Chicken Teri Onigirazu Snack Bento

Today's snack makes use of last night's dinner along with some fillers that I usually have lying around the fridge. Onigirazu is like a musubi but rectangular in shape like a sandwich. It's like a rice sandwich. If you do a search you'll see lots of  beautiful examples bursting with all kinds of colorful and delicious ingredients.

There are molds you can purchase to help you make the onigirazu shape but I find that it's easy enough to shape it yourself, and then you can size it to your specific bento box.

Feel free to pack whatever favorite foods you choose!

😊❤🍱

Pita Snack Bento

I wasn't planning to make a snack but the avocados are ready to eat *right this second* so let's do this. I love avocado on bread, long before avocado toast was even a thing. If I had more time I would fry an egg or add ricotta cheese or hummus and beets or apple slices and honey or... so many possibilities! How do you like to eat avocado?

In MisterMan's Ecolunchbox Solo Cube: whole wheat pita triangles topped with stuff. Pack as many as you can fit so they don't move around inside the box and just stack them nicely. 

Plus more blood oranges because they're still in season and they look so amazing. Have a great weekend!

😊❤🍱

Furikake Salmon Lunchbots Bento

Two in a row! I'm on a roll now.

I recently learned that to ensure a crispy salmon skin you need to remove all the moisture from the fish first. I patted the filet with paper towels and let it air dry for a while before pan frying. Came out good! I love salmon and cook it once a week. I eat mine very simply with a bowl of 🍚 or on a salad🥗. So ono😋

In TinySprite's Lunchbots Trio: furikake salmon on soba noodles, assorted vegetables (broccoli, asparagus, tomato, carrots, edamame, Okinawan sweet potato), kiwifruit, pickled radish and red onion.

Puppy Pancakes Bento!

In celebration of Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, and National Pancake Day, we're having pancakes for lunch today! We've had breakfast for lunch recently in the past, and it was a big hit then, so I suppose it can't hurt to repeat with pancakes instead of waffles this time. I tried to make puppies, and I'd say the results improved with each successive pancake, so I put the early ones in the back. I decorated the face with cheese and nori, and even gave the lil' guy a mozzarella bone. TinySprite also gets some all-natural chicken sausages along with some ombre blood orange segments, blueberries, and a grape tomato. Happy Fat Tuesday, everyone!

Mabo Tofu Balloon Bears LunchBots Bento

Mabo Tofu Bear LunchBots Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today the kids get ma bo tofu (see the basic recipe and method I use here), but I added in chopped baby bok choy just because I'm green like that. I sometimes add in pickled mustard greens too, just because I like the sour taste! But I omitted that this time. This batch includes scallions but excludes the spicy bean paste (TS won't abide it) and is layered over white/brown rice in my LunchBots Duo. The built-in divider keeps the mabo sauce separate from the rest of the goodies: black- and blueberries, a very-not-sweet plum, some carrots and a little Okinawan sweet potato star. I reserved some tofu to cut out little bear shapes with nori faces, and gave them a grape tomato balloon to play with. Aww so cute!

Salmon Butteryaki and Furikake Rice Bento

Salmon Butteryaki and Furikake Rice Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This one is a classic favorite bento of mine: pan-fried salmon butteryaki with furikake rice, fried kabocha and steamed broccoli. TinySprite's version is miniature-sized for her preschool appetite and packed in the adorable pink Hello Kitty bento box I found at Japanese Lifestyle (I think). She won't be able to use these tiny boxes much longer, so I should really use them now as much as I can. I have a Cinnamoroll one too; I really love them a lot. The removable smaller section contains a mini clementine with a star-shaped cutout which I cut by hand using a small paring knife, some blackberries and a grape tomato. Colorful, balanced, nutritious, and gluten-free. Win!

Three Bunnies Meatless Calzone Bento

Three Bunnies Meatless Calzone Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Using the Sistema box to house the ever-popular calzone bento today. I asked the kiddos whether they preferred pizza or calzones and they chose calzones. Go figure. While they aren't much to look at (at least mine aren't), they are pretty colorful and exciting inside. I used red pepper, eggplant, grated zucchini, grated kabocha, arugula and cheese. TinySprite watched me make them, and handled the dough a bit. Since they're kind of hard to close (what with all the fillings), I did most of the manipulation. She watched me adding the grated veggies and was fooled when I put in the grated kabocha, since it looks exactly like CHEDDAR. Hehehahaha! This is really the best box to hold a calzone, because it stays separate from the rest of the stuff and doesn't really need to be immobile. Well, except for the Okinawan sweet potato bunnies, which will likely fall off. The rest of the colorful sides include: orange wedges, cherries, strawberry, grape tomatoes, carrots and cucumbers. So fresh, it could almost be a spring bento!
Added to What's For Lunch.

Jack Skellington Chicken Bento

Jack Skellington Chicken Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today's menu is tebasaki (grilled - or in my case broiled - chicken wings with sea salt). See the method and recipe I used here. When I make it, I always have to make several pounds (yes, you read that right) because I tend to snack while cooking. To monitor quality, of course. I sprinkle mine liberally with shichimi togarashi (Japanese red pepper mix), which makes it totally addicting. Even though the kids eat theirs plain, they are very tasty just with the sea salt. They can eat 10 or more wings each, and I packed their bento as full as I could, while still including pan-fried garlic kabocha, tomatoes, and Okinawan sweet potato. The fruit cup contains grapes and grapefruit, and a quail egg Jack Skellington wearing a mini sweet red pepper and radish santa hat. I was going to make Sally too, but after cutting out all those tiny features for Jack, I was done! I'm really not one for itty bitty nori cutting. She would have been very cool-looking though, so I'll have to make her another time for sure :)

Christmas Tree Salmon Bento

Christmas Tree Salmon Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

So here it is, two more weeks left of school (and school bento), and I'm running out of new ideas for Christmas themed bento. Luckily, my friend karaimame posted a Christmas bento that is so cute, it begs to be stolen imitated. It's a broccoli Christmas tree. I remember I made one a couple years ago (see this bento), and now that I peek at that one I see that last time I used the tree trunk pick and made the ornaments look like strings of lights (much cuter). Sigh. Maybe I used up all my festive idea brain cells on Halloween this year. Anyway, this bento contains crispy butter shoyu salmon, which means I pan-fried it with butter, then drizzled shoyu after I turned the heat off. Super good. Besides the tree with colorful pepper ornament cutouts, I've got baby grape tomatoes, Okinawan sweet potato stars, carrots, crabapple, strawberry, orange and grapes.

Today I met with TinySprite's preschool teachers to go over her first semester progress. Everything was as I expected until I asked whether she was well-behaved and polite. Well.... perhaps sometimes during circle time when they are asked to share, she'll burst into song... and sing a verse or two, and on, and on, and on. Maybe she could sing a little less. (Sheepish looks from teachers). What?! I guess I should be happy she's not busting out the dance moves too. Wait, I forgot to ask about that...

We're Back! Pesto Tomato Pasta Bento

Pesto Tomato Pasta Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This is a bento set from the week before we left on vacation. I didn't get a chance to post all week; in fact, I didn't even boot up the laptop, heh. It was fun to take a bento-break while we visited with family in Los Angeles. The kids love going swimming and playing ball at their cousins' place, and visiting with their grandparents. We got to enjoy a real summer week of 90s temps too! It was great. For these bentos I made spaghetti with pesto and roasted grape tomatoes. I decorated MisterMan's with a colby cheese and Okinawan sweet potato "ice cream cone" while TinySprite got a Hello Kitty face on hers. They both got corn on the cob and various summer fruit like: lychee, cherries, blackberries and donut Sweet Peach Pie peaches. Cool pasta and fresh fruit make a perfectly satisfying summertime bento. Don't you think?

Purple Flowers Bento

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

Another pair of bento today again: shoyu chicken for both kids - with assorted corn, Okinawan sweet potato, carrots and fruit. I carved flower shapes out of purple carrots in MisterMan's bento; aren't they pretty? He also gets the dark red (almost black) plums that are loaded with juice and super sweet; I think they're called Flavor Rosa. I can't give them to TinySprite or I'll see evidence of them all down the front of her shirt. Instead she gets cherries, which she can eat pretty neatly. They also both get a grape tomato.

Unfortunately, she didn't eat much of this bento; most of the chicken came home. When dinnertime rolled around, she was starving! I'm really hoping she'll get into the practice of actually eating lunch soon. I think she's excited with the new schedule and friends; she'll probably settle down into the routine in the coming weeks. We'll see! ^_^

Mahimahi Summer Bento

Mahimahi Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I found a nice mahimahi filet today so decided to do the furikake mahi mahi that is so popular in plate lunch in Hawaii. It's so easy; the way I do it is 3 steps max: squirt with kewpie mayo, sprinkle with furikake, then carefully pan fry both sides. I added three tiny fish shapes cut from radish, with sesame seed eyes, and a grape tomato for color. The next compartment has bicolor corn on the cob, bicolor Okinawan sweet potato star shapes, and purple and orange carrots. For fruit he has lychee (yummmmmy!), sweet yellow peach, and cherries. Everything fits just right in this cute and practical Lunchbot.

Some exciting news about my bento from last week: it reached the final 20 in a contest sponsored by Bento & Co: "A Bento For Someone You Love"! There's a vote going on at the company's Facebook page to determine the final winner -- the grand prize being a trip to Kyoto. If you have a chance, I would appreciate a vote from you, my wonderful readers! The site is here: Bento & Co. You have to "like" the page first, then click on the purple "Participer" button, then scroll through the entries. They're not labeled, but mine is currently on page 3 and looks like this:

Thanks very much for your help! I'll let you know the results :D

Quesadilla Corn Salsa Bento

Quesadilla and Corn Salsa Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This was MisterMan's bento from last week. I didn't get a chance to post it then, but it turns out to be relevant for today's twittercornparty. How nice! I made some rolled corn tortilla "quesadillas" which I love to use this LunchBot for (since they fit so perfectly), and made some black bean, tomato, corn and cilantro salsa on the side. I tucked a couple of carrots in the lettuce cup as well. The delicious fruit section contains ultra-juicy cantaloupe, super-juicy pluots and fresh local cherries. Okinawan sweet potato "fish" add colorful decor to the bland tortillas. I attached the little fish to the tortilla with rice sticks through their eyes.

For our twittercornparty I made a variation on Fu Fu balls, which are a traditional West African (and Caribbean) staple made usually from steamed plantains or yams. I made mine using Japanese sweet potato (satsumaimo), cornmeal and fresh corn kernels off the cob. After steaming and mashing the imo, I added cornmeal mush until I got the consistency I liked. I stirred in the corn kernels, and added butter, salt, and parmesan to taste. I shaved some parmesan on top too. Voila!

Hey, I just realized this is a Meatless Monday bento. Maybe I'll try to make a habit of it? Happy Monday ^_^

Double Bears Bento

Char Siu Bear Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Yesterday in the Chinese deli both kids requested buns for their bentos. MisterMan asked for char siu bao and TinySprite wanted a hot dog bun. They both become bears with a little effort and some imagination. All I did for the bao bear is cut an oval for his muzzle and then cut that piece of brown bread (skin) in half for the two ears. The eyes and mouth are cut from nori and stuck on with honey. There's also some provolone cheese for the eyes.

The hot dog bear is made the same way, except he's snuggled up in a sleeping bag. Okay? My 4 year old seemed to buy it, but of course my 7 year old frowned, "It doesn't really look like a sleeping bag because there's no line to separate it." All right. I should have cut a sleeping bag slit. I'll try to remember that for next time. At least, he's got some butterflies that he's watching while asleep under the stars.

They have the usual sides: broccoli, carrot, tomato, corn on the cob, various berries, pluot and peach, and beautiful Okinawan purple sweet potato. This is the first kawaii bento I've made all month, since school let out. Oops! I thought I would have more time to make charaben in the summer but since the kids have been on break I've been preoccupied with other funstuffs :D Now that they're both back in organized summer programs I might start experimenting again. Or maybe I'll make a bento or two for myself for a change? ^_^

Scallion Pancakes Bento

Scallion Pancake Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today I made a batch of scallion pancakes for TinySprite, and decided to make more to pack for her bento. It's perfect for her light appetite, and will satisfy her carb cravings. I adapted the recipe here (from use real butter) but used half whole wheat flour for fun. It comes out a little chewier this way, but the kids don't mind. All you do is make a flour and water dough, roll it out, add chopped scallions, roll it up and roll it out flat again. Do you notice that I used the word "roll" three times in the last sentence? Yeah, it's a LOT of rolling, and it's best to roll it very thin. Now I know why I am not a baker. My arms are aching. But don't let that stop you. It's very tasty and fun to eat! Into this bento I also fit a piece of steamed corn on the cob, broccoli, a grape tomato, and a golden beet-dyed quail egg decorated with nori and a bit of carrot to look like a baby chick. The other section contains a juicy strawberry, supersweet blackberries (love these with Greek yogurt and walnuts!), carrots and grapes. All fun finger foods for my preschooler. ^_^

Chicken Masala Thermal Bento

Chicken Masala Thermal Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Now that it's cold and rainy again, it feels like time for thermal bento. What happened to pre-summer? Today I dusted off the thermal Stanley food jar and packed it with rice and chicken masala with onions and almonds. I forgot about the school's no-nuts policy (oops) -- if your school has a similar restriction, remember to leave them out. This flavorful chicken isn't too spicy for kids, since it doesn't call for any cayenne pepper, and it's plenty tasty for adults too. I made mine in the slow cooker with chicken broth and garam masala powder, and a yogurt thickened sauce. It only took a few hours, but it meant that I could leave the house for school pickup and not have to worry about it. I also packed a little separate bowl with oranges, the first cherries of the season, purple carrots, grape tomato and broccoli. Come on Spring! ^_^

Kerori Bento

Kerori Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today's bento contains broiled teriyaki salmon and asparagus, along with carrots, tomatoes and steamed broccoli. I used some broccoli to make a Kerori (San-x frog character) onigiri. I guess you could say he's partly white and partly green. I kept the grapes and strawberries separate, which is why I love this LunchBots Trio. It's perfect for just that reason. Today's post is short; TinySprite and MisterMan both had activities after school today, and my little ballerina had official group and individual photos taken as well. So much excitement and fun ~ ^_^

Radish Doggie Bento

Radish Doggie Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

MisterMan gets chicken sausage and baby potatoes, steamed broccoli, peapods and purple carrots, grape tomatoes, strawberry, grapes and cara cara oranges. Cute detail provided by radish slice and nori. Woof! The background I used is the poster I got from The Fillmore after the Paul Simon concert last week. It was a 2 hour show and he (and his band) sounded great. The highlight for me was the title track from Hearts and Bones, my fave album. He also rocked That Was Your Mother, with the zydeco vibe, and got the whole place dancing to that one. And lest you wonder whether his 69-year-old voice might be failing, he pulled off a haunting Sound of Silence, alone with his guitar, in the semi-darkness without a hitch. The Fillmore theatre hands out free apples and specially designed posters for sold-out shows; a nice bonus. I love this one with the art deco-esque feel!

Singapore Rice Stick Ladybug Bento

Singapore Rice Stick Ladybug Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

We just got back from a long weekend in L.A. visiting the in-laws, so there was no cooking done today >.< Still have yet to hit the grocery; maybe tomorrow. We had a lot of fun, but were all so exhausted. TinySprite had the longest nap in recent history this afternoon -- 3 hours. She had kung fu class this afternoon so she still was tired enough to go to bed at a decent hour. Yay! Luckily we have store-bought Singapore rice sticks, which is a semi-spicy curry type of noodle dish, mixed with egg, meat, bean sprouts and mushrooms. It used to be too spicy for MisterMan, but lately he's been getting a bit more adventurous and we're trying to "break in" his tastebuds so we can all eat more spicy foods as a family. I put a couple of grape tomato ladybugs atop the noodles, with nori decorations. I made a similar ladybug bento (here) not too long ago. Well, they are a sign of spring, aren't they? And so cute! I layered some cara cara oranges and kiwi on the other side, with grapes underneath. Hope you all had a great holiday weekend too. Welcome back to the routine ^_^

Meowth Pokemon Bento

Meowth Pokemon Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Okay, not an Easter bento but MisterMan requested a Pokemon bento so here it is. I had to scan the Pokemon directory (yes, such a book exists, luckily in his library) to find one with "a round face with bumpy edges" to match the ravioli I had. Have you heard of Meowth? Well, I hadn't -- but apparently he is a talking Scratch Cat Pokemon member of Team Rocket, who does much of the brain work behind their criminal schemes. I decorated the spinach and three cheese ravioli with carrot, radish and nori details for his face, and used somen for his whiskers. He is accompanied by peapods, tomatoes, grapes, and a strawberry. Hurry and eat this one before the Pokemon get it... they look hungry...