Herby Chicken and Potatoes ECOlunchbox Tri Bento (Giveaway still going on!)

Herby Chicken and Potatoes ECOlunchbox Tri Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Yes, it's the ever-popular herby chicken and potatoes! I think the kids prefer it over the traditional local-style shoyu chicken and rice. Aww. The ECOlunchbox Tri bento serves the purpose well here: I put the chicken pieces in the bottom along with some steamed broccoli, then the potatoes and roasted tomatoes in the next tier, followed by the fruit section containing sliced peach (where did I find a peach? I don't even remember), strawberries and little strawberry guavas given to us by a friend. Are you interested in winning a Tri Bento for your very own self? All you need to do is log an entry into the giveaway, and I'll try to pick your name! U.S only please. Thanks!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Added to What's For Lunch.

Beet Hash and Egg Bento

Beet Hash and Egg Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today I tried something new, since my kids love taters so much: beet hash. It's just diced potatoes and onions, but with diced beets tossed into the mix. I'm telling ya; they couldn't really taste a difference. Or if they did, they didn't care too much. They obviously saw them in there, and I specifically asked MisterMan (since he doesn't care for beets) whether he knew they were beets, and he said "Of course! I know they're beets! But it's okay, I don't mind them when they're mixed in with other stuff." Score! I lay the hash on a bed of spinach and topped with a hard-boiled egg. It's kind of a breakfast-y lunch bento again, isn't it? The top tier of the tiffin holds broccoli, carrots, corn, grapes and white peach. We'll be eating this again for sure.

Domokun Calzone Bento

Domokun Calzone Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I made fun calzones for the kids; using regular pizza dough for MisterMan and the Gluten-Free On a Shoestring recipe for TinySprite. I filled with a variety of meat (pepperoni, salami and ham), plus arugula and cheese, then for Domo I sealed it up in a vaguely rectangular shape. While the dough is still sticky (don't dust with flour), add on some little dough pieces for arms and legs. They'll stick there without falling off throughout baking! I'm showing you MisterMan's version here. This version will puff up during baking because it's a regular yeast flour dough, but the gluten-free version will just sit there and look just the way it looked before baking. In a way, it's easier to bake creatures using gluten-free dough for that reason. But I think puffy Domo looks kinda cute. I put some red capsicum and cheese details on his face, along with black capsicum eyes, and tucked him into the stainless steel tiffin with some steamed broccoli. The upper tier contains steamed corn off the cob, carrots, blackberries and blueberries, strawberry, lychees and plums.

Here are some other Domos I've made (using sandwich bread): here and here. And my first one, for a field trip (he looks kinda funny to me now) here!

Added to What's For Lunch.

Wonton and Dragonballs Bento

Wonton Dragonballs Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Wontons! That's what my kids shout when they find out I'm making them (see my recipe and method here). The excitement is just as high as with the gyoza. I love packing wontons because I don't have to bother to present them nicely. They're just wrinkly dumplings so all you have to do is squeeze them in however they fit. I think I put 10 in the bottom of this round stainless steel tiffin, along with broccoli, corn, carrot, and a little Okinawan sweet potato flower. In the top tier I arranged some grapes, strawberries, honeydew melon and dragonfruit balls. A few friendly faces make it a happy little bento. Don't you think? ^_^
Shared at What's For Lunch.

Roadtrip Jackolantern Bao Bento

tiffin
Roadtrip Jackolantern Bao Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Yes, we took a roadtrip this weekend, which called for a picnic-style tiffin bento set the two kids could share in the backseat. It was the perfect chance to make Jack-O-Lantern baos, don't you think? If you haven't tried it, you'll find that char siu baos are super easy to "carve" -- I've done it a lot. You can either slice off the top layer of brown to reveal the fluffy white bread underneath, or (much easier), simply push in the cut areas to suggest a 3D effect. Cool, right? Each kid got their own tiffin with their own personal Jack, plus I added a couple of tiny carved cherry tomatoes, a broccoli "stalk", carrots, and Okinawan sweet potato slices. The third tier is packed with corn and fruit for the two of them to share. The best thing about these car trip bentos is that everything is finger-friendly and basically mess- and waste-free. Love that. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and Columbus Day!

Roadtrip Bento 2: Mickey & Minnie

Roadtrip Bento 2, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

The weekend before school started we took a roadtrip to L.A.; a last chance to enjoy some warm summer weather and time with family. I packed our three-tier tiffin with some munchies to tide the kids over during the long ride. They each got a char siu bao, and they shared an assortment of fruit I packed in the bottom tier. I've made several different character baos (Ponyo, AstroBoy, Harajuku Lovers, Totoro, Shifu, Hello Kitty, Hamtaro, Kireizukin Seikatsu, and Pikachu) but never Mickey and Minnie Mouse! So that's what I did. Yes, I know they look like monkeys. That's why I used the little flag picks, to add a little power of suggestion. TinySprite got Minnie, with eyelashes and mouth cut from nori, and a strawberry bow. MisterMan got Mickey. Both have grape eyes and noses, with cheese detail. I cut their faces with my paring knife and used the extra for their ears. Their fruit section contains strawberries, grapes, cherries, plum and nectarine. I chilled that tier so that it stayed nice and cool. The temps in the Central Valley reached 100+, so it was a nice cool treat!

Teriyaki Salmon Bento

Teriyaki Salmon Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This is our first real bento after a week off. I made teriyaki salmon and packed it in the two-tier stainless steel tiffin bento because there's more room this way. My boy is entering 3rd grade and I'm finding that the kiddie-sized bento boxes are getting too small for his appetite already. I should have packed a musubi next to the salmon in this bento, but I didn't think of it. He said he made salmon lettuce wraps with the lettuce. This is also one of the few boxes that allows me to pack a big piece of corn on the cob (without slicing off a few rows first, like I have to do in TinySprite's bento). He gets the usual extras: carrot, broccoli, Okinawan sweet potato; and in the top tier peach, cherries, grapes and strawberry.

TinySprite's two-tier bento is similar, although she got purple carrots instead of sweet potato. She ate everything here, even the lettuce, except the corn on the cob. Don't know why. >.<

Somen Salad of Love Bento

Somen Salad of Love Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Note: I entered this bento in Bento & Co's contest to "Make a Bento For Someone You Love". It placed within the top 20 finalists, and won a gift certificate to the Bento & Co store!

Today's bento consists of what I think of as quintessential summer food: somen salad. Here are some other ways I've packed somen salad in bento: here and here. Have you had it? In Hawaii we eat it a lot when the weather is hot and humid. My dad had a method of making the somen noodles. These noodles are very thin, so you must not overcook them or they'll become mushy and sticky. As soon as they're done you have to cool them down to stop all further cooking. During this cooling step, my dad always pulled single serving size bundles of somen out of the basket and twirled each into a kind of little nest, keeping each bundle separate from the others. When they've cooled to room temperature, he stored the bundles next to each other in an airtight container in the refrigerator, with a paper towel just under the lid to absorb any condensed moisture. Then, when you're ready to make your salad, you can quickly and easily pull out as many servings as you need. Ta-daa! For today's salad, I used non-traditional toppings along with some of the usual: julienned omelet, ham, carrot and lettuce, grated purple carrot, and fresh corn off the cob. I arranged them atop the somen in a pleasing rainbow array. I chose the round tiffin because I like the way the ingredients look in a circular pattern. Plus, the stainless steel serves to keep everything cool. The top tier fits on top and is just deep enough to accomodate a variety of summer fruit: strawberries, cherries, lychee, black- and raspberries, and sliced yellow peach. The tiny blue container contains dressing for the salad. I almost forgot about the heart radish in the center; something needed to go there. Just now, as I was typing this, MisterMan walked over and looked at the picture of this bento he ate today. Immediately he said "Oh, I liked this one! I especially liked the radish heart because it reminded me how much I love you." ^_^

Roadtrip Triple Bento

Roadtrip Triple Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I used my three tier stainless steel stacked tiffin bento set (looks like this all packed up) for a roadtrip snack for my kids on our recent drive down to L.A. over the long July 4th weekend. Each kid got similar stuff: homemade potato salad, dough wrapped hot dogs (pigs in the blanket), Okinawan sweet potato, corn on the cob for my boy, carrots, broccoli and strawberries. They shared the fruit tier: super sweet yellow peach slices, black grapes, de-seeded lychees and more strawberries. I chilled the tiffins until the last moment before packing up the car, and by a few hours into the drive they were ready to eat. It was very refreshing to enjoy cool bentos during that hot (90F temps) trip. I didn't use any ice packs but they really stayed cool very well. I highly recommend packing this kind of bento if you'll be traveling somewhere warm this summer. Now I'm wishing I had the 4-tier...

Triple Mochiko Chicken Pool Bento

Triple Mochiko Chicken Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Guess what? If you guessed another shared pool bento, you're right! Yes, I'm really getting hooked on these stacked stainless steel tiffins. I have this round tiffin in one-, two- and three- tier sets. What, overkill, you say? Pshaw! Actually, each has come in handy several times within the past year. There's also a four-tier version which I am wondering whether I should pick up too. After all, we are a four-person family!

Anyway, getting back to this three-tier one: the three bowls stack upon one another, with the bottom one slightly larger (mine!). They latch together tightly so that only the top tier needs a true lid, and it's a cinch to carry. Really thinking about using these tiffins throughout the entire summer so you may be seeing them quite a bit. Today I've given each of us some oven-baked mochiko chicken. The sides vary but include: steamed bi-color corn (surprisingly sweet!), steamed broccoli, crunchy carrot, Okinawan sweet potato, and summer fruit! White peach, nectarine, cherries, pluot, black velvet apricot, strawberry, cantaloupe and lychee!!

The best of the summer fruit, as far as I'm concerned, is lychee. This year's batch is sweet, juicy, and surprisingly small-seeded. Don't be put off by the greenish hue of the skin. I too was surprised by what I've always expected to be bright red, but the fruit inside is indeed ripe and tender. The skin is tougher and thicker (and harder to peel) than I'm used to, but nothing that my adept fingernails can't handle. So far I'm very pleased. I'll leave you with a couple pics of the bento eaters in action at the pool. We had a fantastic time hanging out together, swimming in the big pool, learning to sit-dive, and chowing down our grinds. MisterMan's summer program starts tomorrow so we won't be swimming together for awhile. Gonna miss him.. but he's looking forward to playing with his buddies!

 "Do you like my purple mouth?"

"Take a picture of me Mom, take a picture of me!"

Added to What's For Lunch!

A Bunch o' Pizza Bento

Pizza Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today's bento is homemade pizza and summer-fresh fruit; a delightful combo that everyone loves. Three of us got a bento! TinySprite took her bento to preschool with her while MisterMan and I shared the two-tiered tiffin (again) after we spent the morning swimming and playing at the pool. Yes, I'm loving this summer routine so far :D The whole wheat pizza crust is topped with mushroom, onion, fresh tomato and chopped broccoli stalk (heh) with melted cheese on top. I've packed a variety of sides including: Okinawan sweet potato, broccoli, carrot, cherries, peaches, nectarines and my favorite dark red pluots. I have so many fresh fruit in the house it's ridiculously hard to choose how to pack each day's treats.

Oh, and it was Father's Day yesterday! Did you celebrate? The things that I treasure most about mine: the beachcombing walks together, the salt water aquarium he helped me set up to watch the creatures we collected, watching him catch, gut and clean fish, the trips to Tamashiro Market... but what I hold dearest is the sweet, tangible love he had for me, for my kids, and for my mom. I love you Dad!

Double Pool Bento

Double Pool Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

We're baaaack! We spent some time in Hawaii with family, vacationing and unwinding, and getting our fill of much-needed sunshine and heat. We left the bay area in a thunderstorm, and returned to fantastic 77 degree summery weather. Such a nice transition, I must say. We've spent every single day of our summer break so far at the pool, and tomorrow will be no exception. I've been packing light, cool bento for the kids and me, and finally got around to taking a photo of one. I've used my two-tier stainless steel tiffin, which I seem to do every year around this time: see the previous Pool Bento here. I've also used this bento for road trips (see Harajuku Bento). This time I packed leftover meatloaf which I chopped into small pieces and tucked into a silicon cup with a smaller cup of homemade barbeque sauce (tomato sauce, molasses, apple cider vinegar). This meatloaf is packed full of good stuff: shredded carrot and spinach, quick oats and wheat germ -- all mixed together with egg, milk, Worcestershire sauce, spicy mustard and even stuffed with cheddar. The kids loved it. I was able to squeeze a half orange, donut peach, strawberries, carrot and steamed Okinawan sweet potato into each tier as well. I'm really happy with this twin bento set! If I were more ambitious I would have packed a layer for me (yes, I do have a three-tier version), but ah well. I'll bring my musubi and fruit in another bento.
See you later; we're going for a swim... ^_^

Deconstructed Taco Bento

Deconstructed Taco Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

The last bento of the week is a fun one for my second-grader: deconstructed tacos -- which means he can put them together as he chooses at lunchtime. Since he's usually a classic deconstructive eater (pulling toppings off pizza, opening sandwiches to eat layers separately, etc.), I have a gut feeling he'll eat each ingredient individually. Sigh. Whatever! I guess that's his prerogative. Along with wrapped tortillas (with a dinosaur cheese design), he can choose from: turkey taco meat, lettuce, and pico de gallo. There's also a cup of yogurt with wheat germ (this condiment cup comes with a sealing lid), a strawberry, some blackberries, cherries and chopped oranges. This large two-tier stainless steel tiffin-style bento container comes in handy for meals like this one. The layers and lid close tightly with a double latch. It's sturdy and tough. Just like my boy ^_^

Black Beans and Pork Round Bento

Black Beans and Pork Round Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I found a recipe for slow-cooked black beans and pork loin that uses chili powder and coriander; it sounded so good I had to try it. I crossed my fingers that it wouldn't be too spicy for the kids. Success! I also added chopped onion, tomatoes and zucchini to round it out nutritionally. It came out sort of like a chili / stew; very tasty and hearty. Every time I use my crockpot I vow to do it more often. Is there anything better than walking in the door and realizing dinner is cooking itself? I scooped some over rice in the bottom bowl of this round stainless steel bento box I found in San Francisco a few weeks ago. I put some strawberries, grapes, carrots, peapods and cara cara oranges in the top tier.

The handled lid screws on top, securing both containers. This box resembles a tiffin, except that the screw top replaces the latches. I had my second-grader practice opening and closing it before I packed it to make sure he wouldn't have any problems. This set holds 800ml; there's also a 600ml and a 1000ml version that I saw. The round apple shape is a fun one, isn't it? Another MRB. Yay!

Summer Rolls Bento

Summer Rolls Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Today the kids get summer rolls; these rice wrappers are filled with lettuce and lemongrass chicken. You could also use shrimp, pork, or veggies alone. Since the wrappers tend to dry out, it's best to seal them in plastic wrap to keep them fresh and soft. The two-tier bento boxes are ideal for this purpose, since I can put the wrapped rolls together in one section and keep the fruit and veggies separate. MisterMan gets blood orange slices, carrots, a strawberry, grapes and a cup of cottage cheese with blueberries on top. Here's a closer look at the top tier.

TinySprite gets 3 mini-rolls in her bottom tier, and in the top tier: grapes, edamame, carrots and a strawberry. I totally forgot about this bento box since it had been shoved all the way in the back of the cabinet behind the stainless steel section. I really like it a lot, and I'm so happy I (re)found it!

Here's the recipe I used (from allrecipes):

Lemongrass Chicken Summer Rolls

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons minced fresh jalapeno chile (I omitted)
1/2 cup peeled and thinly-julienned seedless cucumber
1/4 cup minced fresh Thai basil leaves
1/4 cup minced fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1 1/2 tablespoons minced lemon grass
1/2 cup ground peanuts
1/4 cup fish sauce
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons white sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon peanut oil
Rice paper wrappers
Lettuce leaves
Boil the chicken until no longer pink in the center (about 10 minutes depending on your pieces).
Remove, allow to cool, and shred into small pieces.
Toss together the chicken with the vegetables. Mix the fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, sesame and peanut oils, then add to chicken mixture and stir.
Dip one rice wrapper in a shallow pan of warm water to soften. Remove after a few seconds, drain a bit, and lay on flat surface. Place lettuce leaf on top, then some chicken (I drained the chicken a bit so that there wouldn't be so much sauce dripping out), then roll semi-tightly but be careful not to tear the wrapper. Set aside and repeat for the rest of the ingredients. Eat immediately, or wrap in plastic to seal in moisture and prevent drying out.

Pizza n' Stuff Bento

Pizza n' Stuff Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

It's a pizza bento, one of the kids' favorites. They love to go out for pizza, but when I make it at home it's better.. and healthier! This one is a whole wheat honey crust, spread with mascarpone cheese, layered with thinly sliced sweet potato, arugula, caramelized onions, mozzarella, and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. I put a few pieces in the top tier to keep them separate from the rest of the bento. The lower tier contains clementines, grapes, pickled cucumber, cherry tomatoes and kabocha wedges that were pan-fried in the drippings from the caramelized onions. Nothing kawaii, but all yummy stuff nonetheless! MisterMan loves this tiffin, I think because it's so heavy. He always says, "I can tell there's a BIG bento in here!" ^_^

I'm adding the crust recipe for those who are interested. I used the Allrecipes Whole Wheat Honey pizza crust. It's super easy:

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2.In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

3.In a large bowl combine flour, wheat germ and salt. Make a well in the middle and add honey and yeast mixture. Stir well to combine. Cover and set in a warm place to rise for a few minutes. (I left it for an hour.)

4.Roll dough on a floured pizza pan and poke a few holes in it with a fork. (Thinner will be crispier.)

5.Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until desired crispiness is achieved.

Then, add your toppings and bake at 425F for an additional 18 minutes or so. Instead of one big pizza we made several smaller ones. Besides this one, we also made traditional tomato sauce based pizzas with pepperoni, sauteed mushrooms, minced green pepper and spinach. You might keep an eye on your pie to make sure it doesn't burn. Kids can help by making their own pizza: put out bowls of toppings and they can sprinkle them on as they like. Lots of fun!

Harajuku Lovers Bento

Harajuku Lovers Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

No school tomorrow, but the kids will have a snack for a roadtrip. I have a tiered tiffin that happens to be the perfect size for our favorite char siu bao, and each kid gets one tier. I made two Harajuku Girls: Music and Love. I chose those mainly because I happened to have the picks for their hair, and too bad for MisterMan but he'll be having his in the car so no one will see him. And you won't tell anyone he had to eat a girly bao, right? Haha! I cut their faces with a sharp paring knife and used the extra for their hair, then added grape eyes and pink carrot mouths. I have another tiffin that will have the fruit for them to share. I love these short weeks, don't you? If you have a day off, enjoy! If not, well -- Happy Veteran's Day anyway! ^_^

Chasoba and Fruit Bento

Chasoba and Fruit Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

More hot weather means we need another cold (and non-cook) lunch for relief. I love eating out of an icy stainless tiffin, so that's what I used to pack today's bento. He gets chasoba on a bed of crispy lettuce, accompanied by shiitake, krab sticks, ocean salad and green onion. I packed the soba tsuyu in a separate squeeze bottle which I lay in the top tier. The top tier also contained a clementine and a variety of fresh summer berries. I used an ice pack so it all stays super cold for him in this heat. No cute details in this bento, but the variety of fresh colors and flavors should serve to bring out his appetite :)

Raccoon Char Siu Bao Bento

Raccoon Char Siu Bao Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Kireizukin Seikatsu is a San-X character described by Sofia of From Japan With Love as: a raccoon who likes to relax and loves to take a nap. But since Mogura Sensei (mole teacher) covers racoon's head by a red riding hood, racoon becomes "kireizukin" to love cleaning like a tidy housewife. "Kireizukin" can't stop cleaning everywhere. It is like becoming a superman.

He's so cute, and I always thought his head looks so much like a bao. Don't you? Anyway, even though mine looks exactly like a bear, maybe you can use your imagination to envision he's a raccoon. I made the mole from a quail egg, and dyed with purple potato to look blue, and with nori details. Even though he's sitting there on his head, I left the red hood off so he can rest for lunch.

Besides the bao, whose face I cut with a paring knife and kept the cutoff part for the ears (since everyone knows the best part of the baked char siu bao is the sticky brown part) and decorated with purple potato for facial features, the upper tier of the tiffin contains baby carrots, strawberries, grapes, steamed broccoli and garlic enoki.

Happy Friday, bento friends!

Mr and Mrs. Banh Mi Bento

Mr and Mrs. Banh Mi Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Today was such a fabulous day; I really would call it the first day it felt like spring. The sun was out in a blue cloudless sky ALL day, and it was warm enough to leave the jacket in the car. A whole bunch of things are blooming in my garden, including volunteers I forgot about from last year. I actually have green onions that had been clinging to life all through winter, and now they are growing dark green and tall again. My sweet peas went to seed and now I've got vines shooting up the tomato cages. How's your garden?

Today we went out for lunch and at the same time decided to pick up some banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) for my boy's bento tomorrow. Score!

He gets a pork banh mi, which after I cut into pieces short enough to fit in the tiffin, looked like faces. So what could I do but finish them off with eyes and headgear? I also managed to squeeze in a whole tangerine, a strawberry, a few grapes and a sprig of broccoli. Perfect! This tiffin came with a top tier, but I'm only using the bottom section today -- which means I can fill it up higher. I separated the sandwiches in wax paper to keep them away from the fruits. It's not the first time I've put a sandwich in the tiffin; the round sandwich thins or bagels also work well.

You may have heard about the Spring 2010 Bento Contest going on, hosted by Maki of Just Bento, Thomas and Erico of Bento & Co, and Mook of French Bento. The finalists have been selected, and my Spring Momiji Bento is one of the final 15! The voting has now been opened up to the public, for selection of the top 10 Spring Bento. If you haven't already, please stop over and vote there, if you get a chance! My bento is #051 Happy Little Bento. Take a look at them all; they are all beautiful!