Mediterranean Life Without Plastic Bento

There's actually a theme to this bento, kind of, instead of just a hodgepodge of miscellaneous foods, for a change! It's also vegetarian. I was going to make a bento grain bowl, but then I realized I could use one of the dividers in this Life Without Plastic container to keep the fruit separate. So now it's a ¾ bento bowl. The cauliflowerettes and purple carrots are roasted with olive oil and whole garlic cloves over lentils and quinoa topped with halved cherry tomatoes; cumin-spiced crispy chickpeas; and a beet-yogurt romaine salad. The kids like these beets because of the vinegary honey yogurt sauce. Also, I told MisterMan that beets are a natural stamina booster, so he asks for it on P.E. days now!

The cut fruit are a variety of orange-fleshed honeydew called Golden Dewlicious. It's pretty good but not as sweet as cantaloupe. I think the summer season for melons might be drawing to a close pretty soon. We'll have to take advantage of the last remaining fruit while we can. So sad! Has Fall arrived yet where you are?

Crispy Spiced Chickpeas

• 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder

Method:

Toss chickpeas with olive oil and spread in skillet (you can also roast in oven instead),

Fry (or roast) over medium heat until crispy, about 20 minutes.

Sprinkle with spices to coat all chickpeas.

Experiment with your favorite flavors, such as garlic powder, curry powder, cayenne pepper, Chinese five spice, Japanese togarashi - anything you like!

Beet Yogurt Salad

• 3/4 pound beets (2 large or 8 small), trimmed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons honey, or to taste

Method:

Wash and dry beets, place in foil wrapper, and roast at 450F until fork tender, about 45 minutes, depending on size. When cool, rub off skins and slice into half rounds or smaller. Whisk together oil, vinegar, yogurt, honey, salt and pepper. Mix in beets - they turn the dressing a pretty shade of pink! Eat as is or atop salad greens of your choice.

Curry LunchBot Thermal Bento

Curry LunchBot Thermal Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Oh yeah, you've seen this one before too. It's the standard keema curry that I always make (recipe here), only this time I added chopped broccoli and yellow cauliflower. You know me. I'll add whatever kind of vegetation I happen to have in the fridge. If you think your kids will balk at the extra cruciferousness, then you can mince it fine, but my kids don't seem to care too much. It makes the curry a little bulky, so I make extra sauce to compensate. Serve over steaming rice for best effect! I packed the curry in our LunchBot thermal food jar for MisterMan, and sent along a side box of the usual: pickled cucumbers, red onions, carrots and daikon; grapes and strawberry, sliced peaches. Yeah, they ate this on a hot summer day, but imagine how comforting it would be on a cold fall day? Not me -- I refuse to think about fall just yet -- we just finished our 1st week of school and I'm still enjoying summer in my mind! ^_^

Cheesy Cauliflower "Mac" and Cheese Bento

Cheesy Cauliflower "Mac" and Cheese Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I made up this meal. TinySprite has been asking for mac and cheese for a long time, so I figured it was time to make a batch. I noticed a recipe for cauliflower "mac" and cheese (in which the cauliflower replaces the pasta), and combined it with another recipe I saw which incorporated butternut squash puree into the cheese mixture. I also added onion and minced broccoli, as I have been known to do, and came up with this. I've noticed cauliflower used as a gluten substitute before, and I even used it to make a gluten-free pizza dough (here), so I guess it's probably nothing new. But it's kind of a nice change from macaroni elbow pasta. I packed it into the Hello Kitty thermal food jar, and decorated the top with a red bell pepper "flower". The side box holds pickled cucumbers, broccoli, tomato, carrot, pickled onions, and a sweet white nectarine.

Gluten-Free Cauliflower Pizza Bento

Gluten-Free Cauliflower Pizza Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Hello people! Remember the first gluten-free pizza crust I made over in this bento last month? It was from a mix, and it was okay. It had that gluten-free background flavor, not like real crust. Well, this time I wanted to try something totally different, and I found this cauliflower pizza crust idea floating around. I saw it at RecipeGirl's site first, but she noted that lots of others had tried similar variations. All you do is grate a head of cauliflower, mix it with egg and cheese, form a crust and bake. Sounds crazy? Actually I thought, there's no way this is going to stick together to make a crust. So I added some rice flour and some flaxmeal. Did I ruin it? Who knows? Let's just say this does not turn out to be what you think it'll turn out to be. It's basically a cheese cracker with some cauliflower bits mixed in there. Nothing wrong with that, but I mention it just so you'll know. Now, I love a cheese cracker. Salty, crispy, and yes - greasy - goodness is hard to argue with. So of course my little girl loved it! But if you try it, I'd caution you to use a nonstick pan, or parchment paper.

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Cauliflower Pizza Crust (from Recipe Girl)

1/2 large head cauliflower (or 2+ cups shredded cauliflower)
1 large egg
1 cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese
[not in original recipe but I added 2T rice flour and 2T flaxmeal]

Directions:
1. Grate the cauliflower into small crumbles. You can use the food processor if you'd like, but you just want crumbles, not puree. I used a box grater. You'll need a total of about 2 cups or so of cauliflower crumbles (which is about half a large head of cauliflower. Place the cauliflower crumbles in a large bowl and microwave them (dry) for 8 minutes. Give the cauliflower a chance to cool. They'll be nice and soft.

2. Prepare the crust: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spray a cookie sheet or pizza pan with nonstick spray (or use a nonstick surface). In a medium bowl, mix the cauliflower crumbles (about 1 1/2 cups since they shrink after cooking) with the remaining crust ingredients. Pat the "crust" into a 9 to 12-inch round on the prepared pan. Spray the crust lightly with nonstick spray and bake for 15 minutes (or until golden). Remove the crust from the oven and turn the heat up to broil.

3. Add toppings of your choice and return pizza to oven to broil for 5 minutes or until toppings are hot and cheese is melted and bubbly.

For this pizza I used chopped mushrooms, sliced zucchini, pepperoni, and diced capsicum in varying colors, then topped with shredded mozzarella. The pizza came out nice and crisp, since I pressed the crust as thin as I could manage. It doesn't stick together very well, so a thin crackery crust probably works better than a thicker crust which might break. I packed some in her Keroppi sandwich box, and placed some refreshing fruit and veggies in the lower tier. Pretty successful as a gluten-free pizza, but my search continues...
Added to What's For Lunch.

Anpanman Bean Burger Bento

Anpanman Bean Burger Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Remember the vegetarian run we had last week? It's continuing today with these garbanzo bean - rice burgers I made. I've made black bean burgers before, but they tended to fall apart easily. This recipe uses rice and egg as a binder, and the mashed garbanzos seems to have a stickier consistency. They still don't have as much integrity as a regular ground meat burger, so I'd use care while eating it in a bun, but it held together well enough for our bento. I placed this patty on a layer of curried cauliflower and decorated his face with grape tomatoes, sweet potato and Okinawan sweet potato to look like Anpanman. The fruit side contains all red items: blood (Moro) oranges, grapes and strawberry. So happy with the blood oranges again this season! They're a bit tart, but a nice change from normal oranges. Aren't they beautiful?

Garbanzo Bean (Chickpea) Rice Burgers (adapted from Whole Living recipe)

Ingredients
2 cups cooked and drained chickpeas
1 cup cooked brown rice (I used 2 cups to make it even stickier, and mine was a mix of white, brown and and millet)
1 shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I used cilantro because I love this herb)
Salt and pepper (I used cumin too, because I like this spice)
1 large egg, whisked
2 tablespoons olive oil

Mash chickpeas and brown rice until thick paste forms. Stir in shallot, garlic, and cilantro. Season with salt, pepper and cumin. Stir in egg. Form into four 1/2-inch-thick patties.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties and cook until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side.

Squash Blossom Pizza Bento

Squash Blossom Pizza Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

We made squash blossom pizza a la our favorite pie from Pizzeria Mozza and Scala's Bistro. I used whole wheat flatbread rounds for the kids' bento since they are such a cute size and perfect for little hands. I sliced the zucchini thinly, and sauteed briefly, then scattered on the flatbreads along with chunks of mozzarella. I layered fresh squash blossoms (a whole bag from my farmer's market for $2) on top and baked. For the adults I added peppers (Scala's uses padron) and for the kids I added garlic powder. Super yum! These happened to fit just right in the two-tiered stainless steel tiffin, and I was able to keep the fruit and vegetables separate on the top: corn, cauliflower, tomatoes, grapes, cherries and pluots. Looks like a pretty sunflower, kind of. ^_^

Purple Goldfish Bento

Purple Goldfish Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

The theme of today's bento is ... fish! To go with the miso butterfish that I made (method and recipe here), I cut some big-eyed goldfish from Okinawan sweet potato using my very cool goldfish vegetable cutter. I've cut carrots (in this bento) and regular sweet potato (in this bento) before, but this is a first for purple goldfish. I think they look rather vibrant, if not very realistic; do you agree? The mottled color looks kind of cool. It's a bit tricky to get the fish out without damage, and there were a few casualties. A stiffer vegetable would cut more easily. The rest of my LunchBots Trio contains: grape tomatoes, corn on the cob, green cauliflower, carrots, plum, cherries and raspberry.

Chili and Roasted Veggies Bento

Chili and Roasted Veggies Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I just realized I used this same bento in my last post, for sticky rice. I think I've had thermal bentos on my brain for awhile, ever since I received a Zojirushi Classic thermal bento set as well as a Stanley thermal food jar from CSN stores to test out and review. I figured with this being winter and all, it would be nice to pack a hot lunch for my kiddos. This thermal set is one I've had awhile, and while it can keep the contents fairly warm, it's not very good at it. Furthermore, it's not leakproof. I don't normally pack soup or watery stews for my kids, so it isn't usually a factor, but it's nice to have an option to do so. Today I made chili. It's layered over rice and it's pretty thick, so there's not much chance of leakage. In the little upper container I've put roasted kabocha and cauliflower, a piece of steamed broccoli and a cherry tomato. I packed the fruit separately since obviously I don't want them to be warm. I packed a very similar bento for my second-grader, using the Stanley jar I mentioned earlier. I'll post an update when it comes back home. Chili and rice! A definite wintery crowd-pleaser.

Walrus Bento

Walrus Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Okay, we're done with Hello Kitty for awhile. For this bento I used the brown / red rice combo that looked like it would make a nice walrus. I mentioned in my review of Yum-Yum Bento Box that one of my favorite characters is the cute walrus onigiri on page 53. Well, mine doesn't look quite so cute, does it? When TinySprite saw it she asked "What is it? Oh, waris? Oh. Waris. Yeah!" So she didn't exactly let on that it wasn't a great example of one, but it was pretty obvious that she had no idea what kind of animal I was talking about. Oh well! Along with the walrus, which had nori eyes and freckles and radish tusks, she also got roast chicken, golden cauliflower, carrot sticks, strawberries and cherries. And in keeping with the marine theme, I used dolphin and fish picks, and my iridescent mermaid figurine that I got from gamene. Thank you megan! I love her! Can't imagine why the mermaid would remind her of me... can you? ^_^

I linked this bento at What's For Lunch! You can too!

Tortellini Bento, and Bento Leftovers: What To Do With Them?

MisterMan's bento has tortellini and sausage leftover from an Autumn Party with friends. Roasted sweet peppers, purple potatoes and beet-dyed cauliflower. Yellow pear tomatoes and peapods. Fruits include clementine, blackberries, and raspberries. November is made for roasting stuff, I think!

I have been tagged by Susan of Hawai'i's Bento Box Cookbook to discuss what I do with bento leftovers after packing. Well, for me, the decorative touches are often minimal, so scraps do not always occur... the most likely leftovers for me would be after making cutouts from veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, radish or cucumber. My method is simple: I almost always eat them myself! But I'll also put them in the bottom of the bento too. They'll add height to other items in the box.

1) Bread –I don't often make cute cutout sandwiches, but if I do, I'll put the extra bit in the bento too-- underneath. My girl will eat all kinds of bread bits.

2) Nori seaweed – Probably like others, I keep the sheets I use for cutouts in a zipperlock bag, and reuse them until gone. No extras there!

3) Cheese – I usually only use cheese for my girl, and leftovers go in with the box of grated cheese that is always in the fridge. I'll use cheese from this box throughout the day for quesadillas, pasta, sandwich melts, omelets, etc.

4) Cold cuts or cooked ham – Don't use this often, but very easy to simply eat up!

5) Fruits – Eat them myself, or save for kids' snack after school.

6) Vegetable or fruit peels – We compost these, or sometimes give to the dog (he really does like them! :)
Gonna tag Karina of Bunches and Bits next and ask her to share what she does with her bento leftovers!

Once you accept the tag, the rules are simple.
Please link back to the person who tagged you and add your name to the ‘tagged list’ below.

When you have answered the question (which can be in any style/format you like), nominate another (one will do) fellow blogger (who is not already on the list) and pass the tag to your nominee.

If you (the selected nominee) has already answered this question in an earlier post (well done), then your job is very easy - just link the tag to your earlier post and pass the tag on as per item nos. 1 and 2 above. Alternatively you can update it (if you wish).

Have fun :)

Tagged:

1. javapot

2. susanyuen

3. sherimiya

4. karina


[Ps. No cute picture with this tag unless someone can generously suggest one which would be most appreciated! Hint, hint…anyone wanna sponsor or is just creative?? All credits will be given.]

Skull Bento

Skull Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Here is my FIRST contribution to the Halloween theme bento! (I will be posting many more :) A skull onigiri with purple carrot eyes, and Okinawan sweet potato and yellow beet detail. When MisterMan saw it, he said "Cool! You made a Tusken Raider!" WHAT?! *sigh*

Lemon crusted salmon (I did not make this, alas), romanesco, yellow and purple cauliflower, peapods, sweet potato, and radish atop arugula sprouts. Fruit box has little strawberries (they are getting very tiny these days), giant black grapes, plum, golden raspberries and blueberries.

We might also call this a Day of the Dead bento.... which it also might call to mind...

Honey Garlic Pork Bento

Honey Garlic Pork Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I made honey garlic pork ribs, and I have been wanting to use shiso recently ( I did use it in tamagoyaki a few days ago -- it was good!). After the meat is cooked through, I sprinkled the shredded shiso on top, so it didn't really cook. It adds a nice minty flavor; very nice.
So, MisterMan got some pork slices, and a brown / jade rice bunny onigiri, but I used a sandwich mold instead of a rice mold, which was bad planning because I subsequently really had no way of sliding it out after I shaped it. So, anyway, it's a girl because I wanted to use the associated bow cutter, and isn't it cute? He also gets purple and yellow cauliflower, peapods, ocean salad, garlic sesame spinach, and tricolor tomatoes. Fruit section has yellow plum (don't know the name of it but it's sweet!), organic strawberry and blueberries.

Goldfish Bento

Goldfish Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I stir-fried spinach yakisoba with shiitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, garlic and green onion; no meat because I didn't have any. Topped with carrot goldfish. These goldfish cutters are handmade with built-in eye cutouts; very intricate and precise. I have found that carrots are the optimal substrate for this cutter: they are the desired color, and they are stiff enough to hold up well to display the lovely curved shape. If you cooked sweet potato only until firm, you might get a nice result (but I like sweet potato much softer).
I also quick-sauteed horenso (spinach) in garlic and shoyu and topped with sesame seeds. Satsumaimo / Okinawan sweet potato flowers (I could have used my double flower cutter for this one, but instead I used a simple cutter for the flower, and cut out the center circle using a bit of straw -- easy and convenient!), purple cauliflower and tricolor tomato skewer. Fruit side has strawberries, raspberry, blueberries and plum.
This is quite a bright and colorful one! I think it might be the ultra-violet purple background ;)

Red & Orange Ravioli Bento

Red & Orange Ravioli Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

MisterMan gets vegetable & cheese ravioli, yellow and purple cauliflower, yellow and purple carrot skewers, peapods, sweet potato and satsumaimo flowers, radish, cherry tomatoes and ocean salad. All-red fruit side includes Elephant Heart plums, red grapes, strawberries and organic raspberries.
Hm, looking at it now, it's kind of flowery and "heart-y"... but I don't think he'll mind!
I'll be sure to make him a "boy" one next week for sure, eh?

Salmon Misoyaki Bento

Salmon Misoyaki Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Wild salmon misoyaki with roasted asparagus, peapods, purple and yellow cauliflower, tricolor cherry tomatoes skewer, purple and yellow carrots skewer, and satsumaimo & sweet potato.

Fruits include strawberries, blackberries, Dapple Dandies plum, and red grapes (underneath).

The kids ate the salmon in sandwiches with crusty French bread for dinner, and used the sauce on all the veggies :) This bento box has a clear lid, and I should have taken a pic of it in MisterMan's lunchbag -- it looks so cool, like a little garden in his bag ^ - ^

Chili Pasta Bento

Chili Pasta Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Chicken chili over pasta, with superbright purple and gold cauliflower (from farmers market today), cucumber dividers, peapods, purple carrot discs, 3 tomato skewer, flowers made from satsumaimo (Japanese sweet potato), regular sweet potato and yellow carrot. Broccoflower underneath.
Fruit cup has Dapple Dandy plum (supersweet!! from farmers market today too), blackberries and golden raspberry.

I took this photo outside since it was such a cloudy, dark day (too dark in the house), and it looks so much brighter (and overexposed) than usual! Right as I was taking it, it started to pour, so I got lucky ....