Bent on Bento

Gosh, it has been a while, hasn’t it?  Things have changed so much for me too. 

Since the start of the new year 2010, I have been packing lunch boxes for my son.  His school serves lunch too, but I figured if I pack his lunch for him, I would also be able to tell what he eats and what he doesn’t.  It will mean more work for me in the mornings, but it will be well worth it.

For now though, I can only manage simple bentos for my picky eater.  He likes his alphabets and numbers, so I try to inject an element of those things once in a while.

This is a really simple bento of spaghetti marinara with chicken meat spelled out in his name, cut up sausages and sliced apples.  I mix the spaghetti with a little bit of grapeseed oil to avoid it from sticking.  Olive oil works too, I believe.

Toddlers & Kids

The absence of posts here does not mean that I have not been cooking.  Nor does it mean that I have not been eating.  On the contrary, it just means that I hardly have the time and luxury to prepare elaborate bentos.  My toddler takes just a simple snack box to school, so I wouldn’t call it a bento per se.

However lately, when hubbs and I decide to dine in places where we know the food will not be suitable for my son’s palate, I will pack a really simple fuss-free bento.  Something I know will appeal to my tot, and will make him full too. Here’s an example of the bento I packed:

We have apple slices with a mini box of Milo, 2 steamed paus filled with lotus seed paste and some chocolate chip cookies.

I packed them all using the Lock n Lock lunch set I had asked a friend to get for me.

And it all keeps nicely in the stylish insulated bag too!

But you know kids…they can’t eat anything brought from home if their parents are eating restaurant food….SIGH!
If I remember correctly, he only finished the box of Milo!

Toddlers & Kids

Has it been that long since my last post?  My tardiness has definitely got nothing to do with me not eating at all, because of course I have been eating!

However, as for preparing and packing bentos, time has not been on my side, I’m afraid.

My toddler has started school a few weeks ago, and since the school provides lunch, I only pack a small snack box for him to take along, usually consisting of cookies and muffins.  I’m considering packing his lunch though, because he doesn’t seem to eat a lot of what they serve (safe for last Friday when he downed 2 bowls of rice!)

In any case, if I were to pack lunch for my kids, I would certainly want to use an insulated lunch sack.  One that is not too bulky but yet does its job well…something like the insulated lunch sacks at Kids Konserve.  It comes in Moss and Beach designs and guess what, it’s made totally from a reusable plastic bottle!  How cool is that!?

I also like this Nesting Trio set.  It looks pretty handy and dandy, though my concern would be if my kids would be able to open the cover safely without spilling the contents.

Lovin’ these stuff from Kids Konserve simply because they look good and yet I’ll feel good knowing that I am greening the environment while using them too!  And here’s the good news: all you readers out there will get to enjoy a 15% discount off everything in the Kids Konserve Store from now till October 31 2009.  Just use the coupon code bento at checkout!

Happy bento-ing everyone!

All pictures credited to Kids Konserve.

General, Toddlers & Kids, Tools & Equipment

About a month ago, I received an email from the Editorial Team of Foodbuzz with regards to their Tastemaker program.  I had expressed my interest to become a Tastemaker participant sometime back, and Foodbuzz was now inviting me to sample the latest Mother’s Circus Animal Cookies.

Well, of course I agreed…and look what the mailman brought yesterday…

Mother’s Circus Animal Cookies is apparently an old-time favorite, but strangely enough, although I had not heard of it before this, the taste of these cookies do evoke a certain nostalgia, like I have tasted them before.

Anyway, they were all animal-shaped cookies coated in pink or white glazed sugar and sprinkled with colorful sprinkles.  I knew they would make a wonderful bento for my son.

So he had Hainanese chicken rice, with slices of cucumber, sliced strawberries and some Mother’s Circus Animal Cookies.  The moment he saw his bento, he exclaimed, “Candies!”  Guess what he ate first? 😛

Toddlers & Kids

When I read about Vegetarian Bento contest for the month of May organized by Maki at Just Bento, I knew I wanted to give it a shot.  For one thing, vegetarian bentos would result in not-too-oily bentos to wash up after, and it is definitely a healthier option. 

So I concocted a simple vegetarian lunch today.  It was yummy, and it certainly made me feel healthier!

My vegetarian bento consists of organic pasta in various colors, served with chunky tomato bolognese sauce.  I had triangle-shaped celery and baby carrots with ranch dressing, and for dessert, a few slices of delicious organic strawberries.

Vegetarian bentos are fun to make, this might be the first of many to come! 🙂

Adults carrots, celery, pasta, strawberries, tomato

My little picky eater toddler loves hard-boiled eggs.  He however, prefers the egg white to the yolk.  I’m not complaining because this means he is getting SOME protein!  When I serve him the egg, I have to cut it into bite-sized pieces for him.  I have yearned for a cool egg mould for a long time now.  One in the shape of a car like this Tomica one from New Stylish Tokyo would be great.  And my son would be absolutely thrilled!

 
Photo credits

There is an ongoing giveaway at A Pregnant Pause where New Stylish Tokyo is giving away 3 egg moulds, 1 Koi Japanese Style Curtain and 1 Anpanman Chocolate Mould.  Do check out details on this giveaway, if you are interested in these fantastic items, all imported from Japan.

General, Tools & Equipment

I have been hunting for a good thermos that’s not too expensive and yet can keep my food warm for several hours.  Oh, and of course it has to look good too!  Just recently, I came across this potential one from Kids Konserve.

 
Photo credits

The Kids Konserve Thermos has a silver and green color scheme, which I totally dig!  It can hold 12oz of food and is made from 304 food-grade stainless steel.  Most importantly, I don’t need to reheat my food in the microwave when I am ready to eat a few hours after packing.

However, the one thing that’s making me rethink my decision to get it is because this thermos comes with just one compartment.  So I can either have just one warm dish
(with several other side containers to lug), or I’d have to put all my food into that one thermos.  Moreover, 12oz might not be enough to feed me either! LOL

So while I am still deciding if I should get it, I also got to check out the other cool stuff Kid Konserve is offering.  The store specializes in reusable environmentally-friendly and waste-free products for packing food and drinks or basically just to snack on the go!  Their tiffins look pretty hardy too 🙂

And thanks to Kid Konserve, all you fantastic readers out there, bento enthusiasts or not, y’all get to enjoy a discount of 10% off everything in the Kid Konserve store, from now till May 31st 2009.  Just use the coupon code bento upon checkout.

General, Tools & Equipment

Remember the bento I created for myself?  Well, if you need a refresher, that was the bento I entered for the the Who-R-U? Bento contest run by Javapot.  The contest is closed for entries now, but that means it is time to vote!

So if you wanna make the Bento Tigress really happy, please vote for me by clicking on this link.  I am Contestant #5 – bentonbento.  🙂

Thank you!!!

All votes need to be cast by 5:00pm (Malaysian time GMT+8) on Wednesday April 22 2009.

*keeping my fingers and toes crossed!*

General

These came in the mail for me two days ago.  How awesome is that, huh?  My very own name cards (mini MOO cards, really), and all compliments of the Foodbuzz team, just because I signed up to become a Foodbuzz Featured Publisher!

Now that’s a different and unique way of promoting my Bento blog, eh? 🙂

General

Trust me, I am no pro at creating intricate bentos that people wow at, but the Who-R-U? Bento contest run by Javapot made me curious enough to challenge myself… that, and the fact that the prize of the awesome Thermos set was calling out to me…

Anyway, I made it before the deadline of the contest and here is the end result:

The contest required the contestant to create a bento reflecting the bento packer himself/herself.  Inspired in part by this fabulously done bento, I created one along the same lines, with a few changes here and there.

My tiger head (which looks more like a kitty cat now) represents my blog identity: The Bento Tigress.  Also, my Chinese zodiac sign is the tiger, so this fits me perfectly!  The tiger’s head is made from egg fried rice, eyes from hard-boiled eggs and nori, the ears are from sliced frankfurters, the nose is a sliced piece of carrot and the mouth is from hard-boiled eggs too.

The simple colorful pasta shapes of garden creatures represents my love for nature, and the musical notes made from nori represents my love for anything music.  Also, I love Italian food like pasta, and the chunky bolognese sauce is the perfect accompaniment for it.

The heart-shaped sausage shows that I am a tender-hearted person, the food picks that held the sausage pieces together turned out looking like outstretched arms ready for a hug! 🙂

What about the teddy bear shaped nori?  Well teddy bears are fuzzy and adorable and full of love, right? … just like me!  Well, not the fuzzy part but you get my drift! 😛

At the top left corner, I added some flowered red grapes with carrots.  I love flowers!  Oh, and the brocolli is my current favorite vegetable!

Creating this bento was a lot of fun!  I am not sure how long I really took to complete it, but it was about an hour or so, because I had to pause intermittently to take care of my baby. 🙂

Adults, Toddlers & Kids broccoli, carrots, egg, grapes, pasta, rice, sausages