Cheesy Cauliflower "Mac" and Cheese Bento

Cheesy Cauliflower "Mac" and Cheese Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I made up this meal. TinySprite has been asking for mac and cheese for a long time, so I figured it was time to make a batch. I noticed a recipe for cauliflower "mac" and cheese (in which the cauliflower replaces the pasta), and combined it with another recipe I saw which incorporated butternut squash puree into the cheese mixture. I also added onion and minced broccoli, as I have been known to do, and came up with this. I've noticed cauliflower used as a gluten substitute before, and I even used it to make a gluten-free pizza dough (here), so I guess it's probably nothing new. But it's kind of a nice change from macaroni elbow pasta. I packed it into the Hello Kitty thermal food jar, and decorated the top with a red bell pepper "flower". The side box holds pickled cucumbers, broccoli, tomato, carrot, pickled onions, and a sweet white nectarine.

Shoyu Chicken and Jack Bento

Shoyu Chicken and Jack Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Shoyu chicken bento today, with sliced lotus root (renkon) simmered in the same sauce. Also, roasted baby Brussels sprouts and purple potato slices. I filled in with an orange and a yellow pear tomato for color. Other section has a purple carrot skewer, white nectarine, strawberry, black grapes (underneath) and a carved jack o'lantangerine. Today's the first day I've thought about roasting stuff in a long time -- guess that means fall is just about here. I hope we cool off gradually though; today was a perfectly comfortable 76F. ^_^

Five Spice Chicken Bento

Five Spice Chicken Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Chicken and rice -- that old standard that never fails -- makes an appearance in this bento once again. This time with some Chinese five spice in the mix. Super flavorful and goes really well with plain rice. Here's what I do:

For 3 chicken thighs:
Mix 3T shoyu, 1T olive oil, 2tsp five spice, 1tsp fresh grated ginger, and 1tsp fresh minced garlic. Marinate chicken a few hours or however long you have (doesn't really matter too much). Roast for 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally. Reduce heat to 350F and bake additional 15 minutes. If you cut the thighs into smaller pieces for cooking like I did, they will cook faster and you can skip the baking step. Check to see when your pieces are cooked through, and remove from heat.

I put the chicken pieces and a furikake-sprinkled rice ball in a moon-shaped silicone cup along with a few colorful cherry tomatoes and a bunny cut from radish. This box is pretty deep so I was able to squeeze in a corncob, Okinawan purple potato, broccoli, yellow carrot flower shapes, peapods and some white nectarine slices into the rest of the space. I made a big batch of chicken so you'll see it again in near future bento as well. I just realized I should have cut a moon shape instead of flowers, for Mid-Autumn Moon! Next time.

Sushi and Caterpillar Bento

Sushi and Caterpillar Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

This Bay Area heatwave we've had for a couple days is just what summer is supposed to be like, finally! But soaring temperatures means I don't feel like cooking. Luckily there are ways to pack a bento without cooking. This one contains sushi made with mixed rice and sardine furikake, topped with decorative carrot flower shapes. On the side I filled a lined cup with ocean salad and krab. I added pickled ginger to the little side section. On the other side of this double sushi box I placed steamed broccoli, some Okinawan sweet potato slices (with a radish slice face), grapes and nectarines. There's a slot in the center to hold a pair of chopsticks. I hope MisterMan finds this lunch a cool one that's fun to eat. Hope you're all keeping cool this week too!

All Fruits Snack Bento

All Fruits Snack Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

I thought I'd make an all-fruit snack bento for TinySprite before the summer is completely over. When these beautifully colorful fruit finally go out of season, I'll miss them and the pretty effect they had in our bento. Strawberry, kiwi, grapes, cherries, plum, pluot and nectarine all appear in this bento, as well as a tiny purple carrot flower. Admit it; didn't you have at least one all-fruit meal sometime this summer? When it was so hot you just didn't feel like cooking and couldn't bear to eat anything heavy? Summers are made for fruit. And did you notice the ultra cute Moomin utensils? I got them as a gift from a sweet bento friend and I love them to pieces! Today was overcast and cloudy but this bright bento helped perk us up ^_^

If you haven't already, don't forget to enter the LunchBots giveaway here. Contest is open til next Wednesday!

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. ^_^

Up Bento

Up Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Can you see Carl Fredricksen and Russell? And their tomato balloons? I showed it to MisterMan and he said right away "Oooh, I know him -- he's the young Wilderness Explorer!" So I guess I did ok :) There's also some salmon, broccoli, lettuce baran, and carrot flowers. Underneath is also a layer of very cool rice: I made white + black quinoa and it came out pretty neat-looking. Fruit side includes cherries, white nectarine, homegrown apricot and blueberries.
Wonder what else I can do with quail eggs?
They've sure been a lot of fun to play with this summer!
Hmm...

Napping Kitty Bento

Napping Kitty Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Quick-baked chicken bites get packed in a lettuce leaf wrap next to some steamed broccoli, tiny heirloom cherry tomatoes and a sleeping quail egg kitty. I tried to make a gray kitty using blueberry juice for fun. I should have let it sit longer in the dye but I ran out of patience. I added nori facial details, radish ears, rice stick whiskers and tail, and a teeny spot of sriracha for cheeks. This is a single quail egg cut in half. I was happy to find a curly tail; isn't it cute? Fruit tier has white nectarine, blueberries, homegrown apricot and lychee. You may be asking, is this box new? Nope; I've had this urara box for a long time just sitting in my cabinet. I also have the onigiri snack set too (and the matching fork, come to think of it). I really don't know why I never used it, but I'm using it today because I just got a new insulated tote bag for my boy, and it's tall and narrow. The stainless and 3-sectioned bento boxes I usually use won't fit in it, so I find I'm having to dig these two tier boxes out and give them a try. What do you think?

Panda Somen Salad Bento

Panda Somen Salad Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Okay, starting to cook a little for bento now. Does boiling somen noodles count? It's been so hot here that somen salad is really the best thing to cool down with. I topped this one with shredded carrot, ocean salad, green onion and furikake. You could also add lettuce, egg, ham, krab, kamaboko, or whatever you like. I put some tsuyu in the round blue container for him to pour on the somen just before he eats it. To the side I put the standard three: steamed broccoli, yellow cauliflower and romanesco. In the bottom tier of this cool skinny bento I put all the fruits: cherries, white nectarines and -- yes -- lychee!! It's not summer if I don't make my traditional lychee/blueberry panda. So here he is. I also added some other panda pals too, so they can have a panda party in the skinny bento! Not sure how I feel about this shape yet. I've seen others use it so elegantly, but I feel like I have to handle it carefully or it'll flip out of my hands and fall straight on the floor. It is unique though, isn't it?