Since I will be consuming massive amounts of turkey over the next three days I decided to go vegetarian today. A simple pbj with cheese stick, whole wheat toast and a cereal bar for the end of the day. I will be fortified and ready for some serious "stuffing" by Thursday:). Wishing all of my cyber friends a very Happy Thanksgiving.
Every morning after the teenagers fly off to school with my husband, I get this face. She follows me from room to room with toys stuffed in her mouth. She cries like she has lost a puppy in the fray and she sulks. If you do not own a dog or have not known a dog well, I am sure you think I am nuts. If you are a dog person you understand. My dear girl is 10 years old, grey nozzled and slower now but she still needs to play. Just one or two tosses and shes lays down to nap. How can I resist! 
This little turkey sandwich is surrounded by grapes, pineapple, and orange slices. He's actually a vegetarian of course made out of peanut butter, jelly and whole wheat. Safe for now!
Today's lunch is composed of Japanese meatball skewers. diced pineapple and steamed edamame. The great big apple is my afternoon snack afterschool. Light and easy for this Wednesay morning. Have a great day.
My lunch bento was last night's dinner. Maple and mustard glazed pork, sweet carrots, and roasted red pepper. Dessert is a little container of plum flavored applesauce. Simple, quick and good.
I purchased this cute little lunch kit last week at my daughter's school. The school was conducting a fund raiser for their tuition assistance program and held a holiday bazaar. One mom was representing her new endevour as sales representative for Green Irene LLC. The kit is made by Kids Konserve. I am very pleased with the quality of the lunch kit, stainless steel beverage bottle, two stainless steel food containers(275ml. each), a cloth napkin, plastic coated fabric pouch to wrap sandwiches and a cotton lunch sack. It was a little pricey I think at $40.00 for the set but I was able to feed my obsession and support the cause at the same time. Sneaky huh...it worked on my husband. Ho, ho, ho...tis the season.
The top containers were found in the baby care of section of Family Dollar Store for use as snack containers. They are not very sturdy but would be useful if you are not confident your container will always make it home. I am pretty dependable so they will last for me. The Christmas containers were intended for bubble gum cannisters. I tossed the gum and cleaned out the bases carefully. The design is a sticker but they will work well as mayo/mustard cups this season. What can you expect for $1.oo for an 8 pack.
Thanks for the kind words of encouragement. I'm back on the wagon. Today's bento is leftover spagetti, cheese crackers and mandarin oranges-simple but quick. I am in the process of replacing my refrigerator which is slowly dying. For the next week and a half we will be eating through what's left in the frig in order to prepare for the arrival of a brand new stainless steel refrigerator next Saturday. We have been saving for the new appliance for the past three years , crossing our fingers, hoping the old one had a few more months. Recently the refrigerator section had lost the ability to keep food really cold, an important factor for most cooks. Food has been spoiling super fast. Vegetables in the crisper are lasting three days from the store. The time has come to say goodbye-out with the old in with the shiny just in time for Thanksgiving.
Did you ever notice that everything looks like Bento these days. Target is just starting to put out it's Christmas collection in the dollar spot. This silicon mold was actually $2.50 on the higher end side of the display. There were Christmas Trees and Snowflake molds as well. They are muffin pans but I think they could be used to mold anything your little heart desires since they are heat resistant and silicon. Keep your eyes out for some snow action in Miami this holiday season. I have to get my snow fix somehow and it's much more fun than shoveling snow on the way to work in the morning. Ha Ha Ha or should it be HO HO HO!
This bento is filled with Kamaboko slices, edamame, pickled ginger, soy, furatake and white rice. For those unfamiliar Kamaboko is a white fish roll that is purchased in Oriental Markets. The taste is vaguely similiar to imitation crab meat but fishier. Last minute I added sliced lemon wedges to squeeze over top at lunch. I highly recommend the lemon twist.
Some days lunch is just lunch. Today is one of those days. This bento is last nights supper with edamame tossed in for added nutrition. It's typical school night fare. Barbeque baked chicken breast, steamed white rice, furitake and microwaved edamame. Seems awefully tame compared to some of my October Bentos but that's life in the fast lane. I did toss in a piece of Halloween candy for dessert at the last minute. A Saint I am not! Have a great day.
This lunch bento is composed of a deconstructed flower sandwich (ham and cheese with whole wheat bread rounds). The soup is called "Two Bean Soup with Kale". I found the recipe in Cooking Light Oct. 2009 edition recycled from my mom's magazine pile. I guess you could say we share the subscription. She pays for it, reads it first and then I get to keep it. Pretty good deal on my part. Wouldn't it be great if friends could create more magazine circles to share the wealth. The soup is all vegetarian with vegetable broth, cannellini beans, black beans, diced canned tomatoes and fresh kale. It is very tasty. I don't think I have ever tried kale before but I really liked it in the soup. I cooked this version in the crock pot. One of my best friends as you well know. The recipe in the magazine says it can be prepared in 30 minutes start to finish (also a bonus).
This is my treat this Halloween season. The trick or treaters have come and gone but these sticky confections are hiding in my refrigerator. As you can see I only made six of them to reduce the temptation. Gave two away and then there were three. Hee. Hee. Hee.
Sending all of my bento pals a touch of Autumn in the form of a sunflower bouquet. My husband was kind enough to escort me to the Farmer's Market on Saturday. I spied these beautiful sunflowers and decided they were destined to come home with me. I love the farmer's market since the food is incredibily fresh and cheap. I just wish they opened earlier on Saturday. I have to twiddle my thumbs to wait for 9 am to roll around. Saturday hours are very precious and I like to get as much done as possible before noon. Happy Autumn!
