Hummus Rollup Bento

Hummus Rollup Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

What's that? Didn't we just have rollups? Um, yes. I wish I had taken a cross-section photo of this one to show you the goodies inside. I smeared a whole wheat tortilla with homemade hummus (I made mine pretty thick so it would act as a sticky spread rather than a runny dip), added shredded baby spinach, caramelized onions, roasted red pepper strips and rolled the baby up. I stuck a few cute picks to hold it in place, but as it turns out, this sushi box accomodates the rollup perfectly. How's that for multipurposing? I tucked a few steamed peapods on the sides and topped with Okinawan sweet potato heart shapes. There's a strawberry, blackberries, carrots, broccoli, and sliced plum. These plums are nowhere near as sweet as the pluots of last month, but they'll have to do. And if you have been looking at my bentos for the past few years you'll know I never put these in: chocolate covered raisins! I couldn't resist. They fit so perfectly in the chopstick slot. What do you think?

Portabella Bento

Portobella Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

For this bento, I sliced and grilled portabella mushroom caps with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and sprinkled with chopped scallion. Asparagus and baby round potatoes were tossed with olive oil and garlic, and roasted together. I added a perfectly round cherry tomato in the corner for a splash of red, and some baked sweet potatoes cut into flower shapes. In the fruit section he has sliced plum, blueberries, and a cup of cottage cheese topped with chopped strawberries and wheat germ.

Upon looking at this bento now, it seems like a wintry one, with lots of earth tones and warming foods. Hopefully my bento will start to look brighter and more colorful with the coming of spring! I am definitely liking the longer evenings these days. The kids stayed outside until 8pm last night, riding bikes down the bay trail just down the street from our house. And today was positively warm, which got me thinking about refreshing foods like somen salad and sushi. Yay!

Chow Mein Bento

Chow Mein Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Chow mein with various veggies, satsumaimo flowers, broccoli, peapods, roasted sweet peppers, garlic roasted purple potatoes. Fruit side has grapes, one whole satsuma mandarin, and purple carrot discs. I wanted some contrast to the orange, and wished I had blueberries. Oh well -- the purple carrots seemed to do a sufficient job.

This is a handy Monday bento, when after the weekend I am too tired to cook anything. A quick chow mein can be supplemented with onions and mushrooms, then roast a few other things on the side and add them too. Even decoration is minimal, with only simple florettes. Still, the effect may be pleasing, especially since the boy loves fried noodles (his favorite food, I think!)