Bento (170) - Panko Encrusted Chicken Bits

Behold!  Artfully arranged leftovers from a teriyaki bowl dinner.  :)    I gave Goose some white rice, steamed veggies (zucchini, squash, and broccoli), and panko encrusted chicken bits that were fried in oil for extra yummy goodness.  The piggy sauce holder has teriyaki sauce to be poured over all the aforementioned items.

Top right is cooked carrots with a cheese star (gouda . . . if I'm not mistaken), and bottom right is grape/blueberry salad.

I am sad to announce the loss of one of my panda food picks.  He lived a good life, but suffered a run in with the garbage disposal.  He will be missed.  :(

Bento (169) - Egg Foo Yong

Today's bento was Egg Foo Yong.  What it lacks in cuteness it makes up for in FLAVOR!  ::drool::  It's basically eggs, artificial crab, green onions, and pea pods (or if you're a super-lazy bento artist like me . . . . peas run under cold water to defrost them), soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sugar all scrambled and poured over rice.  Top right corner was raspberry/blueberry salad and bottom right corner was sweet potato and apple salad (both are boiled in sugar water until soft and then lightly glazed with honey or maple syrup).  Yum!

Bento (168) - Lemon Pepper Tilapia and Noodles 'Cause . . . Leftovers

Sooooo. . . . since I've determined to stop whining about my cruddy week -- I was gored by a hippopotamus, and I'm very very very sorry this post is late :)

Goose had ham sandwich bento (yes, it has become a staple) with strawberry/grape salad, cooked carrots, and a mini-cupcake holder of mini-mochi.  YUM!  He actually ate the ENTIRE THING!!!  (Except the sushi grass . . . because that's not edible.)  O.O

J. and I had variations on the same theme . . . except instead of "ham sandwich" we had lemon-pepper tilapia leftovers over noodles.  I should have stuffed a lettuce leaf or some cilantro between the fish and noodles to add some greenery . . . but I am still clinging to this silly idea that getting to work on time is a good idea . . . :P

Bento (167) - Lemon Pepper Tilapia

Believe it or not, I've been trying to make this post since Monday.  O.o  The interwebs briefly deserted my home, but a new wireless router has once again opened the floodgate to more adorable food!

Monday's bento was lemon-pepper tilapia fillets on a bed of lightly pickled (a/k/a rubbed with salt and left alone for five minutes) cucumber slices and brown rice.  Upper left is cherry tomato/pickled garlic/sweet bell pepper salad, and upper right is strawberry and grape fruit salad.  Of course, using tomatoes and strawberries made my bento rather . . . red . . . which is why I added a solid line of yellow bell peppers to make things a little more appetizing to the eye.  :)

Goose has a chickie sauce holder filled with ranch for dipping his bell pepper slices.  :)

Bento (166) - Imitation Crab and Avocado Bento

Friday's bento was imitation crab and avocado chunks lightly tossed in lemon juice.  Goose even ate his avocado.  O.O  Since Goose is normally not fond of green things, I included a helping of brown rice to make sure he would have a little extra variety.  Upper right is miniature mochi-bits (I'm pretty sure all the white dusting is solid preservatives :P) with a soy-soaked quail egg to add extra protein.  Bottom right is pickled garlic and and a whole sweet pepper.

I only had one extra quail egg, so I left it out of my bento.  For J.'s bento and my bento, I added a split boiled chicken egg (also soaked in soy sauce!) and added leftover fajita vegetables to help hold the egg in place.  Bizarre bento tips for folks . . . the more you chop something up into smaller bits, the easier it is to stuff in small spaces and arrange.  I actually had quite a bit of difficulty attractively arranging the pickled garlic since the pepper is a firm item and doesn't exactly . . . . squish.  :P

 

Bento (165) - Alien Sheep-Cakes

 

I didn't even intend to make a bento this morning.  Then I realized I had brown rice . . . and two quail eggs . . . and ten minutes . . . and I thought to myself I can do this in ten minutes!  I'll be honest -- it took fifteen.  :P But if you're wondering why the horns are a little sloppy and there are no mouths on my fluffy brown rice sheep . . . now you know the sad sad truth.  The sheep-cakes are brown rice with a quail egg pressed in the center.  (I soak the quail eggs in soy sauce to make them brown.)  The horns are cheese (hand carved in a hurry) and the eyes are punches of nori.  Yes, I do have the little smiley face hole punchers.  :P  In retrospect, I probably should have gone with simple circles to keep them from looking like little aliens, but what the hey!  Upper right is a Del Monte fruit cup deposited directly from the can into my bento.  The pink is a mini-cupcake holder with an umiboshi (pickled plum) in the center.  Bottom right is the last of the leftover sweet simmered mushrooms topped with carrot stars.  I ended up using the mushrooms to flavor the brown rice . . . so it turns out I didn't even need the piggie holder filled with soy sauce.