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My first thoughts while going through Uma Raghuraman’s cookbook was that I wish someone had written this when I was in school, or even while my own children were in school. My lunch box always, inevitably, held paranthas with some pickle sitting snug in the middle, diffusing its flavour into every fold of the flatbread—simple and delicious, but a little boring day after day. My own children got paranthas with a wholesome subji and, occasionally, sandwiches or Maggi.

In her cookbook, Raghuraman, a food blogger and recipient of several prestigious food awards, gives recipes for balanced, nutritious meals that also lend themselves to easy packing and portability—great for school children and office-goers alike. Her lunches are planned with some essential tenets in mind—they should not be time-consuming, should not compromise on taste, must be pleasing to a child’s eye and should be packed in a way that a child can eat it easily and without creating a mess. In that, Raghuraman’s lunch boxes will remind one of the Japanese and Korean bento boxes—nutritious, glamorous and convenient.