruit
leftovers
Friday tikka masala, rice, salad, fruit
eat leftovers (and clean out fridge for vacation!)
chicken noodle soup
tikka masala
potato cakes
zucchini pancakes
stir fry noodles
stir fry noodles
tomato sauce
sun dried tomato
onions
carrots
grapes
nectarines
salad
zucchini
pepper
rice
small pasta
lavash
black bread
feta
milk
cream
yogurt
cereal
cat food
chicken thighs
Udon is shockingly easy to make and without any special tools. It’s less work intensive than making spaghetti and less fussy than any egg pasta and again, it needs nothing more than a rolling pin, 5 minutes of work, and a handful of pantry staples. Works great in a quick soup or dipped in soy sauce on a hot day.
I’m back on my game! Some new things and some old things too this week which is a good mix of colors and textures and recipes, hopefully I can deliver two more good weeks before two weeks of vacation (I’m so busy this time of year!) and then birthdays and holidays come up really quickly! Yikes!
Onion tart, salad, yogurt with nectarines 
Chicken with snowpeas, rice, carrots and hummus, apple 
Coconut vegetable curry, rice, nuts and chocolate, nectarine 
Bean burgers, salad, carrots and hummus, apple 
Samosa (potato and pea), spiced couscous, yogurt with plums
Finally back with a new menu but only for two weeks before I take a break for two weeks to go on vacation so let’s make these next ones count.
Saturday bean burgers (leftovers)
samosa (round 2)
Sunday coconut vegetable curry (leftovers)
scrounge
Monday refried bean and cheese quesadillas, corn salad, salsa, sour cream, fruit
coconut lentils, stuffed naan
Tuesday zucchini pancakes, boiled egg, yogurt, fruit
lasagna
Wednesday coconut lentils, stuffed naan, fruit
bean and cheese quesadillas
Thursday one layer lasagna, salad, bread, fruit
leftovers
Friday chickpeas salad, boiled egg, fruit
pizza night!
coconut lentils
stuffed naan
one-layer lasagna
zucchini pancakes
chickpea salad
salsa
tortilla
olive oil
chickpeas
tinned tomato
red sauce
beans
corn
apples
grapes
plums
mushrooms
salad
onions
zucchini
carrots
cucumber
red onion
pepper
cherry tomatoes
avocado
lasagna
flour
lentils
goat cheese
mozzarella
parmesan
eggs
sour cream
ground turkey
These muffins goes really well with simple soup or just as a snack on their own. They come out light and fluffy despite having a lot of cheese in them and he taste is exactly how’d you expect it. This is also a one bowl wonder so it takes all of 10 minutes to come together and makes a full dozen muffins.
If you wanted a tart with a distilled onion flavor, this is it. I’m always looking for ways to use caramelized onions because they’re so delicious and this might be the ultimate way to use them. It’s the perfect tart with just a hint of sweetness that keeps it tasting fresh.
Only one more week before our families will be here and I’m not sure how lunches will be after that but this was a perfectly normal week so lunches ahoy:
Harrisa spiced couscous with cucumber raita, plums and gooseberries
Spinach quiche, salad, carrots and dip, apple 
Roasted chicken thigh, mashed potatoes, grapes and gooseberries, salad 
Vegetable Pad Thai, salad, apple 
Dum aloo, rice, salad, apple
This is probably my last menu for a three or four weeks since we’ll have family in town until almost mid-September (and then we go on vacation just a week or two after that! Hectic!) but it’s a good one. I have recipes queued until the end of August but I’m not sure if I’ll manage to make any more between now and then so this blog might be a little silent until October.
Saturday leftovers
mac and cheese with ground turkey and spinach
Sunday eggs and toast
goulash
Monday leftover macs, salad, yogurt with fruit
hummus wraps
Tuesday arnacini, salad, fruit
homemade miso udon
Wednesday goulash, rye, salad, fruit
arnacini
Thursday hummus wraps, boiled egg, salad, fruit
out for dinner with mom
Friday leftovers
out for dinner with mom
goulash
arancini
hummus wraps
udon noodles
yogurt
fruit x 2
macs
red pepper
salad
feta
tomato sauce
cheddar
ground turkey
fresh spinach
thighs
zucchini
carrots
onions
hummus
lavash
rye
short grain rice
mozz
flour
cereal
milk