Chili and Pepper Jack Bento

Chili and Pepper Jack Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

We had our first rainy day of the season today. It started out nice and sunny, so I got a nice swim in the morning, and the clouds moved in this afternoon. It was full on raining by the time I picked the kids up from school; good thing I had a big pot of chili simmering. It hit the spot perfectly. Best of all, there's enough for tomorrow's bentos for all! Both kids get chili in their respective thermal food jars, plus a separate container for the fruit sides. I even carved a mini sweet pepper jack-o-lantern just for fun. Happy Fall!

Butterfly Fried Rice Bento

Butterfly Fried Rice Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Fried rice gets a fried quail egg topping in the shape of a butterfly: these are actually mini peppers so I split up a single quail egg into the three pepper rings, and pan-fried both sides. I decorated with nori and picks to suggest a butterfly. Do you see it? The fried rice is standard fare, using onions, carrots and other leftover veggies; plus this time I used chopped swiss chard. Healthy and tasty. Other section contains cottage cheese with blueberries and wheat germ, as well as sliced peaches and strawberries. Don't fly away so quick, summer -- stay for awhile...
I added this one to What's for Lunch Wednesdays. Take a look for more cool ideas!

Panda Rice Bento

Panda Rice Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Today I made roasted sweet miso chicken a la hapabento's recipe... although I changed it up a bit... and I added a panda rice musubi because as I've mentioned before, I really like chicken with rice! I think they go together like peaches and cream! Or hugs and kisses! Anyway. I think I'm convincing MisterMan of this, as he is eating the riceballs every day, and I'm not hearing any complaints :)

For the chicken, I only had skinless boneless thighs, so that's what I used. I marinated the pieces whole in equal parts white miso and agave syrup, which is the juice from the agave plant and a sugar/honey substitute. I forgot the mirin, but I added it just before cooking. I roasted at 450F in my trusty toaster oven for quite awhile; I think maybe 40 minutes or so. I even had extra room in there so I also roasted some mini sweet peppers at the same time (though those came out after about 20 minutes).

After the chicken was done, I also roasted some baby bok choy, another hapabento idea. I had previously accidentally roasted some brussels sprouts leaves, and discovered the crunchy leaves are kinda fun to eat. Have you ever tried it? So, I thought I would try the same thing with the choy. It didn't crisp up as well, but it still came out okay, and I think it tastes neat this way. My kids swiped it through the miso sauce, and I guess it was acceptable, because they ate it all.

I added some raw carrots for extra color, and in the fruit section I put some chopped fresh pineapple, cherries, and blood orange wedges.
This bento came home completely empty; all the lettuce and sauce included -- it looked like he had washed it already! I guess he liked it :)

How To Carve A Mini Sweet Pepper Into A Jack O'Lantern

First, you need a mini sweet orange pepper. And a smallish knife. The only one I have is a paring knife, and its blade is a bit big for this use. If you have a scalpel dedicated to food, that would be much better! However, I have found that the serrations can sometimes come in handy when carving foods with a tough skin.

Poke the knife in where you want the eye to be, and push down just enough to make the length of the triangle which you desire. Luckily, triangle shaped eyes are desired here, since this is the easiest shape to cut. Follow with the other 2 cuts, and push the triangle into the pepper with a toothpick. Repeat for the other eye.

The nose is an upside-down triangle, and ideally should be smaller than the eyes. This can be hard to do, so if it comes out bigger than the eyes, it's okay! Alternatively, you may go back and make the eyes bigger if you like. The mouth is by far the hardest part. Unfortunately, there is only me to cut and take photos, and I can't do both! So this is the only "process" photo you will see. Here, the serrations help to "saw" slowly at the pepper so that you may proceed more deliberately. Push the cutout pepper pieces into the pepper. Turn the knife at the obvious points whenever you would like to make a tooth. If it's your first time, I would suggest a single upper tooth. Don't worry, it will look cute like that! Try to go slowly to avoid dental accidents :)

When you finish, he should look like this! As you can see, mine is messy, but it's okay. I've been told crooked teeth denote character. If you like, you could cut the pepper under the face to make it more pumpkin-like.

And look! How cute is that. :) See him at work in this cute bento!