Although we may not have thought about it for a while now, the needs of those going back to school are inching towards the front burner. Along with pencils, lined notebooks, rulers and more, so will folks be shopping for backpacks and lunch totes for bringing homemade lunch to school. When the school year begins, the weather will still be warm and the makings for salads plentiful, so healthy options like chilled antipasto and fruits salads are good choices – so long as they can be kept cold and appetizing. To achieve that, look for a tote with the ability to keep food cold for hours, such as Packit’s Freezable Carryall Lunch Bag, which features a patented built- into-the- liner freezable gel. While a homemade lunch is nutritious and can be made-to-order, it also needs to be fun. To go along with the fresh fruit salad, why not pack a piece of homemade cake, too. Rosie Alyea’s from scratch recipe for Super White Cake, from her recently released “The Sweetapolita Bakebook: 75 Fanciful Cakes, Cookies & More to Make & Decorate,” is a bona fide “keeper.” Moist and light, Rosie’s white cake is as good a white cake as you could ever hope to bake. Yes, preceded by a homemade breakfast and followed with a homemade dinner, a homemade back-to-school lunch, made with love and packed with care, is best.

Sue Ade is a syndicated food writer with broad experience and interest in the culinary arts. She has worked and resided in the Lowcountry of South Carolina since 1985 and may be reached at kitchenade@yahoo.com.