Walrus Bento

Walrus Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Okay, we're done with Hello Kitty for awhile. For this bento I used the brown / red rice combo that looked like it would make a nice walrus. I mentioned in my review of Yum-Yum Bento Box that one of my favorite characters is the cute walrus onigiri on page 53. Well, mine doesn't look quite so cute, does it? When TinySprite saw it she asked "What is it? Oh, waris? Oh. Waris. Yeah!" So she didn't exactly let on that it wasn't a great example of one, but it was pretty obvious that she had no idea what kind of animal I was talking about. Oh well! Along with the walrus, which had nori eyes and freckles and radish tusks, she also got roast chicken, golden cauliflower, carrot sticks, strawberries and cherries. And in keeping with the marine theme, I used dolphin and fish picks, and my iridescent mermaid figurine that I got from gamene. Thank you megan! I love her! Can't imagine why the mermaid would remind her of me... can you? ^_^

I linked this bento at What's For Lunch! You can too!

Hello Kitty Bao Bento

Hello Kitty Bao Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Yes, it's another Hello Kitty bento... but I'm just so excited to be making cute girly bento now for a change! I hope you can bear with me. I'm sure the novelty will wear off sometime soon; after all, I can't possibly think of many more HK ideas. Luckily there are lots of other girly characters we can try. This one looks kind of strange because the steamed chicken bao is pinched on top and there are onions or something on top as well. She looks like she was playing outside and needs a bath soon, hehe! You can use a bao to make her yourself -- it's really very easy and quick. All I did was cut some radish ears, a strawberry flower, grape eyes, yellow pepper nose and then added spaghetti whiskers. Voila, you're done! On the side I added some kiwi flowers, sliced peaches and cherries. I also get to use my Hello Kitty fork that is embossed with her image and name (there's a matching spoon too). Yay!

Hello Kitty Egg Bento

Hello Kitty Egg Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Here's the next installment of kawaii quail egg bento: baby Hello Kitty! I just happened to have been given the perfect red bow by a super-sweet bento pal, and so what else could I do? It's obviously Hello Kitty's bow! The quail egg has cheese stick ears, rice stick whiskers, nori eyes and a mustard nose. The rest of TinySprite's snack consists of cherries, white nectarine slices, steamed broccoli, carrots, grapes and salami. These little bento snacks are a lot of fun to make! I think I can get used to this. ^_^

My Melody Bento

My Melody Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Well, it turns out that MisterMan's Summer Adventures program received a grant this year, thus enabling them to provide breakfast, lunch and snacks for the kids all the rest of the summer! In this age of budget cutbacks, it's kind of nice to see the kids get some benefit for a change. Of course, my boy is more than happy to enjoy eating with his pals at the pizza and fruit table. He even forgoes breakfast at home so he can have a bagel and banana over there. How funny. So where does that leave me? No bento in summer? *sob* Well, let's not forget about TinySprite! She's still home with me, and when she starts preschool I'll be providing lunch for her there too -- so no worries.

Today I made her a My Melody pork & veggie bao to go in her matching bento box. I've had this box awhile but don't usually use it since it's so deep. It's perfect for this bun though. To the steamed bao I added ears cut from nitrite-free ham, grape eyes, yellow pepper nose and nori mouth. I made a couple of carrot flowers for her ear as well. The other section is just right for grapes, strawberries and yellow tomatoes. The cover has two side latches and is decorated with My Melody's face; it also comes with a lid that holds a matching spoon. So cute. I haven't posted girly bento in awhile, have I? This might be a fun change for me too! ^_^

Happy Pancakes Toddler Bento

Happy Pancakes Toddler Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I have been thinking about pancake sandwiches ever since I saw the picture of one in Yum-Yum Bento Box cookbook that I referred to in my mouse post. Well, I didn't get around to making a real sandwich because I wanted to try adding vegetables to the batter in order to improve the nutritious quality of these pancakes, and by then the little girl was too impatient to wait for a sandwich. I used beet juice and grated zucchini to this batch and I was hoping it would turn red so I could cut them into cute heart shapes, but I think I need to use a lot more beets for that to happen. The zucchini bits made the batter less than smooth, so the reverse of the pancakes turned out kind of lumpy as well. At least one side looks pretty good, and it's cool that she's getting a whole grated zucchini and a baby beet (for the entire batch -- which made about 12 pancakes) along with her lunch! I used a silicone flower shape to pour the batter in, and it works a lot better than metal shapes (in my experience). You don't even have to spray the silicone at all; it just pulls away cleanly as soon as the pancake is cooked on the bottom. For my 3 year old, I smeared cream cheese between two pancakes and added a chocolate chip face. She also got a little cup of edamame, a homegrown apricot, some sweet cherries and a lychee. All packed up in our new Hello Kitty bento box that I got in Little Tokyo over the 4th of July weekend. So cute.

Happy Monday, bento friends!

July 4th, 2010 Bento!

July 4th, 2010 Bento!, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

This 4th of July bento was meant to be a star-themed snack for TinySprite. In the upper left section she gets cottage cheese with a red plum and kiwi star encircled by blueberries; the lower left has two small corn cobs, halved grapes and more kiwi stars; upper right has taro bread nutella star-shaped mini sandwiches with a strawberry and celebratory star picks; and the lower right has a fruit bar with carrot cutouts wishing her and you a Happy 4th of July!

Mameshiba Bento

Mameshiba Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

It's the end of school / beginning of summer bento! This one is for TinySprite. I got the idea for the mameshiba hot dog rolls from Sofia of From Japan With Love, who posted a picture of mameshiba hot dog sushi that were so cute. I didn't have rice, so I substituted bread which I flattened by rolling with a glass jar, then wrapped the cooked turkey dog and sliced to fit the box. I added nori detail for the faces. I also made a one-egg tamagoyaki with shredded spinach, some cucumber, steamed purple cauliflower, sliced plum and golden apricot. All packed up in my cute Hello Kitty box. She ate it this afternoon before going with her brother to his kung fu class, and I was happy that she ate everything. Even the "purple broccoli", which she bragged about. Next time I'll put a bigger piece in!

Happy Summer bento friends!

Girls' Day Bento

Girls' Day Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Here's my Girls' Day little snack bento for TinySprite. It's a shy, demure girl in her purple carrot kimono with green onion obi. Okay, you'll have to use your imagination. I like the irony of making a shy girl for TinySprite; it really makes me laugh. TinySprite is NOT demure. If there is one very apt word I can use to describe her, it is LOUD. She talks loud, she laughs loud, she's very outspoken and not afraid to talk to anyone. She remembers everyone's name and always addresses their parent and siblings, if present, as well. She knows everyone, everywhere we go: post office, grocery, library, school, etc., and she gets more greetings than I do. You know those kids that always ask embarrassing questions at very awkward moments? I am just waiting for those. She already "reminds" people not to smoke, litter, or run too fast. Yikes. So I should have made this girl with an "O" mouth, wide open, to truly represent my girl :)

Anyway, to make this girl, I just wrapped a carrot peel round and round a quail egg for her body. As an aside, purple carrots appear to stain quail eggs pretty well. As soon as the peel touched the egg, it left a purple mark. By the time I'd wrapped the egg, everything was streaked dark purple, including my fingers. So if you need a dark purple egg, you might consider purple carrots next time.

Her head is a second quail egg placed on its end. I cut her hair and eyes from nori, and she wears a cilantro and maroon carrot flower in her hair. Also in this little snack box are two strawberries, a grape tomato and a peapod. Yellow sweet mini pepper flowers too.

I should have taken video of her eating this one, but I forgot. She ate everything, even the green onion, which surprised me. First thing she did was totally unwrap the carrot kimono and eat that by itself, and then all the flowers, and I was a little nervous about her just popping the eggs in her mouth so I made her take a bite from each one first. She had a lot of fun with this one, I think :)

Here's a closeup of the girl:

Happy Girls' Day, bento friends!

Mini Sandwich Bento

Mini Sandwich Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I haven't made a mini bento in sooo long, and you know how much I love minis! Just had the urge to make a mini bento today. Well, I picked up a pack of Mini Toasts and thought they would be so cute as a mini sandwich. Usually I make mini-er foods than this, but this is a nice scale to work with too.

On the toasted breads I put two circles of smoked ham, swiss cheese, some mini curly lettuce, a mini slice of avocado, and finally I sliced some grape tomatoes and lay them on top. Looking at it now, I think I should have squirted a squiggle of mustard right on top of the tomatoes. Next time.

I cut some mini carrot sticks to go along with this healthy "lunch" on a tofu "plate". The whole thing sits on top of a mini mandarin, with red grapes and strawberries surrounding. I added a tree of broccoli for color too. Here's a closeup view:

Isn't it cute?

Mini mini mini love ^_^!

Happy Weekend friends!

Lions Bento

Lions Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Hangin' out with TinySprite today, she watched me make her bento and had lots of questions. By now she knew right away about the apple bunnies, but was very curious about the egg and the turkey dog thing. "You making egg? You cutting hot dog? You rolling it? You making samwich? It's hot? Don't go so close? Can I stand here? How 'bout here?" And etc. Then afterwards, "Can you take picture? Take MY picture!" So finally after putting it together I showed it to her and she yelled right away "Lion!" And knew the boy lion had a "hat". Success!

She got: turkey dog egg rollup lions with nori detail, steamed broccoli, grape tomato, grapes, mini mandarin and apple bunnies.

And yep, I think she liked it. ^_^

Penguin Egg Bento

Penguin Egg Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

TinySprite got a penguin hard-boiled egg made with nori and carrot beak detail. I should have used the other end for the head, so it wouldn't be so pointy, but oh well. She also got carrot sticks, broccoflower, cherry, kiwi, mini mandarin, sliced strawberry, and cinnamon banana discs on a cute marlin skewer! I got this skewer from a bento pal as a gift -- thank you! There are other fish in the set too, and I really love them!

When I gave this to her, she said "Oh! Can I eat the snowman?" What?!
Penguin, I said, penguin! Oh, penguin, she repeated.
Sigh. Oh well.

Keroppi Rollups Toddler Bento

Keroppi Rollups Toddler Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

It's Keroppi! If you follow my tweets, you'll know that I was so excited to find this vintage Keroppi bento box in a second hand store I was browsing through in Hawaii recently. I was such a big fan of Keroppi as a schoolgirl, which does date me I suppose. Anyone else with me on this?

Anyway, it's such a tiny box...it's really kind of impractical. So, I decided its inaugural use would be as a snack for my toddler. After I made the rollups, though, I realized it was a pretty hefty meal after all. I used a fried egg and rolled with ham, spinach, and grated cheddar cheese, which promptly melted nicely on the hot egg and ham. I added a couple of grape tomatoes for color, which she loves, and in the tiny divided section I put 3 kumquats and some kiwi flowers.

Well, she took one bite of the kumquat and politely handed it back to me. It wouldn't be the first time I was the recipient of half-masticated foodstuffs. Such is the job of the mom, right?

Next time I think I'll slice them up thin and mix them in with pineapple or something else intensely sweet. Ha! I'll figure something out. ^_^

Ninja In The Fruit Bento!

Ninja In The Fruit Bento!, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

This snack bento is for my 2 year old TinySprite ~ a nori-wrapped hard-boiled egg ninja standing guard with his various weaponry. Watching over the satsuma mandarin, sugar plum, black grapes, strawberry and raspberry. Sword, dagger and throwing star shaped cucumber.
Inspired by fellow flickr bentoist MAHOUTAKE's egg man, and a challenge! Come eat the fruit! Dare you!

Little snack bento for toddler usuallly consists of fruit and cheese -- her favorite foods -- but I usually try to add some protein and veggies as well. Eggs and peanut butter are good stand-bys. She loves hard-boiled egg, which she will eat yolk and all, but for some reason she is not a fan of scrambled eggs or omelet, unfortunately. If your child is picky about certain foods, perhaps the stubborn one may come around if you present the food in a different form. Beans and peas are another specialty food; she prefers them deshelled. Don't bother to deshell them first; little kids love to "play" with their food and may even end up eating more if you let them pop the peas out themselves. My girl may be picky, but I can be sneaky too :)

Kimono Girl Bento

Kimono Girl Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day, and kids are home from school to honor those who served our country. I made a little snack bento for TinySprite ~ a peanut butter and jam mini sandwich with a girl in a kimono. The kimono is made of sweet orange pepper with peapod as the obi; her face is swiss cheese and hair and eyes are red lettuce. Her hairbows are sweet red pepper. The flowers are cheese and purple potato. Underneath are black grapes, with raspberries and blackberry as well. Here is the inspiration for this girl:

This is one of the designs of greeting cards that my mom and I have made. This one was made by my mom and it's called the Shy Girl. Though TinySprite does not epitomize "shy" by any means, I thought it would be a cute one for her :)

Werewolf Toddler Snack Bento

Werewolf Toddler Snack Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I have lots of Halloween-themed bento this year ~ too many to blog. They were a lot of fun, though, and if you want to see them all in one place, you can glance at the dedicated set I made in flickr. I'm posting this one here just to let you know this one made Front Page on Flickr Explore, which was a first for me and was very exciting! This means the photo was cycled on the front page for some time (about 5 hours) on October 24th. Here's what the screen shot looked like.

I made the chicken and sun-dried tomato ravioli "werewolf" for TinySprite with mozzarella and nori facial details, and cut curved pieces for the paws. My mom thinks the paws are the best part of the bento. There are also peapods, strawberries and blackberries. Her Jack O'Lantern is cut from a mini orange sweet pepper. It's my favorite cutting material and I love that the vegetable is naturally hollow too! Here's how I cut my little pepper jack-o-lantern (a recent post), if you are interested :)

It's only 2 more days until Halloween! Tomorrow my boy has the day off, so he will spend it hanging out with his sister and me. Who knows what will be in store?

Ghost Snack Bento

Ghost Snack Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Boo! Here is TinySprite's snack bento ... she gets pasta with sweet potato flower, fresh organic raspberries from the market today, Okinawan sweet potato "apple" shapes, maroon carrot skewer, edamame skewer, and mozzarella ghost.

I have been making a whole Halloween bento series, and I realized I better start blogging them before I run out of days! This is the first one... a cheese ghost, because my girl is a cheese fiend and can always be relied upon to accept simple cheese as a last-minute snack option! Super easy way to make the bento a bit more festive.

Mini Bento: Pancake Stack Bento

mini pancake bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I am posting a mini bento from last spring because it's a favorite of mine and I just haven't had time to do many mini bento snacks lately. This one was for my toddler daughter. It includes her favorite ham & cheese rollups, plus a selection of fruits: strawberries, tangerines, and grapes. I also put in 2 peapods, because she will only agree to eat vegetables if they are present in small (one or two pieces) quantities. The mini part of the bento is the mozzarella cheese "plate", with real mini pancakes on top, topped with a tiny square of cheddar cheese "butter" and real maple syrup. The nori utensils I made using my craft punch. TinySprite loved the pancake, calling it "Baby pancake!", cuddling it, singing to it, and kissing it. It was so funny, I wish I had taken a photo of that scene :)

I have lots more mini bento ideas, and I am such an avid mini fan... there will definitely be another one soon, I hope!

Bijou Toddler Bento

Bijou Toddler Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Radish hamster (I know, she doesn't have ribbons but I didn't have anything blue), quail egg "sunflower seed" with nori detail and red pepper bow, satsumaimo flowers, peapods, strawberry, tangerine, golden raspberries, and grapes below.

A tiny snack for TinySprite :)

Pretty Pink Bento (Bento #200!)

Pretty Pink Bento (Bento #200!), originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

TinySprite's bento had: nitrite-free ham, cream cheese, roasted red pepper and spinach rollups, honeydew nectarines, broccoli, carrot stars, tamagoyaki with spinach, strawberry, blackberries, yellow pear tomatoes, and champagne grapes. Oh, and cheese flowers right on top!

Purple Bunny with Carrots Bento

Purple Bunny with Carrots Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

For TinySprite: Okinawan purple potato bunny with double carrots on an almond butter sandwich... with fruits: lychee with grapes underneath, blueberries, blackberry, raspberries and cherry. Quail egg flowers, cut with zigzag knife.