May the 4th Lentil Sausage Bento

May the 4th Lentil Sausage Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I know it's not May the 4th yet, but since it falls on Saturday this year, I'm sending MisterMan to school with his Star Wars bento today. I tried a new lentil potato sausage chard "salad", which can be served hot or cold. If you want to serve it cold, you can toss with balsamic vinegar or sherry vinegar. I cooked French lentils with diced purple potatoes, then added pan-fried chicken artichoke sausage, mushrooms, onion, garlic and celery. I tossed in shredded chard at the end just to wilt it a little. If you omit the sausage, it could be a vegetarian option. I thought it was pretty good, and refreshing on this hot day. The top tier holds a big strawberry, carrots, fancy-cut radish, broccoli, and pickled turnips and kumquats. Do you see the Star Wars reference? It's very simple, but I hope he gets it. Light sabers were cut from red sweet pepper and cucumber. Happy May the 4th (a few days early)!

P.S. You can see the other Star Wars bento I have made in the past here.

Curried Lentil Farro Soup Bento

Curried Lentil Farro Soup Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This winter has been extremely cold around these parts -- 30s at night and only 40s-50s during the day! It definitely calls for warming foods at lunch time, such as those that can be packed in a thermal food jar. Today I made curried lentil barley soup for protein-packed nutrition. For TinySprite I left it a little "dry" to make it easier to eat without spillage. She toted along a little side container containing: a mini cup of blueberries, steamed broccoli and Okinawan sweet potato, a satsuma mandarin and a dried pluot. My favorite local stone fruit farm sells the dried version of my favorite summer fruits so we can pretend it's peak summer. They don't add sugar but the pluots, nectarines and peaches are unbelievably sweet. Just one will overwhelm your tastebuds with a sublime explosion of sweetness. Can you tell I like them a lot?

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Curried Lentil Farro Soup
(from "Super Natural Every Day" by Heidi Swanson)

2T olive oil
Large onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1T curry powder
1/2 cup farro
1 cup lentils
6 cups vegetable broth (or water)

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat, and saute onions, celery and carrots until softened, a few minutes. Add the curry powder; stir until fragrant. Add farro, lentils and broth. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer covered for 30 minutes or so. Taste; add salt or more seasoning as desired. You can also add other vegetables too, like squash or potatoes, or add more of the ones in the recipe as you like. It's quick and easy. I added extra cumin (because I like it). You can also top with yogurt mixed with lemon juice.

Lentil Curry Chicken Bento

Lentil Curry Chicken Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

MisterMan really liked this bento: it has lots of different flavors, which he likes, and lots of healthy stuff, which I like. I made lentil curry chicken in my slow-cooker, using chicken thighs and adding chopped spinach at the very end. The meat was so tender it fell apart. I also made bhindi (okra) masala, and packed them in the lower tier alongside millet quinoa rice with a radish decoration. [I was asked about my method for cutting the star radish, and I managed to take some process photos that I'll show you next time.] In the upper tier of this classic EcoLunchBox, I packed carrots, grapes and cara cara orange chunks beside a separate container of Greek yogurt topped with strawberries and wheat germ. The little oblong container comes with a stainless steel top to keep the contents secure, and both tiers latch together tightly. I really like the way this one came together, and do you see my cute Moomin cutlery? From my dear Finnish friend :D