Obento Obsession

Bento (158) - Steak and Noodles for Kidlet

2011-12-24T06:40:00.001-08:00

Goose actually asks me for bentos every once in a while. I guess all the pain and suffering I went through while he was in Kindergarten paid off ^.^

This was a quick and easy kidlet bento. For the left, I cut several slices of steak and "fanned" them out for display. The white is plain soba noodles, and the piggy is filled with sweet soy broth (for both steak and noodles). Upper right is golden kiwi and grapes. Lower right is cherry tomatoes and pickled garlic (he picked out the garlic and left the tomatoes :P)

Bento (157) - Egg Foo Yong - Why yes, I do make this a lot!

2011-12-24T06:36:00.000-08:00

What can I say? It's fast, it's easy, and it's tasty - which is why I make Egg Foo Yong a lot. I ran out of time to decorate the left side :( :( :( (silly work)- which is essentially a mixture of egg, imitation crab, peas, green onions, and nommy nommy sauce over rice. The right side is fruit salad (courtesy of Sams club) and peas - separated by a barrier of lettuce. I scattered carrot flowers over the top, and added a mini-food cup with umeboshi and rabbit pick.

Bento (156) - Sad Panda . . . er . . . Happy Panda

2011-12-21T22:09:00.001-08:00

This is more panko-encrusted chicken with stir fry vegetables - but I wanted to point out the cute little butterfly I made with one of my new cookie cutters! Squee!

Top left is blueberries topped with cheese cut outs. The flower in the lower right is an umeboshi with a pea sliced in half to make the "leaves."

Bento (155) - Lion Safari

2011-12-21T21:58:00.001-08:00

Hello! My apologies for the long delay in um . . . . healthy lunches. Rumors of my fleeing the internet have been greatly exaggerated! I haven't made many bentos lately - and sadly, for whatever reason, I forgot to post the ones I did make. So I have a little catching up to do - and then hopefully it's back to my healthy habits. ::fingers crossed:: The New Year is a good time for that, right?

Top layer is sweet potato/apple salad and tomato/pickled garlic salad. Bottom level is panko-encrusted chicken, rice, and umeboshi.

And a kawaii lion pick! That was mean of me to get all my new toys and not show them off, wasn't it? :P

Bent (154) - Egg Foo Yong and Panda

2011-08-23T21:02:00.001-07:00

My long awaited supplies have arrived from J-Box ::squeeeeeeeeee:: and should be making appearances shortly. Today, I packed my new black neko (cat) box (the kitty face is actually a freezable cold pack . . . how adorable is that?!) with egg foo yong (a mixture of egg, soy, sugar, onions, fishcake, peas, and carrots) over rice - and I packed the top with potato salad (left), fruit salad (right), a broccoli divider (if you can't identify the broccoli, I can't help you) with two grapes and an umeboshi (pickled plum) up front.

And a kawaii (cute) panda. Don't forget the panda!!! :P :P :P I also topped the two salads with cheese stars from one of my new cheese punches. Hooray!

Join me in the madness as I contemplate the cuteness! MU HA HA.

Did I mention I can make fried eggs that look like little bears now? ::squeeeeeeeeeee:: (with the yellow bear mold to the far right . . . yes, yes . . . that is for fried eggs . . . or pancakes ^.^).

Bento (153) - Checkered Apple

2011-08-18T22:32:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention . . . while making apple flowers, I decided to give myself a little reminder about knife safety. Hahahahahaha . . ha . . . ha. . . . . The good news is: it could have been worse (much worse!). However, I feel obligated to throw out the following safety tip - ALWAYS work with a sharp knife, because if your knife is dull, you tend to apply pressure, and it is far more likely the knife will slip. Of course, I didn't cut myself doing the detail work on the apple flower . . . no . . . I cut myself cutting the apple in half. ::sigh:: It's no more than a papercut - I'm just highly annoyed at myself and grateful it wasn't worse. Thank you thank you thank you to whatever guardian spirit was watching out for my poor little fingertip.

Onwards and downwards! Today's bento was more leftover PF Chang's orange chicken, rice, umeboshi (pickled plum), the utterly nommy tomato/pickled garlic salad (a new favorite!!), and a checkered apple.

Bento (152) - Apple Flower

2011-08-18T22:29:00.000-07:00

In trying to get inspired to bento again, I decided to play with apples this week. This lovely apple flower had to be collapsed down for storage, but I was able to spread the leaves before I ate it! Om nom nom!

For the observant - pictures with a white background are taken at work (my cubicle desk is white). Top level is grapes, apple flower, and carrot cutout with tomato/pickled garlic salad. I bought the pickled garlic at the Renaissance Festival - and it is amazingly delicious!! Bottom level is PF Chang's frozen orange chicken, rice and umeboshi (pickled plum).

Bento (151) - Fried Chicken and Penguin Dividers

2011-08-18T21:18:00.000-07:00

On further reflection, there is something vaguely disturbing about a happy penguin peeking out from beneath the fried portion of a distant cousin . . . . :P Aside from that little oddity - bottom level is fried chicken over noodles. The kiwi container holds sweet soy broth for the noodles, and a few slices of real kiwi add decoration. I also sprinkled a few corn kernels for color. Top level is sliced avocado with vinegar/salt dipping sauce in the watermelon container and a silicone cupcake holder with kiwi/strawberry and yogurt.

Bento (150) - Ponyo Noodles

2011-08-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Also known as the world's yummiest way to make ramen. Plus - you can make two servings with very few ingredients (you even split the packet of ramen in half!!)

For ponyo noodles I start with ramen noodles (throw away the seasoning packet) and add all the nommy stuff - green onions, boiled egg, carrots (cut into cute star shapes!) any other veggies, some sort of protein (in this case - turkey), soup base, and siracha sauce (I can't remember how to spell it at the moment - and I'm too lazy to go look it up).

Om nom nom!

Bento (149) - Leftover Cherries

2011-07-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

Today's goal as to use all the leftover cherries before I was forced to throw them out. I am trying to be better about food wastage. I actually really like the contrast between the cherries and the carrot/edamame salad. Fruits and veggies! All together!

Bottom level was beef in sweet soy broth (surprise surprise) with noodles - but I added peas and carrots to the meat side for a little veggie twist. Oddly, the peas actually ended up flavoring the sauce . . . . I think I'll stick to cilantro in the future - but I LOVED what the veggies did in regards to adding color! ^.^

Bento (148) - Community Stuffed Pasta Shells

2011-07-18T18:30:00.000-07:00

My favorite part about this dish is that a neighbor made the stuffed pasta shells for a community meeting. Aside from watching old Leave it to Beaver re-runs, I don't think I've ever actually seen someone voluntarily make food for a community meeting :P It was a lovely gesture - and leftovers made for a lovely bento. Thank you, neighbor!!

Aside from the purloined pasta shells, the white spots are pickled garlic (courtesy of the Queen of Garlic at the Renaissance Festival). Bottom level is kiwi/craisin salad, a fishie egg (who, sadly, didn't hold his fishie-ness - must have been too hot still when I put him in the bento :( ), and a scoop of deli-made greek salad.

I can only take credit for one portion of this bento. I boiled the egg! WHEEE!

Bento (147) - The Road Less Traveled By

2011-07-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

So . . . I've been reading a few of my bento books to try and add a few more delicious lunches to my current routine . . . and I realized I have (sadly) never made soboro (ground beef and eggs over rice). While I was pondering my bento in the shower (don't ask) - I was suddenly hit by inspiration . . . I had little kung pao chicken nuggets that could be statues . . . and I could make a little ground beef road . . . and . . . and . . . VOILA!!!! Freeform bento!!

The pickled plum sun in the upper right-hand corner didn't stand out as much as I would have liked, but overall, I was very pleased with this bento. And I discovered Craisins and rice actually make a fairly interesting combination. Maybe I'll have to try Craisin rice balls . . . .

Bento (146) - Soy Bunny Chaperones

2011-07-02T08:24:00.000-07:00

This bento post brought to you direct from the Shoebox - the Interwebs have returned! HOORAY. I also won't mention the LARGE quantity of bento supplies soon to arrive from J-Box in celebration of my new job. Tee hee!!

Today's lunch was leftover P.F. Chang Kung Pao chicken (spruced up with frozen stir-fry veggies). Top level is soy bunnies sitting on top of butter/lemon edamame and potato salad. Center is store-bought mochi. Yellow container holds the kun pao sauce for the chicken nuggets.

As a side note . . . the edamame sauteed in butter with a dash of lemon juice was delicious for dinner - but the butter turned thick and grainy overnight and made for a rather unpleasant texture on the edamame in my bento the next day. Oops. :P Lesson learned - and I thought I'd pass it along so you can benefit from my mistakes ^.^

Bento (145) - Brightening Up Brown Noodles

2011-06-25T18:37:00.001-07:00

Did I mention I've become a noodle snob? I can't even eat spaghetti noodles anymore! To change up my sweet soy beef dinner, I changed out the usual white udon noodles for brown soba noodles . . . and then realized that brown meat and brown noodles make for an awfully well - brown - bento :P

It was necessary to add lettuce, corn, edamame, and TWO - yes TWO - kawaii sauce holders to make this bento as bright as I wanted. Top level is edamame/radish rose, kiwi, and potato salad. To make the little flower, I put down two edamame leaves, and a little piece of red pepper (which was already in the potato salad). SCORE!

And for all those wondering about Goose's chicken nugget bento. HE ATE IT!!!

Bento (144) - Bento Surprise - Goose's Request

2011-06-25T18:27:00.000-07:00

Goose caught me making my bento yesterday and said: "Mommy - remember when you used to make me lunches? I REALLY want you to make me a lunch . . . please please please?"

O.O

Needless to say, I suffered through all the flashbacks of the times I carefully prepared his lunches - only to have him 1) hate the ingredients; 2) forget to eat it; or 3) turn it upside down, shake, and then complain that it was all jumbled up at lunchtime . . . .

And I made him a bento with dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets. I tossed in leftover soba noodles and sweet soy broth from dinner, and included two piggies - one with ketchup for the nuggets and one with the sweet soy for the noodles. One chopped up kiwi, a scattering of frozen corn and some pre-cooked edamame - and a dollop of white potato salad to showcase the piggy and VOILA!

It even looks cute with the lid on! Awwww.

Bento (143) - Return of Panko Encrusted Chicken

2011-06-25T18:21:00.000-07:00

When I first started bento, each bento took me an average of 40 minutes (and since I was making 3 every morning, I was cooking a good 2 hours!!!) Now, I'm down to one bento, it usually only takes me 15-20 minutes . . . . but since I got used to a few favorite recipes, I sort of fall into the rut of making what I know. Time to go buy a new bento book and EXPERIMENT!!! Muhahahahahah . . .

In the meantime, the top level is the usual panko-encrusted chicken nuggets with rice and pickled plum. Bottom was watermelon (mmmMMMmmmm) with cheddarjack cheese stars and mixed veggies - courtesy of a frozen bag of stir-fry veggies. Sauce container has teriyaki sauce for the chicken nuggets.

Bento (142) - Bento my Bento Leftovers

2011-06-09T09:57:00.000-07:00

Don't laugh - but I actually bentoed leftovers from a bento lunch I bought on the 16th Street Mall. (You're laughing . . . aren't you?!) Just kidding! About being angry - not the bento. A lovely little restaurant has sprung up next to Jamba Juice - and I'm afraid I can't remember if it is called Obento or just Bento (I know, I know . . . I lose bento points for not paying attention). If anyone needs any further incentive to try them out, they also serve delightful boba teas . . . . MmmmMMMmmmm. For those who are wondering - what is boba? . . . . they're giant blueberry-size tapioca beads added to a smoothie. If you like tapioca - you'll have a new addiction. If you despise tapioca, you probably won't like boba.

Anyhoo . . .

I can take credit for the blueberry/raspberry salad, broccoli/edamame/and carrot star salad, and the pickled plum. The rice and the lovely bulgogi beef both came from Obento - and tasted just as delicious the second day. Om nom nom!!

Bento (141) - Carrot Stars and Cilantro

2011-06-09T09:50:00.000-07:00

Today's bento is accompanied by the announcement that the Internets should be returning to my humble home (which I have nicknamed the Shoebox)! HOORAY! More frequent updating opportunities . . . or, at the least, if I don't update - you know I'm just wasting my time surfing Facebook or some such :P

Onto the food!
This week featured edamame and carrot stars, raspberry/blueberry salad, and beef in sweet soy broth accompanied by noodles (with a sauce container of the soy broth). I discovered chopping cilantro and scattering it over the meat makes for a quick way to make the meat more attractive - and didn't require a lot of "arranging." Hooray for cilantro! (If you make bentos for others, be careful with cilantro. In a certain percentage of folks, there is some sort of gene that makes the herb taste like soap - but not me! Hooray!)

Bento (140) - Kung Pao Bento

2011-05-15T13:20:00.001-07:00

And for my final post in this batch of bentos - I tried the P.F. Chang frozen Kung Pao Chicken bag . . . which also turned out to be delicious. If I had more time, I would have liked to stuff a few more veggies around the baked chicken to add a little color - but this was one of those "oh-my-gosh-I'm-late-and-I-need-to-pack-a-lunch" five-minute bentos. Everything is fairly identifiable - yogurt, craisins, rice, pickled plum, and green giraffe food pick to add a little fun! The yellow sauce container has the kung pao sauce, which was poured over the chicken before eating.

Bento (139) - Restaurant Sandwich Makeover

2011-05-15T13:16:00.000-07:00

I ordered a turkey/cranberry sandwich from a local restaurant, and decided to try arranging the leftovers in my bento. I think it turned out quite well! The strawberry/kiwi salad came from my fridge, but the broccoli and other veggies were leftover steamed veggies from the restaurant, provided with the sandwich. Proof that you can bento almost anything - and enjoy the presentation just as much as when someone else first gave it to you!

Bento (138) - Orange Chicken - Take 2

2011-05-15T13:13:00.000-07:00

Day 2 of orange chicken - accompanied by squash and zuchinni baked with a little salt/pepper/terragon and oil . . . I highly recommend these. Then I got creative with yogurt and craisins . . . . Bottom tier is the usual boring orange chicken/rice/pickled plum.

Bento (137) - Orange Chicken and Rainbow Mochi

2011-05-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Nothing adds to a batch of frozen P.F. Chang's orange chicken like rainbow mochi. Mmmmmm. Anyhoo - I experimented with a squash salad recipe (upper left), but added a touch too much mayo. It was still absolutely DELICIOUS - if a little whiter than I wanted :P :P :P Will have to try it again with less mayo and more squash (ingredients: cooked squash, salted cucumber slices, chopped boiled egg, and mayo). Bottom level is P.F. Changs orange chicken and rice - with a pickled plum (which I found out - acts as a preservative. COOL!). I tossed in a few whole strawberries and called it good!

Bento (136) - Return of the Apple Bunny

2011-04-23T16:55:00.000-07:00

It's been forever since I made an apple bunny - and it seemed the perfect way to spruce up my leftover egg foo yong. Pink stuff in the middle is blueberry yogurt sprinkled with craisins (cranberry raisins). Right hand side of the top level is Sams Club pinwheels . . . you can only see the tortilla wrapping and not the pretty stuffing. :P :P :P

Bento (135) - Egg Foo Yong and Checkered Apple

2011-04-23T16:46:00.001-07:00

Today's bento is egg foo yong (eggs, onions, artificial crab meat, soy, sugar - and probably something I'm forgetting) over rice . . . . mmmmmmmmm . . . with kale decorations and a fishie container filled with soy sauce. Top level is a checkered apple and a side of edamame topped with a radish flower.

Bento (134) - Gyoza Bunny!

2011-04-23T16:43:00.001-07:00

For today's bento, I found half a bag of frozen gyoza (wow - who knew?) in the door to my freezer. I've finally replenished my stock of shelled edamame, and used one of the last two pickled plums to spruce up the rice. Add a grape and kiwi side-salad, and voila! Bento happiness.

Bento (133) - Animal Safari

2011-04-23T16:36:00.000-07:00

After I invested in new pretty tupperware (yes - I actually appreciate that they added attractive little swirl patterns to the plastic) - I decided I better get off my heiney and continue my bentos before I lose all my lovely followers :P So to kick off the bento spree . . . we have an animal safari!! Otherwise known as panko encrusted chicken bites, rice, and stir fry veggies. Hooray!

Bento (132) - SHEEP!!!! (and Bunnies)

2011-03-14T19:52:00.000-07:00

The quail eggs made me do it. I volunteered to bring a veggie side dish to a potluck . . . but the quail eggs were on the bottom shelf of the fridge . . . softly calling. "We want to be sheep!" . . . then one said "I want to be a bunny!!" and before I knew it . . . I had sheep and bunnies instead of broccoli salad (like I had planned).

Bento (131) - Artistic Mochi!

2011-03-14T19:48:00.001-07:00

And now for something different . . . . . I had some leftover mochi (of a nommy hazelnut variety), so I cut two in half and ended up with the bizarre tear drop shaped items in the green cupcake holder. To the left is frozen carrots and peas, to the right is kiwi. Bottom level is P.F. Chang's mongolian beef and broccoli (I added the monkey!) and rice with cheese stars. Om nom nom!

Bento (130) - Fun with Lettuce

2011-03-14T19:34:00.000-07:00

The long dark silence between posts . . . :P

And now . . presenting food!

This was a simple teriyaki chicken bits and rice (additional teriyaki sauce in the sauce holder), blueberry and commercial jelly salad, and green bean casserole topped with crunchy Funions (crunchy onion flavored bits). Mmmmmmmmmmmm.

Bento (129) - Spaghetti Bento

2011-02-07T19:42:00.000-08:00

Today's bento was fairly "American" . . . blueberry/strawberry salad, peas and corn, and bottom level is spaghetti around a cupcake holder filled with spaghetti sauce and topped with a cheese flower and random corn/peas.

As a sidenote, I generally drop all my veggies in frozen, and they usually thaw by lunch. Today some of the corn was still covered in ice crystals . . . but it is amazing how much more vivid the colors are at lunch.

I've also become such a noodle snob. I found the spaghetti noodles tough and chewy - despite having cooked them three times longer than my soba or udon noodles. What do we do to our noodles to make them so different?!!! Vitamin supplements?

Bento (128) - Mongolian Beef

2011-02-07T19:38:00.001-08:00

Pulling a frozen bag o' P.F. Chang's new line of t.v. dinners and heating it in a saucepan counts as bento, right?! :P :P :P

Top level is carrots/cucumbers cut into flower shapes with a red sauce container filled with ranch. Spinach leave separators and a blueberry/strawberry salad. Bottom is P.F. Chang's mongolian beef and rice, topped with cheese and pea/corn flowers. Red is a radish rose.

Om nom nom!

Bento (127) - Spinach, Strawberry, and Soy Bunny Side Salads

2011-01-31T19:16:00.000-08:00

Since I still had an abundance of strawberries and spinach leaves (curses, Sam's Club and you're 2 pound bags of items . . . ) I decided to make spinach, strawberry, and soy bunny side salads to take to a pot-luck. The "sun" is a chicken egg (instead of a quail egg). A few salads had radish roses instead of bunnies - for those not inclined to devour adorable soy bunnies.

Bento (126) - How To Bento

2011-01-31T18:32:00.000-08:00

To continue the bento insanity . . . I didn't have time to bento in the morning, so I stuffed a grocery bag with ingredients and took a paring knife to work : ^.^ Then it dawned on me that if I was going to make a bento at work, I might as well photograph the step-by-step for the curious. Admittedly, I had a rough idea of strawberry spinach salad and skewers when I stuffed the bag, but then I had to spread out the ingredients and put some thought into it.

Step 1: Ingredients

We have store-bought fried chicken (they were out of everything else), leftover fried udon noodles, leftover deli pasta, pickled plums, half a cucumber, spinach, strawberries, mozarella cheese, various picks (since I knew I wanted skewers), a sauce container with vinaigrette, and an empty bento box with silicone cupcake holder. Observe the joy of bento!! MU HA HA.

Step 2: Pasta Salad

Stuff cupcake holder with pasta salad. Leave a small depression for pickled plum.

Step 3: Pickled Plum

Wash and dry spinach. Tear off a small piece and use it to cup the pickled plum and to keep the flavor of the plum separate from the pasta salad. Stuff plum and spinach leaf into salad.

Step 4: Spinach Salad

Lay down a bed of spinach leaves. In this case, I loosely "rolled" the leaves which made them look fluffy and left open spaces to stick strawberries in later.

Step 5: Strawberries

Cut strawberries in quarters to make cute little triangles. EAT ANY EXTRA . . . this is very important :P
Make one layer of strawberry tips to cover where the spinach meets the cupcake holder. Stuff strawberries, small point out, in the rolled leaves. Scatter a few extra torn spinach leaves to make the spinach look "leafy."

Step 6: Bed of Noodles.

I knew I would need something to support my skewers, so I laid down a bed of leftover udon noodles. . . though this bento was light on protein, so I probably should have used extra chicken meat instead.

Step 7: Garnish!

Add a few spinach leaves to the noodles to provide a background contrast and keep the skewers separate from the noodles.

Step 8: Sauce Container

Add the sauce container while there is room (since it is rather rigid and non-squishable).

Step 9: Skewers! Cucumber Chunks.

And now for skewer construction. I cut a one inch thick piece of cucumber.

Then skinned four sides to leave some dark green coloring.

And cut it into quarters to make nice thick square chunks.

Step 10: Skewers! Chicken and Cheese!

Once the cucumber was ready, I peeled the skin off the fried chicken and did my best to tear off large skewer size chunks of meat. I also opened the mozarella cheese and rolled it into soft little white balls. (Cheese is slimy. Just sayin'.) If I had thought about it, I would have sprinkled salt on the cucumber and let it set while I did this step. Consider that an optional step 9.5. ^.^

Step 11: Skewers!

Now that all the ingredients were prepared, I created skewers by poking a cute animal skewer through cucumber, chicken, and cheese. The next skewer I did chicken, cucumber, and cheese to switch up the order and make them seem a little different.

Step 12: Places, Everyone!

Once the skewers were made (notice how messy the plate was - skewers tend to require a lot of ingredients since half of them fall apart!), I place them side by side in the bento box, on top of the udon noodle bed.

First skewer:

Everyone!

Step 14: Detail Work

I took a moment to look at the box and decided to add an additional strawberry tip and some mozarella cheese to make a small strawberry flower above the sauce container.

Step 13: Enjoy!

And stared at my lunch for a good five minutes before consuming. OM NOM NOM!!!!!!

Happy bento-ing, All!

Bento (125) - Naruto Uzumaki

2011-01-31T18:24:00.000-08:00

Yes . . . I am enough of a fan girl that when I saw Naruto Uzumaki (the fishcake) at Pacific Mercantile, I had to pick it up BECAUSE OF THE NAME (admittedly, I was shopping for fishcake, so it's not as bad as it could have been . . . but still). I'm halfway to the habit of buying things based on cuteness vs. taste. MU HA HA!!

Of course . . . then I started wondering if I have the spirals going the wrong way. Or if there is a wrong way. Hrm. O.o

Top level is deli pasta salad and spinach/strawberry salad (which was apparently the ingredient of the week). Sauce container has balsamic vinaigrette. Bottom level is Naruto (Uzumaki even :P) over fried yakisoba noodles with sauteed onion and carrot.

Bento (124) - Fun with Jello

2011-01-24T19:35:00.001-08:00

Okay - the little jellies are not really the focus of this bento - but just to prove we all have our moments . . . I mostly completed this bento before realizing I had absolutely no fruit (aside from pickled plums) in the fridge. So I took an orange jelly and a clear jelly and YES . . . I took the time to dice them into small jelly cubes . . . HA HA HA ha. With a paring knife. And I didn't cut myself ^.^ I then realized the noodles were glaring white and decide to toss on some cheese toppers . . . and then I thought some folks might like a before/after comparison to see how much of a difference little details make.

End Product:

Bento before cheese stars:

Ingredients: This is my usual beef and noodles with sweet soy broth (the broth is in the sauce holder). I added a little lettuce/corn/ketchup flower to brighten up the meat . . . and oddly, the cubed jellies and zuchinni/squash ended up color coordinating. Score! Red is a pickled plum.

Bento (123) - Delightful Panko Encrusted Deep-Fried Pork Chop

2011-01-24T19:27:00.000-08:00

Today's accomplishment was making a checkered apple. YAY! Of course - the things I think look the hardest always seem to end up being the easiest :P

Top level is apples and super nommy potato salad topped by a pickled plum. Bottom level is a radish flower, carrot flowers, and peas nestled next to a super-delicious-probably-not-so-healthy Panko-encrusted pork chop. NOMMY! Rice. Pig (filled with soy sauce).

Bento (122) - Egg Foo Yong

2011-01-24T18:21:00.000-08:00

Alrighty! Another few months and I may be able to get the Internets at my house again - which will help with my posting consistency. Until then, please keep bearing with me!!

And now to the food (which is why you're really here . . . >.< Top level is blueberries with provolone cheese flowers and an assortment of vegetables (carrot sticks, radish flower, peas) accompanied by balsamic vinaigrette (in the orange sauce container). The bottom is rice covered with egg foo yong, topped with carrot stars and fishie filled with soy.

Bento (121) - SHEEP!!!!

2011-01-03T18:53:00.000-08:00

In case I haven't mentioned it in a while - I was inspired to do bento by Pikko at Adventures in Bentomaking. Pikko and Maki Ogawa recently put out a bento book called Yum Yum Bento . . . from which I have learned to make SHEEP!!! SHEEP!! (Credit where credit is due.)

Top left is blueberry/grape salad. Top right is imitation crab over avacado with corn and pea flowers. Bottom is SHEEP!!!!!! (okay - you knew that) - or fluffy rice cupcakes with quail eggs stuffed in the middle, cheese horns, and nori eyes and mouths. Bottom red circle is a radish flower.

I was late to work today. Waaaaaaay late to work.

Bento (120) - Bunny Sandwiches . . . or Rather Sandwiches and Bunnies . . .

2011-01-03T18:50:00.000-08:00

Recently my quail eggs have been dying unevenly . . . I wonder why :( Luckily, bunnies can be splotched and still be cute! Today's bento was turkey sandwiches with radish garnishes, peas with soy bunnies, and mandarin oranges with a sliced cherry.

Bento (119) - Soy Beef and Waldorf Salad

2011-01-03T18:33:00.000-08:00

I would love to take credit for the lovely waldorf salad (which was absolutely nommy), but I'm fessing up that it was a purchase from Sam's club (and after a week and a half - I'd had enough :P). I even made two bentos!

Top right hand side is peas topped with baked zuchinni and squash around a radish flower. Bottom is beef and noodles with sweet soy sauce.

And now for the same food - slightly different arrangement.

Bento (118) - Mish Mash Bento

2010-12-20T18:52:00.001-08:00

Applebees tequila lime chicken leftovers meet stir-fry vegetables and sweet potato/apple salad in a random bento madness. This bento proves the importance of food picks in adding cuteness to random configurations of food. Kawaii!

Bento (117) - Kamaboko Bunnies Meet the Apple Barricade

2010-12-20T18:48:00.000-08:00

Top left is kamaboko bunnies with sesame seed eyes, green objects are apples, blue kitty is hanging out in sweet potato/apple salad, and the bottom is udon noodles with carrot and onion. A few broccoli pieces were tossed in for extra color and to keep the kamaboko bunnies from falling over sideways - since they weren't being very cooperative and were doing rude things with their ears. Sauce container has soup base for extra flavoring. MmmmmmmMMmm.

Bento (116) - Flower Bento

2010-12-13T19:38:00.001-08:00

I gave myself flowers for lunch. Om nom nom!! Top level is edamame, carrot slices, soy bunnies, and a kiwi/mandarin orange salad. Sadly, my cheese was sporting green fuzzies, so the ears are actually carved from fishcake - which wasn't quite as nommy as swiss cheese. ::sniffle::

Bottom level is udon noodles with sauteed onion and carrot, and a kamaboko flower with carrot center. The kiwi sauce holder has more udon soup base.

I also discovered that the prior fuzzy photos were due to *cough* Goose fingerprints on my camera lens. Nothing like downloading photos from your camera and discovering at least 12 pictures of your child squinting at the flash. LOL!

Bento (115) - Teriyaki Chicken

2010-12-05T15:30:00.000-08:00

Now that I know how to make teriyaki sauce, I eat it entirely too often. No regrets! None! The top level is my lovely panko-encrusted chicken accompanied by kiwi/blackberry salad. The bottom is stir-fry veggies, rice, and a pickled plum.

There is no sauce holder since I prefer more of a teriyaki soup and needed a large container :P

Bento (114) - Impulse Bento Box

2010-12-05T15:20:00.000-08:00

I visited the Pacific Mercantile to replenish my soy sauce supply (try saying that three times fast!) - when I noticed a new shipment of bento boxes had arrived. Needless to say, I lost all willpower and found an absolutely kawaii (cute) bento box in my basket at checkout.

It's not the best photo . . . I blame the halogen lights at work. Plus, the box is a deep mahogany and highly reflective.

I immediately went back to the office and my co-workers got a unique chance to watch me talk to myself while scouring the fridge for any items I could add for color (unfortunatley, I didn't find any :( not even ketchup :( ). The colors may be a little bland, but it's not bad for a non-planned five-minute prep bento!

Top level is blackberry and kiwi salad, and the bottom level is noodles and beef with sweet soy broth. I threw a blackberry with kiwi "Leaves" on the noodles for a little added color. Really, I would have liked some red or yellow (maybe a scattering of corn?) - but it seemed a little too much trouble to photoshop it in :P

Bento (113) - Random Cranberry Art

2010-11-29T19:04:00.000-08:00

My HR Manager begged me to participate in this year's potluck at work. Not having much energy or time (still caring for a sick kitty!) I decided I could handle bringing cranberry gel. Yes . . . the canned kind :P :P :P

However, my sadly neglected bento skills cried out with a sudden vengeance . . . and somehow my alphabet and flower cookie cutters slid into the bag . . .

Apparently everyone was afraid to eat the letters, so at the end of the potluck, someone helpfully rearranged them to read "Pinkish hat nog."

Happy Pinkish Hat Nog, everyone!

Bento (112) - Halloween Cupcakes

2010-10-31T09:50:00.000-07:00

Okay - these probably don't qualify as bento . . . but I wanted to show them off anyway. I managed to scrape together enough energy to make some cupcakes for the potluck at work. I'm glad I didn't try the werewolf cupcakes I was thinking of - I would have been up until 2 am instead of 11 pm :P :P :P

Close up of the bat:

The bats would have been much cuter if I could "notch" their wings. However, the type of cookie I was using crumbled with alarming frequency . . . so after destroying 14 sets of wings by trying to add further detail, I gave up and settled for cutting the cookies in half.

Close up of the spider:

The spiders were fun and easy to make . . . except for applying 8 little sprinkle legs to each. Yikes!

Close up of the starry sky (with full moon!):

Easy to make - and great as a background for other things (like bats!). I bought blue decorative sugar and a shaker of "pearls" - mixed the two together in a bowl, and gently rolled a frosted cupcake in the mixture. Press on a yellow M&M for the moon and - voila! starry sky!!

Unfortunately, this has been a bad year for the fuzzies . . . much of my absence from blogging is due to caring for sick kitties. My apologies and hope to be back on schedule within a few months. I miss my bentos more than anyone else! LOL! So does my middle - I think I've gained a few pounds :P :P :P

Bento (111) - Mama Bunny and Radish Flowers!!

2010-10-18T18:47:00.000-07:00

I always thought that radish flowers would be difficult. Turns out, they're one of the easiest things ever!! You simply cross-hatch the top with a paring knife and then make two straight slices on each side (all four corners . . . if radishes had corners . . . ) then soak in cold salted water until they open. Whee!

I also decided to try the usual treatment I give my miniature quail eggs on a full-size chicken egg - which is how I got Mama Bunny. Mama Bunny was delicious - but also took half a cup of soy sauce :P Might have to figure out some use for slightly contaminated soy so I'm not throwing out all the sauce . . . hmmmmm.

Bottom level was fried noodles with sauteed onions and carrot flowers. And the lettuce garnishes provided a perfect salad at the end of my meal!

Om nom nom.

Bento (110) - Panko Chicken!

2010-10-17T16:05:00.000-07:00

What is panko? Panko is breadcrumbs. Just breadcrumbs. But super-nummy-fluffy-crunch-fried chicken breadcrumbs. I will now always have a box of panko hiding somewhere on my shelves.

I decided to add more veggies to my diet, so a forest of stir-fry veggies replaced some of the space I normally use for rice. And I used leftover veggies to separate the fried chicken pieces. Fruit is strawberries with cheese stars. I brought my teriyaki sauce in a separate container, since I like more of a teriyaki soup, and the standard sauce holders weren't quite big enough.

Bento (109) - Soy Bunnies in a Field of Edamame

2010-09-25T15:54:00.000-07:00

Soy bunnies! Edamame! Not as much protein as I would like in this bento, but it was super nommy. Top level was the standard apple/sweet potato salad and some leftover noodles (and sweet soy sauce). Bottom level was a trio of soy bunnies and edamame in the shells - topped with carrot flowers. I didn't have time to take the photo as I rushed out of the house - so I took a photo at work (which is why the background is a mahogany table . . . :P). And I just noticed one of the bunny ears wasn't straight. Too late to fix it now!

Bento (108) - Noodles N' Beef

2010-09-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

Top level is beef in sweet soy sauce (why yes - it is one of my favorites) garnished with lettuce and accompanied by noodles and a kawaii pink bear food pick. >.< Bottom level is apple/sweet potato salad and yogurt topped with mandarin oranges.

Bento (107) - New Kitty Welcome Bento

2010-09-25T15:45:00.001-07:00

No - I have not forgotten about my blog. I finally decided to get a new kitty (after losing my small black tortie in February). Unfortunately, new kitty came with kennel cough, antibiotics, and a thicker instruction manual than the one that came with my cell phone. Her presence did inspire me to try making a black kitty charaben. Not too bad for my first try . . .

Objects above the kitty are a boiled egg cut in half and topped with carrot stars. Kitty is made out of nori and cheese. Top right is apple/sweet potato salad. Bottom right is avacado dipped in salt water to prevent discoloration and a container of rice vinegar with a dash of salt to soften the flavor.

Bento (106) -Panda in a Cucumber Forest

2010-09-13T18:52:00.001-07:00

What can I say? I liked how the title sounded - even if it isn't quite accurate . . . but I may have to try making a cucumber forest shortly! Top left is slices of cucumber and slices of roast chicken. Bottom is rice topped with cucumbers and accented with a panda soy sauce holder. Top right is grape/kiwi salad topped with cheddar jack cheese stars, and bottom is potato salad with pickled plum. YUM!

On an unrelated (or sort of related) side note - I went to Applebees with Goose - and when it came time to tuck our leftovers away, I realized they had given me a small white box and pretty food. SQUEE! So I attractively arranged my leftovers :P :P :P And other ways to annoy family and friends. Heh.

Bento (105) - Beef Bowl!

2010-08-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

Okay - maybe this doesn't exactly qualify as a bento - but while staring at the scraps in my fridge, it suddenly dawned on me that I had the ingredients to try making gyudon (beef bowl) - except for dashi. But since dashi generally makes me nauseous, I thought I could try substituting soup broth and see how it came out.

In went my leftover teriyaki sauce, 3/4 an onion, my substitute soup base, and some thinly cut rib-eye steak . . . and then I remembered the leftover carrot stars in the fridge. Tee hee!

Om nom nom!

Yes. I need professional help.

Bento (104) - Teriyaki Chicken - Complete with Yellow Monkey

2010-08-29T10:17:00.000-07:00

Why yes - the golden raspberries and carrot/cucumber salad look awful familiar. . . .

But LOOK! Is that a monkey?! Squee! Seriously - nothing improves your day like opening your lunch and finding a cute yellow monkey staring back at you.

Right side was teriyaki chicken and rice with carrot toppers. The kiwi container had additional teriyaki sauce for the the rice.

Bento (103) - Ponyo Likes HAM!!!!!

2010-08-29T10:09:00.001-07:00

Why yes, I did actually say "Ponyo Likes HAM!!!" when making this bento - which was fabulously tasty and super-easy! I highly recommend scribbling this one down for your 5 minutes or less bento list.

The top left is golden raspberries and a single cherry tomato. Top right is chopped up cucumber and carrots (I used the scraps from when I cut out stars earlier this week - I think I got three or four side salads out of 1 carrot and 1 cucumber >.<) I soaked them in a salad dressing that was mostly vinegar, mirin, and salt (if I remember) - so they had a slightly pickled flavor by lunch. YUM! Bottom was cubed ham and two cherry tomatoes, separated by lettuce leaves to make it prettier.

Bento (102) - Golden Raspberries

2010-08-23T18:23:00.001-07:00

I was walking through the supermarket when a package of golden raspberries caught my eye. Squee! They had to come home with me.

Today's bento was beef with sweet soy broth (with spinach garnish), udon noodles, commercial jelly surrounded by golden raspberries, and a carrot/cucumber salad with vinegar dressing - on a bed of spinach.

Om nom nom!

Bento (101) - Egg Fu Yong

2010-08-21T16:25:00.000-07:00

Bento experiment Egg Fu Yong . . . verdict . . . success! It may look a little odd, but more than made up for it's bizarre scrambled egg appearance in sheer tastiness! I shamelessly experimented on a co-worker, and the verdict was unanimous. Top level is imitation crab over avacado slices with a side of sweet potato/apple salad and ever cute blue kitty food picks. Bottom is egg fu yong over rice topped with fishie soy containers. What's in egg fu yong, you ask?

Glad you asked - gives me a good reason for the close-up! Egg, imitation crab, green onions, pea pods (sliced up), soy sauce, sugar, and rice vinegar. And don't forget to garnish with a green giraffe. It's hard to find a substitute if you don't have a green giraffe . . .

Bento (100) - HAPPY Fishcake Flower

2010-08-14T18:21:00.000-07:00

It may not be spectacular - but somehow, I was VERY pleased with my 100th bento. It made me smile just after I created it . . . and when I opened my bento at lunch, I was suddenly transported to a place of supreme joy and tranquility. So it may not look like much . . . but I loved it anyway >.< YAY!

Left is a piece of naruto fishcake and a peapod, split in half, on rice. The three red items are cheese stuffed tomatos . . . although the little white chunks in the middle one are leftover naruto from a failed slice. Upper right is corn-drop eggs with one of the tomato tops and some leftover pea slices for leaves. Bottom right is grapes and a manufacture/store bought mini-jelly (JELLO).

Happy 100!

Bento (99) - Leftover Casserole

2010-08-07T11:03:00.001-07:00

I mean really . . . there is no way to make casserole "cute" - so I went with "appetizing" instead. :P :P :P And then I dressed up my asparagus spears with two quail egg chickies. Tee hee! The chickies are sitting next to a mango/cherry salad (courtesy of my frozen fruit bag), and I used the remainder of the asparagus to add a little color to my leftover potato casserole. Add half a cherry tomato for garnish . . . and voila!

I've been racking my brain for what to do for my 100th bento (since it seems a tradition to do something spectacular) . . . . and sadly . . . I haven't been able to decide on anything. Bento 100 may not be all that spectacular . . . . but if so - a belated 100th bento will make an appearance - as soon as inspiration strikes. Jaa mata!

Bento (98) - Sweet Soy Beef - An Offering to Prevent Interoffice Conflict

2010-08-01T15:29:00.001-07:00

I guess many folks have been wondering what my bentos taste like. When I gifted Coworker A with a bento on Wednesday, Coworker B was so excited for her, I had to surprise Coworker B with a bento on Friday. Of course . . . Coworker B got soy bunnies . . . . so now I think Coworker A is jealous. And thus, the vicious inner politics of bento-ing in the workplace. LOL!

Top level is strawberry yogurt topped with blueberries and soy bunnies sitting on carrot/daikon radish salad. (More about that below . . . ). Bottom level is udon noodles and sweet soy beef, with extra sweet soy sauce in the sauce holder. I topped the beef with half a grape tomato.

I kept wondering why my bento had so little room for the noodles - and then I realized I had messed up the order and filled the smaller top with beef and noodles instead of the bottom - which already had bunnies and yogurt. LOL.

Confession regarding the carrot and daikon radish salad . . . . this was my first time using a kinpira peeler - and I think I failed. For some reason, my vegetables came off in large square strips with "indents" that I could tear apart . . . but I had to separate them strand by strand. I think this is akin to someone being idiotic enough to fail using a carrot peeler. There really is no other way to do it . . . so I'm not sure why it didn't work. Or maybe it's supposed to work that way - only I have a hard time imagining professional restaurants producing mass quantities of veggies and pulling apart their strands one by one. Further experimentation will be necessary! Onward and downward!

Bento (97) - Teriyaki Beef

2010-08-01T15:20:00.000-07:00

Gommenasai ne! I've decided to cancel Comcast and no longer have Internet at my residence - which means I am forced to make many trips to the local coffee shop and will have to update my blog in batches. >.<

Wednesday's lunch was teriyaki beef with fresh-made teriyaki sauce. I had enough leftovers to make two bentos - so I did! And bestowed my second bento upon a co-worker. She told me it was very tasty, but she could have eaten twelve of them. Lol! Guess I've just adjusted my stomach to bento-size portions. One is enough for me! Top level is sweet potato/apple salad accompanied by blueberry/strawberry salad. Bottom level is teriyaki beef, rice, asparagus, tomato, and teriyaki sauce (in the sauce holder).

Bento (96) - Turkey Rolls Accompanied by Green Giraffe

2010-07-26T18:37:00.000-07:00

The giraffe was probably overkill, but I couldn't resist since I finally found a bento where he seemed to fit in. Tee hee. Today's bento was peach yogurt with blueberries, tomato and turkey skewers, apple and sweet potato salad (nommy!), and rice with pickled plum. Green is a lettuce separator. I ran out of honey and used maple syrup on the apple/sweet potato salad for an American touch. It worked out quite well. I will definitely do that again!

Bento (95) - Fishcake Bunnies!!

2010-07-18T09:36:00.001-07:00

Another five minute bento! Top left is kamaboko bunnies with black sesame seed eyes. The orange sauce container is holding soy for the rice and bunnies. Top right is frozen mango and cherry salad (I've found using the frozen fruit helps keep them "in stock" - and as they thaw, the juices flow down and mingle the flavors.) The rice is topped with cheese flowers and peas for some quick decoration.

Bento (94) - Corned Beef

2010-07-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

And at long last - I advance to bento level 3 . . . now that I have conquered the art of attractively arranging meat! MU HA HA. Okay . . . I probably can't consistently reproduced the cuteness, but I did at last finally get an attractive meat-bento!

Left side is rice, lettuce, corned beef (cut into slices - and attractively arranged >.<) with carrot, cabbage, and cilantro flower. Far back right is kamaboko stuffed with pickled plum (will have to carve out more room for the pickled plum next time - but this was nommy!) and lower right is mango, kiwi, and half a cherry.

Om nom nom nom om.

Bento (93) - Fried Soba and Other Things that Make Me go Squee!

2010-07-10T09:09:00.001-07:00

What can I say? I love cute food! The only thing I would change in this bento was adding cilantro "trees" where the wasabi peas were filling some awkward holes by the sauce container. Unfortunately, I didn't have cilantro. LOL!

Bottom level is soba noodles (fried with onion, carrot, 2 Tbs of Hon Tsuyu soup stock, and 2 Tbs of water) topped with red kamaboko slices. The top level is cucumber and carrots cut into flower shapes, and a small silicone cupcake holder with mango and a red cherry heart (slightly mangled). The red watermelon container holds additional Hon Tsuyu sauce, and I used wasabi peas to fill the extra space.

And in other news . . . I dropped by Pacific Mercantile to pick up some Pocky and other treats for a get-together with some friends . . . and found . . .

SQUEE!!!!!

Little chadango erasers! SQUEE!!! I tried to resist the compulsion to buy . . . but the tea cup . . . look at the tea cup! Kawaii!! >.<
I'm not sure what the two items wrapped in leaves are (one is a dark green leaf around something white - the other is a light green leaf around ham/spam(?) with sweet bean filling (?)) . . . if you know their name, please let me know! I'd love to try them sometime.

Yes. I need professional help.

Bento (92) - Fun with Rainbow Mochi . . .

2010-07-07T20:44:00.000-07:00

MMmmmmMMMMmmmmm. I love rainbow mochi. My recent bentos have been missing their "cuteness factor" - so I decided rainbows and pink bunnies were in order, with a side of soy bunnies and a fishie egg. >.<

The fishie is being protected from two frozen cherries by a barrier of flower-shaped cucumbers. I'm not sure why the cherries turned out black on film - they were actually a brilliant red.

The edamame were slightly wrinkled, but they were also the last of my edamame. ::sniffle:: I sense another trip to the Pacific Mercantile approaching rapidly!

Bento (91) - Gyoza

2010-07-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

This bento becomes much more impressive when I mention I put it together in under 10 minutes. The bottom is still lacking . . . color. A few furikake sprinkles or chopped up carrots would have helped! Oh well. Top level is imitation crab over avacado with a kiwi/rasberry salad. Bottom level is rice with a Japanese pickled plum, 3 gyoza, and a penguin sauce holder propped up with a raspberry.

Bento (90) - And Now for More Crab and Avacado . . .

2010-06-30T17:22:00.000-07:00

Helllloooooo, Bento Blog! I promise I haven't forgotten you. With the first day of summer, Goose decided to fall and break his arm. :( Luckily it was only a hairline fracture. The cast is off and he is back to normal, but there were a few trips to the doctor that were quite necessary. There were a multitude of other time eaters . . . a trip to Las Vegas included . . . but now I'm back! I promise! (Though I keep sleeping through my alarm . . . which is not good for bento making).

Yesterday's lunch was crab and avacado, kept separate by artificial sushi grass. Top is rasberries with swiss cheese flowers. Don't ask me why the swiss cheese is reflective. I ate it anyway. >.<

Bottom is carrot stars with a silicone cupcake holder of balsamic vinegar. Not as color coordinated as ranch, but much better for me.

Bento (89) - Chicken Fingers from Black-Eyed Pea

2010-06-15T18:23:00.000-07:00

Is it frightening that I built my bento out of 1/8 of my dinner? I love Black-Eyed Pea - but they give you five chicken fingers, two sides, rolls, cornbread, and dipping sauce. My bento is half the rice, once chicken finger (cut up), a few stir-fry veggies added from the freezer, and a mandarin orange/cherry flower. The kiwi sauce holder has leftover honey mustard dipping sauce. MmmmmmmmMMMMMMmmmm.

I'm still horrified. The entire bottom level was filled with ONE chicken finger. ONE. And they normally give you FIVE! For the curious - green is peas, orange is carrots, red is bell pepper and white is water chestnut. Not my best bento :) Not my worst bento :)

Bento (88) - All American Leftovers

2010-06-04T06:24:00.001-07:00

Attractive arrangement of turkey leftovers - FAIL! If I have one bento weakness, it seems to be arranging meat attractively. ::sigh:: On the bright side, I chose to heat my turkey (and pepper jack cheese squares) in the microwave . . . and fresh roasted turkey with hot pepper jack cheese is NOMMY! Upper right is corn and peas with pickled plums in the center. Lower right is sweet potatoes drenched in melted marshmallows and sugar. YUM!

Bento (87) - Jalapeno Poppers and Pot Roast

2010-05-30T07:27:00.001-07:00

Desperation bento!!! Top level is strawberry/blackberry salad with jalapeno poppers (cut in half). Bottom level is pot roast with a side of rice and a pickled plum. Not sure how the flavor combination was on this one . . . but it certainly was filling!

Goose just graduated Kindergarten and I've almost completed my personal writing challenge (30,000 words in the month of May) - so with any luck, you'll see an increase in my bento output over the summer. Then again . . . warm weather, lazy days, long walks, and playing with Goose might actually mean a decrease! LOL! We'll have to see how it goes.

Bento (87) - Lasagna Leftovers

2010-05-30T07:19:00.000-07:00

Yet another bento pulled together from random leftovers. I sliced the lasagna square in half and filled the gap with peas to make it a little more decorative. Top right is strawberry and blackberry salad. Bottom right is . . . vanilla pudding with a pickled plum (and a silicone cupcake holder to keep the flavors from mixing . . . because . . . because . . . ewww!).

Bento (86) - Blue Kitties Explore Frozen Rice

2010-05-18T20:56:00.000-07:00

I've never been sure if freezing rice actually works. Part of me harbored the suspicion that when you unfreeze it, it retains some sort of undercooked texture. But today I took a deep breath, opened the freezer, and pulled out my experimental frozen rice.

Much to my surprise, the thawed out rice was wonderfully soft and still flavorful. YAY! Next time I make a batch of rice, I'll have to put it in 1-2 serving size ziploc bags. The rest of the bento is tangy chicken, lettuce divider, strawberry/blackberry salad, and peas and corn as toppers.

Bento (85) - Mochi Chicks

2010-05-10T20:40:00.000-07:00

And . . . fun with mochi continues! The left is a frozen Jams PB&J (and the most attractive presentation I've come up with for this yet! YAY!). Top right are two quail egg chicks sitting on corn and peas, and half a MOCHI! Lower right is two frozen cherries floating in yogurt. Oddly enough, Goose didn't touch the yogurt . . . hmmmmm.

Bento (84) - Mochi Madness

2010-05-10T20:26:00.000-07:00

Today's bento was Pizza Hut leftovers meet soy bunnies and mochi. It's a cross-cultural experience >.< I sliced the mochi in half (mochi is a sticky rice ball stuffed with red beans - for those who aren't familiar with it). The white powder is flour . . . not powdered sugar! My Japanese teacher used to bring mochi in as a special prize. The first four or five times I had it, I wasn't even sure I liked it! Then after graduation I had the worst mochi cravings . . . and no idea where to buy it! Which is why I now indulge in my mochi habit whenever the mood strikes me. Soy bunnies are sitting on peas. Lower right is yogurt topped with banana slices (which have been dipped in lemon juice to keep them white).

My bento was almost the same - except I have Spaghetti Factory noodles instead of Pizza Hut. Now that I'm looking at the picture - I should have added some corn or carrot to the peas for a splash of color. Though that means we would have been yet another 5 minutes late to Goose's school. LOL!.

Bento (83) - A Conglomerate of Leftovers

2010-05-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

I would love to take credit for the lovely carrot/raisin/pineapple salad - but it came from Chick-fil-A. :P The rest of the top is filled with a boiled egg, sliced, on a bed of almonds. The lower level is pork lo mein leftovers, accented with edamame and asparagus, and garnished with a slice of naruto style fishcake.

Bento (82) - Mastering Meat Rolls

2010-04-28T22:02:00.001-07:00

I finally decided to try wrapping vegetable matter in lunchmeat slices (asparagus and carrot sticks wrapped in ham and/or turkey). I was so consumed with my new bento experimentation that I ran out of time - and while I finished the boys' bentos, I didn't have any time to make one for me. It looks pretty . . . but I have no idea how it tasted! LOL.

Goose's bento: strawberries, half a boiled egg with a carrot star topper, chicken nuggets, ketchup, and lots of little green things he'll refuse to eat (edamame ad asparagus).

Bento (81) - Lettuce Rolls and Imitation Crab

2010-04-25T21:51:00.000-07:00

And now for something different . . . .

To kick off a new diet/fad/whatever, I created the following bentos using no rice or bread. The top level in mine is imitation crab, avacado, and pepperjack cheese squares. The bottom is lettuce rolls filled with ham and mustard over a bed of almonds, and yogurt topped with bananas. T.'s bento was identical - except he had an extra helping of imitation crab instead of cheese.

And of course mine's cuter . . . 'cause it has blue kitty food picks. >.<

Bento (80) - PB&J Natural Disaster

2010-04-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

And the search for an attractive way to arrange pre-made frozen Jams sandwiches continues . . . :P :P :P This was an attempt at making a PB&J mountain range. And then my mountain range suffered some sort of natural disaster . . . . The top right is mandarin oranges and frozen cherries, and the bottom right is carrot flowers and a mini-cupcake holder filled with ranch.

Bento (79) - Pork Chop Bento

2010-04-19T19:47:00.001-07:00

And today's lesson was . . . arranging meat attractively is a lot harder than it looks! I finally threw some pepperjack cheese flowers on the slices to make them look a little more appetizing! The yellow is potatoes au gratin topped with carrot flowers.

Bottom level is edamae with carrot flowers and mandarin oranges around a frozen cherry. When I went to eat this bento at work I turned the bottom level around so the edamame/carrot salad was on the right . . . and it looked much more photogenic. LOL!

Bento (78) - Free Form Kitty Bento

2010-04-14T06:27:00.000-07:00

Does this count as a nekokoneko? :P Probably not, since I took the photo with the larger bento on top. LOL! Whenever I have ham, I start thinking of kitty ears for some strange reason . . . and so I built kitty bentos for the boys. I put down a ham-filled rice ball and decorated with ham ears and nose, then hand-cut pepperjack cheese eyes. The pupils and the mouth are nori. The green is edamame, the yellow and white is a boiled egg cut in half. The orange is honey-glazed sweet potatos, the red frozen strawberries, and the piggy/fishie are filled with dumpling sauce for the rice! MMMMmmmmmMMMMM.

Goose ate most of his yesterday (HOORAY!) - but T. forget his . . . so it is now MY kitty bento! Mu ha ha. . . . . I suppose 7:34 a.m. can't count as lunch, so I'll have to wait!

Bento (77) - Honey Baked Ham Sandwiches

2010-04-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

And for today I present the not-so-cute Honey Baked Ham Sandwich bento . . . . which Goose forgot to eat and had to be thrown away. Grrrrrr.

That's what I get for taking a bento break. Not that I meant to take a bento break . . . but last week was filled with celebration lunches, farewell lunches, and "oh my gosh - I promised to do lunch" lunches . . . followed by my ex-mother-in-law gifting me with tons of delicious honey baked ham leftovers. Mmmmmmmm.

Long story short . . . the bento kitchen desperately needs to be restocked again, and I've gained 5 pounds. Though my wallet has lost weight. :P :P

Still . . . I thought of a way to make the sandwiches look cuter next time (shave off most of the roll and create four sandwiches instead of just two), but I did like how the yogurt/mandarin orange piece turned out . . . so it wasn't a total loss. Remaining bit is peas and corn topped with two chocolate Easter eggs as a treat.

Bento (76) - Mashed Potatoes and . . .

2010-04-02T20:47:00.000-07:00

And for Friday's bento, I scraped together every scrap of leftovers and tossed them in my orange bunny box . . .which is how I ended up with mashed potatoes, edamame, and teriyaki chicken. I did take the opportunity to practice my new-found frozen cherry flowers. Mmmmmm.

Bento (75) - Five Minute Bento

2010-04-02T20:45:00.001-07:00

For once, I was great at making bentos, and terrible at posting them! LOL! This is one of my standard five minute bentos pulled together from tangy chicken I had stored in my freezer and bento scraps. Oooo! Look. Mashed potatoes. Again. >.<

Bento (74) - Teriyaki Chicken

2010-04-02T20:36:00.001-07:00

It's time for a deep dark admission. I have never cooked teriyaki chicken. My mother raised me on McDonalds and raviolis from a can . . . but now . . . I even made the sauce! WOW! The left side of T.'s bento is my totally unimpressive chicken, rice, edamame, and a sauce container with extra teriyaki sauce. To the right is cherry yogurt with bananas, and the bottom is mashed potatoes with an edamame flower. The red is a flower cut from a frozen cherry.

And yes - I made a little too many mashed potatoes. I've eaten them every day this week . . . and still have leftovers! ACK! Good thing I love them!

My bento was very similar, though I have a pickled plum instead of a flower topping my potatoes . . . and moved the cherry flower to decorate my rice. And blue kitty food picks rule!!

Bento (73) - First Peacock Bento

2010-03-30T21:56:00.000-07:00

I was going to title this post "First Peacock Bento - Epic Fail" - but when I got to work and opened my lunch, I decided maybe it was cuter than I first thought. So what inspires one to do a peacock bento, you ask (or maybe you don't want to know - but I'm going to tell you anyway!). The sudden realization that you have no protein in your bento. And no plan. But you have fishcake. And if you cut the fishcake into triangles, it might make feathers. Insert hunt for onigiri molder and the vague hope that one of the shapes will prove usable as a peacock body . . . and voila! You've discovered the peacock bento.

The body is a heart shape onigiri, and the head is part of the flower shaped onigiri, poorly cut. The beak is a small slice of fishcake. I surrounded the peacock with cut grapes, and gave him two soy bunnies for company. The top level is yogurt with grapes, additional triangle onigiri, a panda sauce holder with dumpling sauce, and mashed potatoes with a pickled plum - which I have developed a taste for! Those things are YUMMY!

The boys got similar bentos, minus the peacock design.

And Goose got special fishcake star streamers. Oooooo. Aaaaahhhh. (He wasn't impressed either >.< Heh.

He also refused to eat the potato salad because I had made it into weird little balls, and he didn't like that. Of course, I made it into weird little balls because he won't eat it the normal way either. LOL!

Bento (72) - Kamaboko Bunnies!

2010-03-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

Kamaboko bunnies! And at long last - a pickled plum! It took me a while to figure out where to find the pickled plums - but I've always wanted to try one. And now that I've tried one - I still can't tell you if I like it. LOL! My western tastebuds are totally confused by a sweet fruit that has been . . . pickled . . . and so is now salty and vinegary. Wow. I think I need to experiment some more!

The pickled plum was sitting on top of mashed potatoes, and the bottom is the standard fried udon with sauteed carrots and onions. The green triangle container is filled with udon sauce. The separator is green lettuce. I've also placed an order for "The Manga Cookbook" - so I'm looking forward to some new recipes to try! Om nom nom!

Bento (71) - My Noodles Are Happy to See Me

2010-03-18T20:42:00.000-07:00

Wow. I actually got up and cooked two things . . . the fried udon noodles AND the mashed potato salad. I must have been particularly inspired. Though not overly inspired . . . or you would have seen a cheese topper or some such to help with the blinding white mashed potatoes. Green is kiwi. The noodles are udon noodles with sauteed carrots and onions, drizzled with diluted udon sauce. The noodle face is sliced boiled egg for the eyes and a red pepper mouth.
>.<
T.'s bento was the same ingredients . . . different layout. I call this . . . ABSTRACT NOODLE.

Though the mashed potatoes seem to be much more attractive in his box . . . hmmmmmm. And speaking of attractive ::drum roll please:: check out the BEAUTIFUL donburi bowls I purchased at Pacific Mercantile. SQUEE!!

And of course - to test them out - I had to make the noodle dish Sasuke's mother makes in Ponyo (Miyazaki's latest release). I think the noodles were a touch bland . . . but I wanted to try it with the base ingredients first. Next time I'll add a little additional seasoning . . . and I think I'll have a family favorite!

For those who haven't seen Ponyo . . . WATCH IT! LOL! I used standard ramen noodles (though next time I'll probably break one pack in half, since we had an overabundance of noodles) and then added torn up ham, green onions, and half a boiled egg - once the noodles were soft. The green onions ended up adding a LOT more flavor than I anticipated.

And coming soon . . . fun with lotus root and pickled plums! Two things I've wanted to try for quite a while. MMMmmmmMMMM. The bento adventure continues!

Bento (70) - Pizza and Penguins!

2010-03-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

To my friend whom I recently inspired to begin bento (the corruption spreads . . . MU HA HA!) - here is one of my easiest American bentos. Take pizza leftovers (you know you have them), cut into squares, place separators so frozen veggies do not soggify the crust, and pour in peas. You have created the main portion of this bento! To finish it out, I cut a boiled egg in half (shaped into a car - thanks to my egg molds) and added some blueberries and mandarin oranges. Nutritious, nommy, and EASY!

For myself, I got a little fancier - but this is also an example of bento-ing with tupperware (for those of you who don't have access too and/or don't want to spend money on bento boxes). Though just like tattoos . . . bento boxes are highly addictive. Once you have one, it suddenly doesn't seem like such a crazy idea to have 50 or 60 more . . .

I cut my pizza into triangles and used three silicone cupcake holers to keep my other items separate (I HIGHLY recommend the cupcake holders!). In the upper right, I have blueberries and a fishie boiled egg (once again - courtesy of the egg mold), followed by the lower right, green peas topped with cheese flowers, and the lower left, which is blueberry/kiwi salad. The penguin sauce holder is filled with ranch to add a little pizzaz to my pizza. Om nom nom!

And good luck!

Bento (69) - Casserole Leftovers

2010-03-08T21:10:00.000-08:00

No prizes for originality . . . but this bento was big on flavor! I had mandarin orange/blueberry salad accompanied by jalapeno poppers (MMMmmmmMMMMM - though my waistline is saying "AUuuugGGGHHhhh" lately) - and the bottom level was a hamburger/potato/corn/tomato sauce casserole that was warm . . . filling . . . and most importantly - not cooked by me! YAY! I brought home casserole leftovers from a family dinner on Sunday night.

Goose got a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, blueberry/mandarin orange salad, and peas with a carrot star. And he actually ate almost everything . . . even a few of the peas! WOW! >.< I'd like to claim this had something to do with my bento ability - but he informed me "I ate some peas, so now when I sleep, I'll grow big and strong." I'm not quite sure who he learned that from . . . but I hope he's not to disappointed if we can't measure his growth tomorrow morning!

Bento (68) - Soy Bunny Rumble!

2010-03-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

Today's bento was mini-pulled pork sandwiches (the flower by the sandwiches is a green bean/baby corn/red pepper flower), strawberry/provolone cheese salad, and four soy bunnies ready to rumble on top of a bed of coleslaw. LOL! What do soy bunnies fight about anyway?!!

Bento (67) - Chickie Surprise

2010-02-27T19:15:00.000-08:00

So I actually made these bentos early this week and I've been a horrible horrible person and procrastinated posting the pictures. Okay - truth be told, my teeth still ache from the dentist, and thinking about food hurts . . . so it's put a slight cramp in my bento style.

Goose had quail egg chickies with soumen swirl nests (topped with corn), strawberry/kiwi salad, and potato chips . . . because sometimes at 7:45 - creativity fails me. I added stirfry veggies to the corner - and he actually ate everything (except the green beans . . . and the red pepper). My bento and T.'s bento were roughly the same . . . with the addition of marinated beef in sweet soy broth instead of potato chips.

I'm actually getting pretty fast at making chickies! And I didn't cut myself or anything! Hooray!

Bento (66) - Beef and Burdock Riceball Potluck!

2010-02-22T22:13:00.000-08:00

Presenting - my first attempt at filling a box larger than the usual one-serving bento box! Taa daa! Beef and Burdock Riceballs with apple bunnies! Actually, I had fully intended to just make the riceballs . . . but when I put them in the lacquered box they looked so . . . lonely. So I figured I'd add lettuce (which could also serve as little "plates" and a great way to grab your riceball without contaminating the rest . . .). And then I added apple bunnies and apple flowers for color . . . and then the stir-fry bag had somehow magically appeared out of my freezer (seriously - I have no memory of pulling it out) - and before I knew it, I was happily arranging carrots and baby corns and water chestnuts and peas and . . .

What can I say? It's a sickness. Some might call it an obsession. HA HA HA ha ha ha. (Are you laughing with me . . . or at me?!) >.< Regardless . . . I think it turned out well!

Bento (65) - Fun with Fishcake 2

2010-02-16T20:21:00.000-08:00

Naruto was actually a pretty big hit with the boys . . . so I decided to try a fried noodle bento with naruto toppers. And jalapeno poppers . . . because they're yummy! (Though now there is a good argument that my bento is no longer healthy once I fill it with fried cream cheese balls. LOL!).

The red sauce container has soumen sauce for the noodles . . . I realized too late that I didn't have any udon sauce! (I have rectified that error by making a trip to the Pacific Mercantile today). The fried udon noodles have onion and carrot stir-fried in, and a little soumen sauce cooked in as well. The green fruit is kiwi. Overall - a simple, but delicious bento!

I wasn't going to make Goose a bento, but when he saw me loading in the noodles, he started dancing around the kitchen and asking if he could have some too. How could I say no? So I frantically washed his bento box . . . which had been . . . er . . . soaking in the sink - and threw in an egg for some extra protein.

I also took a picture with the lid on just for fun . . . and then when I placed it in Goose's insulated lunch box, I realized I had packed T.'s bento for Goose . . . and Goose's *smaller* box was sitting, nice and clean, on the shelf. So my little man had an adult-sized meal today! LOL!

And I've discovered that I LOVE udon noodles. I have to be careful when I'm ordering out because one of the commonly used spices (I think dashi/fish spice) violently disagrees with my system . . . and most of the time, udon dishes seem to have dashi . . . . so this was my first experience with eating a reasonable quantity of udon.

Bento (64) - Purple Pickled Veggies

2010-02-10T19:06:00.000-08:00

Apparently I was still in an experimental mood . . . I recently found some purple pickled vegetables at the Pacific Mercantile - and thought I would give them a try. They taste . . . more salty than vinegary. Hard to explain - but yummy! I used them to surround my fishy egg.

Today's bento was truly a last-minute thrown together from leftovers bento - which turned out surprisingly well! The fishy egg is accompanied by apple/sweet potato salad, and the bottom level was rice, naruto, a commercial heart-shaped jelly, and a smattering of peas because . . . well . . . I can't take that much rice without mixing in some veggies for flavor.

Bento (63) - Fun with Fishcake

2010-02-09T20:11:00.000-08:00

Today was apparently experimental bento day. I tried adding some Naruto fish cake . . . and jalapeno poppers. What a combo! LOL!

Top level is the poppers and apple/sweet potato salad. Bottom level is rice, naruto, a commercial heart jelly, and a smattering of vegetables from a frozen stir fry bag. I can't believe it took me this long to figure out to raid the stir fry bag when I need some pre-prepared veggies! The panda is, as usual, holding dumpling sauce instead of soy.

T.'s bento was very similar - except he has a lovely car boiled egg and blackberries instead of stir fry veggies. And a pink bunny . . . because it amuses me.

I reheated two of my poppers and left the other two cold. They are definitely better warm - but were edible both ways. I'll definitely keep them on my bento ingredient list!

Bento (62) - Free Form Bento 2

2010-02-05T22:05:00.000-08:00

I felt it necessary to make something extra cute for Goose today. It either turned out cute. Or freaky. Or freakishly cute. You decide.

Left hand side is blackberries and a commercial fruit jelly. White portion is a PB&J sandwich which I used a cookie cutter on for the flower shape. The eyes are blackberry cuts inside carrot "glasses" and the mouth is a red pepper. For the right hand side, I did egg drops (scrambled eggs with corn mixed in) and topped it with a ketchup "flower" . . . . that didn't come out as clean as I wanted . . . but ::shrug:: I tried. The lower right corner is carrot stars and tomatoes.

Bento (61) - Peanut Butter and Jelly Bits

2010-02-03T17:30:00.000-08:00

Today Goose got an all-American bento - PB&J, Cheetos, and blackberries/grapes (okay - maybe it's un-American to send your kid to school with actual fruit . . . it should have been some sort of processed fruit roll-up or something.) This bento was much more popular than carrot sticks. Imagine that :P :P :P.

And yesterday I did a standard 5-minute blue kitty bento (which I should stop posting, because they all look the same - but they're so darn cute!). And I nearly lost a kitty down the garbage disposal at work. There are very few things that I am willing to stick my hand down a garbage disposal for . . . .blue kitties qualify! And I was lucky - he hadn't made it down the drain, so now he is safe and sound at home.

Bento (60) - Blackberries and Vinegar

2010-02-01T20:36:00.000-08:00

Okay - not really. But I did have a bento disaster today, when one of my blackberries plunged off my fork and landed dead-center in my triangle sauce holder - filled with walnut/basalmic vinegar salad dressing. That was an interesting flavor combination - boy howdy.

I think the kung pao chicken in the bottom tier needed a food pick for added cuteness, but other than that, I was very pleased with this bento. The top level is blackberry/swiss cheese flowers and a salad which consisted of a green lettuce divider, three tomatos, and carrot sticks. I'm still working out the best way to cut carrot sticks. The green triangle held the above-mentioned salad dressing. And just in case you were ever curious - it would hold one blackberry quite neatly.

T.'s bento was almost identical . . . minus the tomatos, since T. HATES tomatos. I couldn't even "contaminate" his top level with a whole tomato for color. :P :P :P

When I picked him up from school, Goose informed me he ate the chicken and the blackberries. But not the carrots. Because he HATES carrots. I said "That's why mommy gave you ranch to dip the carrots in." To which he replied "I didn't want the carrots OR THE RANCH!" Well then. Silly mommy.