What do you mean, don't play with my food?

Today's bento:



( Top View )

Clockwise from Top Left:
1 - Quick Pickled Veggies (Carrot, Onion & Cucumber)
2 - Turkey Nuggets
3 - Rice Ball
4 - BBQ Sauce (for nuggets)
5 - Baby Bel Cheese
6 - Sauteed Yellow Squash

Side Container:
1 - Grapes

WW Flex Points = 7

I'm going to school today for my son's Halloween costume parade/class party.  I thought I'd go early and have lunch with him, so I made a fun Halloween bento to take to school.  Here it is:


( Bird's Eye View )

Clockwise from Upper Left:
1 - Cheese Ball
2 - Skull & Bone Crackers
3 - Quail Egg Skulls
4 - Salad (under everything)
5 - Rice
6 - Nori/Lunchmeat/Carrot/Cheese Witch

WW Flex Points = 5

My son asked to be a werewolf for Halloween this year, finally a non-movie/television costume!  I was so happy when he said werewolf. ( Here he is all costumed up: )

Here is a bento inspired by his costume.  (And, if your wondering, the "background" that the bento is sitting on is the shirt part of his costume.):



( Bird's Eye View )

Top to Bottom:
1 - Black Rice
2 - Curry Spiced Pulled Pork (under rice)
3 - Egg White Stars/Egg Yolk Moon/Nori Wolf
4 - Broccoli Trees
5 - Spinach (under broccoli)

WW Flex Points = 5

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month.  In honor of my best friend's mom (a 20+ year survivor) I made this bento and am posting it with a reminder:

The most effective way to fight breast cancer is to detect it early.

The most effective tools to detect breast cancer are mammography and clinical breast exam by your health professional.

In addition, breast self awareness and self-exam may help, women who perform regular breast self-exams and learn what is normal find may find abnormalities earlier.  It is good to start performing breast self-exams in your 20's. If you chose to do breast self-exams, you should examine your breasts regularly , three to five days after your period ends. If you have stopped menstruating, perform the exam on the same day of each month, such as the first day of the month or another easily remembered day. With each exam, you will become familiar with the contours and feel of your breasts, and will be more alert to changes.  (American Cancer Society self-exam instructions here.)



( Bird's Eye View )

Top Tier:
1 - Grape Tomato
2 - Spicy Glazed Chicken Breast
3 - Yellow & Orange Carrots
4 - Strawberry Fluff (strawberries & whipped cream)

Bottom Tier:
1 - Spinach (under the rice)
2 - Rice (decorations made of alphabet noodles, kamaboko, mame nori)

WW Flex Points = 7

I wanted to do something fun today without taking forever, so I decided - pigs.  Here they are:



( Bird's Eye View... )

Main Box:
1 - Plain Onigiri Piggie (with fish sausage and nori accents)
2 - Shredded BBQ Pork
3 - A Piggie Bottle of Sweet Chili Sauce (for the rice & pork)
4 - Mixed Veggies (Broccoli, Cauliflower & Carrots)

Side Container:
1 - Strawberries & Kiwi

( All packed up in piggie containers... )

WW Flex Points = 5

Today is Dr. Seuss' birthday.  Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was born March 2, 1904.  If he was still with us he would be 105 years old.  Mr. Geisel passed away on September 24, 1991.  He was a prolific author and changed the way educators thought about, and taught, reading and literature for children.  Like many, his books shaped the memories of my childhood.  Thank you Dr. Seuss!  This bento is in honor of him:



( Bird's Eye View... )

Left Side:
1 - Elbow Macaroni pan fried with butter & ketchup (a childhood favorite!)
2 - Cat in the Hat made from nori & cheese

Right Side:
1 -Green Eggs (I didn't have any ham!) -  Deviled Quail Eggs with Spinach
2 - Horton Hears A Who Hot Dog flowers (It didn't show up in the picture, but the top most flower has a poppy seed Whoville nestled into the petals.)
3 - Daisy-Head Mayzie - Carrot, Red Pepper, and Lemon flowers
4 - One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish - Homemade Fish Nuggets
5 - Quick Pickled Carrot & Broccoli Shreds

WW Flex Points = 5.5

“Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.” - Dr. Seuss
"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself, any direction you choose." - Dr. Seuss
"If you never did, you should. These things are fun, and fun is good." - Dr. Seuss
"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple." - Dr. Seuss
"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." - Dr. Seuss

Here is today's bento, inspired by spring:



Contents:
1 - Rice Lamb decorated with Turkey Lunch Meat face, Krab cheeks, Nori eyes & mouth, Fish sausage ears
2 - Lettuce divider
3 - One egg made into two pom-pon flowers
4 - One hot dog made into three flowers (pea centers in two)
5 - Steamed Broccoli
6 - Spinach sauteed with Garlic
7 - Breaded Okra
8 - Carrot & Red Pepper flowers, Noodle Clovers

WW Flex Points = 5.5

( Various Other Views... )

Today's lunch is in honor of Valentine's Day.  I had a far more elaborate bento planned, but when I started putting it together it just wasn't looking right, so I pared it down.  It's all packed up in my Valentine's gift from my hubby - a new box!  (He also got me some accessories that are not shown.) Here it is:



( Bird's Eye View... )

Top Tier:
1 - Baked Renkon (Lotus Root) Chips (homemade and so yummy!)
2 - Naked Chicken Nuggets (a little worcestershire sauce in the heart for them)
3 - Molded and Dyed (in beet juice) quail egg

Bottom Tier:
1 - Homemade Carrot Cake
2 - Strawberry & Kiwi Picks
(buried under the parsley are two more quail eggs)

WW Flex Points = 4

( Baked Renkon Chips Recipe )


( New box... )

Lunch for my son:



Sky - Dyed Rice
Sun - Egg Yolk
Dino - Aburage / Inari pocket (egg white teeth, red pepper tongue, sesame seed eye)
Volcano - Ground, seasoned chicken (alfalfa sprout smoke, ketchup lava)
Foliage - Spinach &  Broccoli
( Detail Picture... )

I wanted to have a little fun with today's lunch, but only had 10 minutes to pack it.  This was the result, not great, but it cheered up my lunch time:



Left Side:
Bite sized broccoli & cheese quiches topped with purple potato flowers w/ carrot centers
Fiori pasta gap fillers

Right Side:
Spinach salad w/ egg white butterflies, grape tomato tulips, orange pepper flowers (soy bacon bits hiding under greens)
Bottle of salad dressing

The challenge this week at Bento Challenge is Disney.  SO I decided to do one of my enduring favorites, Tinkerbell.  Now, mind you, I've never done a specific character for my bento before, so why in my mixed up mind, did I think doing a character as delicate as Tink would be a good idea?  Oh well, she could have come out worse I suppose!  So anyway, here is Tink checking out her flower garden:



On left:

Tinkerbell is made of bologna (skin), egg (hair), soy wrapper/mame nori (dress and shoes), spring roll wraps (wings) and black paste food coloring and a toothpick.. 

Steamed broccoli and carrot flowers on a bed of broccoli slaw.

On right:

Mini cheese quiches in pastry cup topped with a grape tomato slice. 
Hiding around the quiches are green and red grapes (you can see one peeking out at the top of the top flower).

As part of the activities for March is Reading Month at my son's school parents are invited to come have lunch with their child while a guest reader reads to the class (the school calls it Lunch with a Loved One).  So, I decided to try to make a literary lunch.  And of course, when you think of children's books the first author that comes to mind is Dr. Seuss.  It didn't come out as well as I had hoped, but the kids should get a kick out of it.  So this is my Seussian inspired lunch, it is for my son and I to share:



Left Box (Bottom Tier):

1 - Tossed salad topped with a cheese & salami Cat in the Hat hat.
2 - Two bite sized chocolates.
3 - Colored Goldfish crackers (to represent One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish)
4 - Container of dressing for salad.

Right Box (Top Tier):

1 - A green hard boiled egg and slices of ham sitting on top of half a roll. (Green Eggs and Ham - obviously!)
2 - A blood orange (Because a red orange just seemed like something Dr. Seuss would come up with.)

Wow, I've been gone a long time!  I've been computer/internet-less since January 1st and just this week was able to get back on-line.  I felt so disconnected without internet!  I've been making bentos all along, but didn't photograph most of them because I knew I wasn't going to be posting them, so I'll just restart from today. 

Today's bento is, of course, Valentine themed.  Here it is:



Clockwise (starting at 12):

- Cheese and apple picks
- Carrots and a tomato for salad (lettuce lining box will be shredded to make salad)
- A chocolate heart and a Hershey's Kiss
- Stuffed sandwich (portobello mushroom, feta cheese, and caramelized onion) - see below for more detail
- Chick peas, salad dressing, and more carrots and another tomato for the salad

Well, between the holidays and a plumbing issue that all but shut my kitchen down for three weeks I haven't been making bentos for about a month.  I've missed it!  Here's the one I made Friday:



Top Tier:
1 - Snowflake & snowman shaped chicken nuggets
2 - Green olives on picks
3 - Snowman onigiri filled with a ground chicken and veggie mixture (hat is black olive, scarf is a piece of lunch meat)
4 - Snowman container with honey for nuggets

Bottom Tier:
1 - Carrots, broccoli, ans sweet red pepper rings
2 - "Snowflake" apples and grape gap fillers
3 - Snowman filled with ranch dip for veggies
4 - Snowman cookie


This is packed in a new box I found.  It can be used with one tier, or keep adding on as many as you need.  The lid has a built in handle.  It will be a great picnic bento.  I have six tiers (I can get more if needed).  There are three plain tiers and three divided tiers.  The brand is Snapware (they have a website).  They are listed as craft organizers, but on the packaging, website, and in the e-mail I sent them, they stated that they are food safe, good for freezer and refrigerator, top rack dishwasher safe and microwave reheatable (lid too - loosen lid before heating).  I believe that each tier is a 3 cup capacity - HUGE!  I'll probably only use one tier at a time from now on unless I'm packing for more than one. 

This is my entry for this week's Bento Challenge theme - animals.  This is also my first try at omurice, I think it turned out pretty good.  Here's the bento:



Bento Box:
1 - Omurice with pepper jack cheese bunny
2 - Broccoli, cauliflower & carrots
3 - Piece of breaded pork chop with american cheese kitty
4 - Spring roll cut in thirds

Monkey side container:
1 - Spice cake topped with cinnamon applesauce

The theme at Bento Challenge this week is technology/electronics.  I had a bunch of ideas, but decided to go with this one.  My son ALWAYS takes my pink Nintendo DS, so I figured this was the only way I'd ever get to see or touch one again.  It didn't come out as well as I had hoped, but it's still okay.  I had to simplify it a bit, my original plans were a little ambitious.   So here is the bento:


Contents:
1 - Pink Nintendo DS onigiri (it folds like a DS to fit in the box - see pictures below)
2 - Shrimp
3 - Broccoli & carrots
4 - Hard boiled egg

The theme this week at Bento Challenge is peace.  I wanted to work Veteran's Day in there some how, which explains the patriotic toned bottom tier.  Here's my bento:


Top Tier (on left):
1 - Plain omelet "peace" hand
2 - Salami, cheese & flatbread peace sign sandwich
3 - Little Smokies with BBQ sauce for dipping
4 - Tossed Salad

Bottom Tier (on right):
1 - Red, white, and blue rice (not shown - a container of Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning to add to the rice)

Yeah, yeah, yeah - so I'm dating myself with that title!  Anyway, the theme over at Bento Challenge this week is Egypt, so this was my attempt.  It didn't turn out exactly as planned, but it tasted really good!


Top Tier:
Mummy - Chicken and Onion & Chive Cream Cheese wrapped with Cresent Dough strips and baked.

Bottom Tier:
Lettuce and green onion sky with grated carrot desert, egg pyramid and cheese sun.

I've been MIA for the last three weeks.  But I'm trying to get back to posting again, and I figured Halloween was a good place to start.  So, here's my Halloween lunch (I spent the day at school with my son, and it was a big hit at the lunch table).


Side Container:
1 - Mini Cupcake
2 - Skull & Bones Apple

Main Container (Clockwise from top left):
1 - Pumpkin Baby Bel Cheese
2 - Cat Shaped Chicken Salad Sandwich
3 - Hard Boiled, Colored Egg Monster
4 - Carrots
5 - Black Olive and Marinated Mushroom Picks

Today's lunch is all about the Pooh Bear.  Here it is:



Top Tier:
1 - Winnie-the-Pooh Ravioli
2 - Small pouch of dressing doubling as a divider
3 - Honey & Cinnamon muffins (I HAD to get some honey in here somewhere!)
4 - Grapes on bumblebee picks

Bottom Tier:
1 - Tossed salad with green pepper flowers, tomato hearts, and Pooh Bear carrots (veggie scraps hiding under the lettuce)