Kilrothi's Bentos

Bento #132 - Chicken Fried Rice

2010-02-19T16:05:00.002-05:00

This bento has more Chinese takeout leftovers in it, namely a big serving of chicken fried rice. Next to that I've got a few orange wedges, some more tri-color jello, and a single chicken and cheese sandwich on wheat... I figure the rice more than counts as another sandwich in terms of food. The chicken fried rice is packed cold (steaming hot food next to oranges, jello, and a cold cut sandwich isn't exactly food safe), so I packed him a plastic bowl in which to put it in the microwave and heat it up. He said it worked pretty well. :)

Bento #131 - Shrimp with Brocolli

2010-02-18T16:00:00.017-05:00

Hey, a Mr. Bento bento! I haven't done one of these since... holy crud, Bento #100! It's been a while, huh? Well, I ordered Chinese food last night, and that means I ordered egg drop soup, and that means I ordered extra, and that means I put it in a bento, and that means I used a Mr. Bento. So I've got egg drop soup in the soup container, and shrimp and broccoli (also Chinese food) in the insulated container. I also made cinnamon rolls Wednesday morning, so I stuck one of the leftovers in there too, as well as a silicone cup of cashews. Finally, in the snack container, there are two oreos, a "fun size" 3 musketeers bar, a muscat gummi, a babybel cheese, and a lifesavers mint. In case you're wondering, it was all very delicious. :)

Bento #130 - Mint Milanos

2010-02-17T15:16:00.003-05:00

I put tri-color jello in his bento again today, but all you can see is the blue raspberry on top. Also, I didn't forget to pack him something to eat the jello with, it's just kind of hidden between the sandwiches and the mint milano cookies. Anyway, he's got the two sandwiches, with 3 mint milano cookies next to them, a big block of delicious tri-color jello, a few orange wedges, and a muscat gummi. Kind of boring, but he's not complaining. :)

Bento #129 - Kielbasa and Parmesan Sandwich

2010-02-16T15:10:00.022-05:00

Despite its small size, this bento actually has a few interesting things in it. First, an overview: green M&M's in a container on the side, then (starting clockwise) I have jello, grapes, a muscat gummi, a string cheese (cut in half) hiding behind the gummi, and a sandwich.

Here we have the tri-colored jello that was also seen in my boyfriend's bento. The top is blue raspberry, the middle is cherry, and the bottom is lemon. This is actually the reverse of how it was made (blue was originally on the bottom) but it got flipped coming out of the container, and you couldn't really see the lighter colors if the darker ones were backing them anyway. I think it looks pretty cool, but I'd like to do something even better...

I've also got a pretty interesting sandwich today... I ran out of turkey, and I didn't want the chicken my boyfriend likes in his sandwiches, so I tried someting else. I sliced up some kielbasa, laid it out on a piece of bread, and covered that with shredded parmesan cheese, then stuck the whole thing in the toaster for a little bit, along with a second, plain piece of bread. When it was done, I just stuck the two together to make a sandwich. (I had to let it cool a bit before putting it in the bento box though, otherwise the heat it put off would have led to condensation inside the box!)

All in all, a pretty tasty bento. :)

Bento #128 - Tri-Color Jello!

2010-02-16T15:06:00.019-05:00

I did it! I made three colors of jello this time... unfortunately, you can't see it very well... there's a better picture coming in Bento #129, though. Next to the jello, there a spoon for eating it, as well as a muscat gummi. Below that are some grapes and the rest of the orange from his bento yesterday. I've also got the two required sandwiches again, and below that there's a packet of blue raspberry gushers.

Bento #127 - Gushers and Grapes

2010-02-15T14:46:00.013-05:00

Here's another bento for my boyfriend. It's kind of plain, but I think it's pretty colorful for what it is. I've got the required two sandwiches: chicken and cheese on whole wheat bread. Next to them, separated by a bear-shaped silicone divider, are a few orange wedges. In the bottom right container I've got a bunch of grapes, a muscat gummi, and some gushers in the penguin silicone divider. I also threw in some jello that I molded by pouring it in a gelato cup... if I'd thought ahead I might have done it in the little square sub-compartment itself. Oh well, maybe next time. :)

Bento #126 - Simple Sandwich & Nuts

2010-02-15T14:43:00.012-05:00

This bento is kind of a mish-mash of random food I could find in my fridge. Starting on the left, I have a turkey and cheddar sandwich on white bread. Next to it in the orange foil is a couple of "slices" of a Terry's chocolate orange (like this but without the toffee). Below that is a chocolate pudding cup, placed upside-down so it takes up less room, and there's a muscat gummi next to it. In the top right compartment, I've got a small can of fruit, with cashews in various silicone cups around and on top of it. I particularly like the penguin cup :) haha. In the bottom right compartment, I've got grapes, a babybel cheese, and a little fork for my fruit cup.

Bento #125 - Fake Crab and a Donut

2010-02-12T14:36:00.002-05:00

Haha, yet another bento with a donut in it! This is a zebra donut -- it's a chocolate cake donut enrobed in chocolate and then drizzled with white chocolate/icing. I've also got a lifesavers mint, some oreos, as well as some fake crab in a silicone cup, to keep it from touching the chocolate. The fake crab was actually pretty gross, so I think I ate maybe half a piece and then pitched the rest. :( I've also got a bunch of grapes, a "fun size" 3 musketeers, a babybel cheese, and a few slices of cheddar cheese (I believe it's cracker barrel, although I'm not sure.)

Here's a close-up of the donut -- I love these donuts that come in the assorted packs, not only are they all chocolate, and all delicious, but there's enough variety to keep things interesting... interesting and CHOCOLATE-y. :)

Bento #124 - Multi-Layer Jello

2010-02-09T19:59:00.001-05:00

You can't really tell, but the jello is actually two layers of jello: yellow on the bottom and orange on the top. Next time I'll do something with more color difference... Anyway, even though this was my bento for lunch, it looks more like a snack box, doesn't it? From the top left, I've got a babybel cheese, lifesavers mint, and muscat gummi; a bunch of grapes; a brownie square and some cashews; and multi-layer jello. Guess I should have at least stuck a sandwich in there, huh?

Bento #123 - Jello Smiley

2010-02-09T19:58:00.001-05:00

I got a little crazy with the bento this morning. I started off with the requisite cheese and chicken sandwich on whole wheat, threw in some of those chess cookies (a nice close-up is below), and a babybel cheese. Then I decided to include some of the jello I made last night... but it looked boring, so I thought maybe I'd use grapes to make a face, pushing two of them down for eyes and then wedging four more into a slit for the mouth... the eyes kept sliding around, so I'm sure it was really bizarre looking by lunch time. Finally, in the top right corner, I put in a square of brownie (I did a lot of food-making last night), a silicone cup of cashews, and two muscat gummis to fill up the gaps.

Here's the close-up of the chess cookies... they're all different chess pieces (here's a cool recipe that also shows all the cookies) and they're really pretty. :)

Bento #122 - Chocolate Sandwich, Chocolate Donut

2010-02-08T19:57:00.001-05:00

Even though this is in the larger box I normally use for my boyfriend, there's two really easy ways to tell it's for me: (1) it's loosely packed and (2) it's got a whole donut in it. :) I'm really horrible about packing healthy lunches for myself, partly because I'm really horrible about eating them (I'd rather have white bread than wheat, I'd rather have chocolate than fruit, etc.) Anyway, in this lunch I have a single slice of apple (it wouldn't fit in his lunch from earlier), a babybel cheese, and some grapes on the stem in the top left corner. The top right corner is my dessert, a chocolate crumb donut cut in half so it'll fit in the box, and two muscat gummis. In the main compartment I have a nutella sandwich on white bread, a silicone cup of mixed nuts (mostly cashews and almonds) and a container of banana-flavored apple sauce. I don't use a spoon for my applesauce (I drink it straight out of the container) so I didn't pack one.

Bento #121 - Inadvertant Football

2010-02-08T19:56:00.017-05:00

When I do the cutout on the apple, I always start with the outside pieces, since they're the easiest... when I was doing it this morning, I realized that the apple looked a bit like a football, so I left it like that. A bit late for the Super Bowl, but oh well. His lunch has the rest of the apple in the top left corner, the "football" apple surrounded by grapes in the top right corner, two sandwiches of cheese and chicken on whole wheat bread (as always). For dessert I threw in a whole paper cup of chess cookies (you'll see a better picture of them in his next bento) and a single muscat gummi.

Bento #120 - Cheese Tree and Leaves

2010-02-04T19:56:00.000-05:00

I haven't used one of my non-Lock&Lock boxes in a while, have I? The last time was nearly two weeks ago! Anyway, I've got a nice variety of food today. In the top tier (on the left) I've got a spam musubi, a muscat gummi, a mini mint 3 musketeers, and a packet of almond crunch pocky. In the bottom tier, I've got 3 slices of cheddar Cracker Barrel cheese (plus a tree and two leaves cut out of a 4th slice), some salt & vinegar pringles, and two oreos cut in half to fit in the box. In the sidecar to the left I have a snack that consists simply of a nutella sandwich and a bunch of grapes.

Bento #119 - Scrambled Eggs and Chocolate Liquer

2010-02-04T19:55:00.007-05:00

For whatever reason, this bento just looks so... clean. Doesn't it? I think it's all the bright colors and straight lines. And according to my boyfriend, it was pretty tasty, too. ;) He's got two sandwiches of american cheese, sliced chicken, and mayo on wheat bread in the main compartment. In the compartment on the top left are a whole slew of grapes, and then a tiny bottle of Remy Martin Cognac flavored Anthon Berg Chocolate Liquer. I like the tiny bottles of alcohol, they're so cute, and fun to eat, without there really being much alcohol in them (this is a good thing in my opinion). In the compartment on the bottom right I've got a couple of oreo cookies, and then two silicone cups (stacked on top of each other) containing scrambled eggs. I don't normally put scrambled eggs in bento because you have to wait for them to cool down, but these were leftover from breakfast, so it was either use them or pitch them.

Bento #118 - Cheese Flowers

2010-02-03T19:53:00.018-05:00

And here's my bento for the day! I've got a bunch of grapes in the top right, and then in the bottom left I have a nutella sandwich. In the bottom right of the bento box, I've got 3 slices of cheddar Cracker Barrel cheese, topped with more cheese shaped like flowers using the yellow flower cutters you can see in the center of this picture. Behind the cheese, and separated by a silicone bear divider, are 2 pieces of Ritter Sport chocolate, with a muscat gummi to the right. In an aluminum cupcake wrapper in the top left of the bento box, I've got a bunch of mini-marshmallows, covered by reindeer corn (red and green colored candy corn). Sorry for all the pictures, but I thought this bento was really pretty! :)

Bento #117 - Cheese Stars

2010-02-03T19:53:00.016-05:00

This is just a simple snack bento for my boyfriend. On the left he's got a whole mess of grapes, and on the right (covered by saran wrap) are chunks of pineapple. On top of the saran wrap, I placed a muscat gummi and some cheese cut into the shape of stars. Aren't they cute?

Bento #116 - Gelato Cups

2010-02-02T19:50:00.007-05:00

Wow, I didn't really realize this when I packed it, but this bento for my boyfriend is basically just tons and tons of sugar... sorry! In the bottom left compartment are a bunch of pineapple chunks, and the whole compartment is covered with saran wrap to prevent pineapple juice from getting on everything. To the right is a compartment full of grapes, plus a muscat gummi. I didn't have enough strawberries to fill a whole compartment, so I put them in an old (washed, I swear!) gelato cup, with one extra strawberry and a container of sugar next to them in a silicone cup. In a second gelato cup, I made up some trail mix out of cashews and indian corn (chocolate candy corn), the same trail mix I used in my bento. There's also an extra muscat gummi thrown in for fun/color. But again, it's like all sugar, I'm so bad! :(

Bento #115 - Hidden Trail Mix

2010-02-02T19:47:00.006-05:00

Yummmm, fruit and trail mix and other good stuff! Starting from the top left, I have pineapple chunks, then sugared strawberries and grapes, both covered in saran wrap to keep the fruit juices from getting everywhere. Below that, I have a babybel cheese, a bunch of cheerios, and a mint. Finally, I have the titular trail mix, hidden by some mini-marshmallows and a muscat-flavored gummi. Easy to make, easy to eat, and delicious. :)

Bento #114 - Pineapples and Strawberries and Sandwiches

2010-02-01T12:03:00.007-05:00

If I only made good, healthy bentos, this is what all my bentos would look like. Fruits; low-fat, high-protein sandwiches; dairy; and a smattering of sweets. On the right side, I have two sandwiches of chicken slices and american cheese on white bread. In the container on the lower left, I have a bunch of strawberries, and in the saran wrap-covered cup on the upper left, there are some pineapple chunks. (They're covered with saran wrap to prevent juice from getting all over everything.) Tucked away in the corner behind the pineapple, there is a piece of string cheese, a chocolate "milk" candy, and two muscat gummis. Behind the sandwiches, there's more gummis (from left to right: muscat, grape, apple), a brownie with nuts, and a container of sugar to dip the strawberries in.

Bento #113 - It's His Birthday!

2010-01-28T01:04:00.004-05:00

Like the title says, it's my boyfriend's birthday! I made him cupcakes last night, but as an additional birthday present, I made him a semi-embarrassing bento! Look at that star made of bread and cheese and chicken! It's kind of awful, huh? I made it by cutting out the bread with a cookie cutter, and then used the cookie cutter to cut out parts of the design in cheese and chicken. I cut a chunk out of the chicken with a knife so it would look more like the rays you always see coming off pictures of shooting stars, but it didn't come out quite right.

Anyway, in addition to the star made of sandwich ingredients, in this bento there are 2 sandwiches, a bunch of grapes still on the vine, a cupcake, and some kettle corn. The cupcake has blue frosting and more shark sprinkles. I felt kind of bad about how embarrassing(ly bad) the star was, so I ended up covering the whole thing with aluminum foil so no one else would be forced to look at it.

Bento #112 - Tons of Red

2010-01-26T00:46:00.005-05:00

This whole bento just feels very... red to me. On the bottom half, I've packed his (seemingly) requisite two sandwiches of chicken slices and american cheese on wheat bread. The sandwiches are separated from all of the fruit by a bit of aluminum foil (so versatile!). For fruit I've packed a quartered, unpeeled apple (I haven't said so recently, but I always dip the exposed bits of apple flesh in a bit of watered-down lemon juice to prevent browning). There's also a bunch of grapes, a container of strawberry-flavored apple sauce, and for dessert there's an apple gummi and a mini Cadbury creme egg. (I haven't put one of those in a bento since August!).

Bento #111 - Old Frozen Cupcake (Om Nom Nom)

2010-01-25T00:46:00.009-05:00

The title of this post comes from the fact that the cupcake in this bento was found half-squished to death at the bottom of an organizing basket in my freezer (but it was still delicious, hence the "om nom nom"). Next to said cupcake in the top tier, there is a square of Ritter Sport chocolate, and a silicone container of mixed nuts. In the bottom tier I've got a spam musubi, a triangle-shaped mini onigiri (with spam musubi marinade mixed in with the rice), a chocolate "milk" candy, and an apple gummi. Finally, in the sidecar, I've got a bunch of grapes to snack on. Everything was delicious, especially the old frozen cupcake (om nom nom).

Bento #110 - Rainbow Bento

2010-01-25T00:45:00.003-05:00

I didn't mean to do it like this, but when I took the photo I realized this bento kinda-sorta formed a rainbow! Starting from the right, I've got some kettle corn, separated from the other food by some peanut butter crackers (still in their wrapper). Next to that, I have some grapes, a strawberry-flavored applesauce container, and then in the top left corner I have a square of Ritter Sport chocolate. Thrown in randomly are some gummis of varying flavors (muscat, apple, and grape). This was a snack bento for my boyfriend (he could eat way more than this for lunch).

Bento #109 - His Name Starts With A!

2010-01-22T00:44:00.008-05:00

My boyfriend's name starts with A, so when I was checkerboarding apples this morning, I decided to get creative. On the bottom, I've got a star, then a diagonal checkerboard on the left, and then a big 'A' on the right. If you click on the image to your right, you can see a closeup of the 'A' apple, and the score marks are clearly visible. In addition to a whole bunch of nicely carved up apple slices, he's got two sandwiches on whole wheat containing mayo, american cheese, and sliced chicken. There's also a babybel cheese on top of the sandwiches, and I've thrown in a bunch of gummis of various flavors, including grape, apple, and muscat.

Bento #108 - Checkboard Apple

2010-01-21T15:47:00.008-05:00

This bento is rather similar to the bento I packed for him yesterday. On the bottom of the box, I've got two sliced chicken and american cheese sandwiches on white bread. On the top left, I've got an entire apple, sliced into quarters... I did a checkerboard on one of the slices for fun. On the top right, there's a container of strawberry applesauce, a single zebra cake, and a bunch of gummis thrown in (click the picture to go to the flickr page, where everything is labelled). The apples wouldn't fit in the dividers that come with the box, so I had to separate everything with aluminum foil. He eats so much food, haha. :)

Bento #107 - Spam Musubi and Brownies

2010-01-20T15:47:00.006-05:00

Here's my bento for today... a bit more boring than the one I made for my boyfriend, but still pretty tasty. In the top tier I've got a spam musubi and some cashews in a silicone cup. In the bottom tier I've got a babybel cheese, some grapes in a penguin-shaped silicone cup, a muscat gummi, and a Little Debbie fudge brownie, broken in two and stacked on top of itself.

Bento #106 - I Have a Boyfriend :)

2010-01-20T15:45:00.012-05:00

So... like the title says, I have a boyfriend now! Which means that I'll have twice as many bentos to post, as well as the fact that I get to pack big bentos more often (which is easier, to be honest).

In this very first "boyfriend bento" I've got two sliced chicken and american cheese sandwiches on white bread, cut in half to fit in the box. In the upper left compartment, I have some grapes on the stem, and in the upper right compartment I have a zebra cake, muscat gummi, and an "inside icing" cupcake. In addition to icing inside the cupcake, I hand-placed a dozen or so shark sprinkles with icing.

How totally awesome are these shark-shaped sprinkles!? I just wish I could buy them in bulk somewhere.

Bento #105 - Pretty, But Boring

2009-12-08T15:44:00.006-05:00

Here is yet another bento to eat during class. I've got a nutella sandwich on the left (I ran out of bananas), and then on the right I have some food to snack on. There are mixed nuts and cheetos (separated with a silicone food divider), and on top of the cheetos I have a mini silicone cup filled with reindeer corn. This is a boring lunch, but I find it really aesthetically pleasing for some reason or other... hope you do too! :)

Bento #104 - Cookies!

2009-12-06T15:44:00.006-05:00

I'm doing more studying today... I can't believe I'm studying this far in advance, I feel so responsible, haha. To counteract that responsibility, I packed junk food in this bento! I've got Keebler's Rainbow Chip cookies in the sidecar (they're just M&M's chocolate chip cookies, basically). In the main box I've got mixed nuts (mostly cashews), reindeer corn, a bunch of mini musketeers bars, the same lollipop I had yesterday, and a couple hard sour candies. Off to study (again)! :)

Bento #103 - Kewpie Mayo

2009-12-05T15:44:00.005-05:00

Yay, more sushi! This is actually two whole sushi rolls, made of rice, fake crab, and kewpie mayo again. It's a Saturday, and I plan to be studying Algorithms (blech!) for like 5 hours with a bunch of other grad students. I might even share a bit. :) There's a string cheese too, but that's all for me.

I've also got a snack box, with mixed nuts, reindeer corn, a bunch of mini musketeers bars, a lollipop, and a couple lifesavers mints. Bad breath eliminated, haha! On to studying! :)

Bento #102 - Pomegranate Seeds

2009-12-01T15:43:00.009-05:00

Would you believe I've never had pomegranate seeds before yesterday? I'd seen them around the net a lot lately, and decided to try them. They really weren't as hard to get out as everyone says, but I can't say I like the seeds (I could never eat sunflower seed shells, either). I think I'd prefer pomegranate juice. Anyway, I've got a solo cup of pomegranate seeds (extracted by hand!), a mini 3 musketeers bar, a muscat gummi, a silicone cup of reindeer corn (basically red and green candy corn), and a mint lifesavers. I've also got some sushi... it's a whole roll, I just cut the pieces really long, hence there only being 4. The sushi is just fake crab with kewpie mayo (it's a bit sweeter than normal mayo), which is surprisingly good. Now if only I had better fake crab...

Bento #101 - Rolled Prosciutto

2009-11-17T15:35:00.004-05:00

I knew I was going to be in the computer lab working until nobody-knows-when tonight, so I packed a simple, relatively easy to eat bento. In the container in the back, you can see my staple banana and nutella sandwich. In the forward box, I've got a cinnamon applesauce, string cheese, a muscat gummi, and a lifesavers mint.

I've also got some rolled up prosciutto, left over from Sunday's bento. I think it's kind of pretty looking, don't you?

Bento #100 - 100 Bentos!

2009-11-15T17:21:00.007-05:00

This is my hundredth bento! Can you believe it? :) I honestly didn't think I would make it to 100. When the summer ended and I didn't make a single bento in my first semester of grad school, I was afraid that bento would die a death similar to many of my previous hobbies. (Macrame died due to lack of interest and then a bad wrist, my other blog died due to lack of time and ease of sharing through Google reader, and my interest in a lot of sites died due to lack of time as well.) Fortunately, I started bentoing again come Spring semester, and I haven't really stopped since. (I even managed to bento a bit over the summer!)

Unfortunately, I make bentos as a way to save time (and money) so I couldn't make a super crazy 100th bento like a lot of people do. But I tried to make it pretty, and I used prosciutto, so I think that counts for something, right? Since it's my 100th bento, I'll describe everything in excruciating detail. ;)

First off, I knew I had to have a decent soup, so Friday I ordered 2 large things of egg drop soup from A Mandarin Restaurant, in addition to a side of the most delicious crab rangoon ever. I didn't know when I'd have time to make this, so I ordered a ton (egg drop soup stays good in my fridge for at least a week). I should have known that I would make this bento on a Sunday before going into work... it's really the only way for me to have time to make even a semi-complicated bento.

Anyway, so I've got super-delicious egg drop-soup in the water-tight container. In the insulated container, I decided to get a bit fancy. What we have here is layers (three, if I recall correctly) of cooked spaghetti, grated parmesan, and prosciutto. I put prosciutto stars on the top layer... aren't they cute? It took a lot of prosciutto to manage this many stars... prosciutto is one of those meats that tear off in strips (you can see it a bit with that star in the back left). This was a bit rich to eat, but that's what I get for using that much prosciutto and cheese, haha. I guess it works that the 100th bento was kind of rich.

In the larger container, I wanted to put in the rest of my grapes, but it felt wrong just throwing them in there. So I took my time and arranged them neatly around the edges. I couldn't quite fit the last grape in the outer ring, so I had to use a smaller one, but I think it turned out okay. In the smaller container, I got lazy (finally) and I just have 2 mini powdered donuts, divided from a few gummi sharks and a lifesavers mint. Not bad for a 100th bento, huh?

Bento #99 - Mr. Bento Again

2009-11-11T15:34:00.006-05:00

I'm only one bento away from Bento #100 ... but I have no idea what I'm going to do for it! Maybe it won't even be anything special, although I kind of doubt that, haha. Anyway, for bento number ninety-nine I'm using my Mr. Bento again, and filling it with some (by now) familiar foods. I've got miso soup (from a packet) in the water-tight container; there's rice and a sliced-up hot dog in the insulated container. In the larger of the two containers I've got a bunch of grapes, and in the smaller container I've got 2 mini powdered donuts and a container of tamago furikake for the rice.

Bento #98 - Stoplight Sushi

2009-11-10T15:33:00.011-05:00

I've been buying sushi before class whenever I didn't have time to make bento that morning, but it's kind of expensive. (Anywhere from 5 to 7 dollars depending on what's available.) Since I had some free time this morning, I decided to make sushi for myself. This is stoplight sushi, except without the yellow "light" (which would be egg if I had made some). It's got fake crab (red) and avacado (green) in it, with just basic rice and nori around it. In addition to my home-made sushi, I've got a pig-shaped container full of soy sauce, a babybel cheese, and some grapes. In the side cars I've got cheetos and some more purple M&M's.

Bento #97 - Green M&M's!

2009-11-09T18:00:00.009-05:00

I'm not eating this in class (despite what the sandwich might make you think) but I don't have a lot of free time today, so this needs to be easy to scarf down. In the main box I've got a banana and nutella sandwich, some mixed nuts, and 2 mini powdered donuts. I've also got a lifesavers mint and a mini mint 3 musketeers. I've got cheetos in one side car, and green M&M's in another. I don't know why I picked a green background paper for this, what with all the green already present, but let's just pretend I was paying attention, and that this is the "theme," okay?

Bento #96 - Yay, Another Two-Fer!

2009-11-04T18:08:00.012-05:00

I haven't made a bento for two people in a long time. I'm meeting with a friend at noon to work on a homework assignment due Friday, and I thought it would be nice to bring some food for the both of us (sharing is caring). In the main box I've got two onigiri (flavored with tamago furikake), two cupcakes (one with icing inside and one with sprinkles), 3 chocolate chip cookies, a bunch of orange and black M&M's, and a ton of cheetos. I let him eat most of it, because...

This box was all for me! In the top tier I've got spam musubi and some mixed nuts (mostly cashews). In the bottom tier I've got a babybel cheese, some pineapple chunks, a mini mint 3 musketeers, and a couple chunks of fake crab. The fake crab is super cheap and nasty, blargh... not edible by itself (it's pretty decent in udon, but even the udon broth doesn't completely mask the lack of taste). Everything in the bottom tier is in little silicone cups because I bought them and never used them (the sides don't stand very tall, unfortunately) and I decided I would use them today.

Bento #95 - Purple M&M's!

2009-11-03T18:08:00.006-05:00

This is yet another lunch that I plan on eating during class. In the main green box I've got a banana and nutella sandwich, a muscat gummi, 3 chocolate chip cookies in a silicone cup, and a mini mint 3 musketeer bar. In the first side box I have some cheetos, and in the second I have purple M&M's (hiding some black M&M's). I like have a couple of side cars when I have to eat lunch in class... the movement of eating helps to keep me awake.

Bento #94 - Delayed Halloween Bento

2009-11-02T18:07:00.016-05:00

So I've had these Halloween themed M&M's since last year, and only discovered them yesterday (the day after Halloween!). So let's all do me a favor and just pretend that today is Halloween, so I don't have to hold on to them for a whole 'nother year in order for them to be seasonally appropriate, okay?

I don't have any more smoked salmon, so I took a hot dog, sliced it in half lengthwise, and then cut that up into pieces, and put that on my rice (cooked, of course). I didn't know how much furikake I would want, so I put a bunch in a furikake container and stuck it in with the rice. In the soup container, I've got miso soup from a packet... not sure, but there seemed to be something wrong with it, like it was fermented, or something... I guess that's appropriate for Halloween? In the larger container I've got the aforementioned Halloween M&M's (with the orange ones hidden underneath) next to a bunch of Cheetos. There's also a Babybel cheese on the side (I put it in the fridge when I get in to the office.) In the smaller container I've got a Reese's peanut butter pumpkin, mini mint 3 musketeers, gummi hamburger, and a lifesavers mint to finish.

Happy Halloween!

Bento #93 - Same as Yesterday's... But With Cookies!

2009-10-30T18:07:00.004-04:00

It's as the title says. This bento is exactly like yesterday's, but with the addition of two chocolate chip cookies. That's it.

Bento #92 - Sharks and Cheetos and a Sandwich, Oh My!

2009-10-29T18:06:00.008-04:00

Gasp! This is not really a bento box! It's just a gladware container! In my mind, though, that is totally a bento box. :P

Anyway, now that I'm done talking to myself, I've got two silicone cups of cheetos, plus another with gummi sharks, a lifesavers mint, and a mini mint 3 musketeers. Underneath these I have a banana and nutella sandwich. Putting the lid on this container kind of squishes the cups into the sandwich a bit, but it all tastes the same in the end. I just got tired of putting the sandwich in its own little container and then packing everything else in a separate container, so I decided to combine everything.

Bento #91 - Spooky Soup!

2009-10-28T18:06:00.012-04:00

Okay, so even though the title says soup, it's not really soup... it's udon. But "Spooky Udon" is not nearly as alliterative, and udon is technically a soup, right? Anyway, this is the last of my marshmallow ghost peeps, so I won't have to come up with any more alliterative titles (and you won't have to suffer through them).

I've once again got separated udon taking up the two insulated bowls, although all I've got is udon noodles and a fried egg (no cooked smoked salmon or dried wakame this time). In the larger of the two containers I've got my ghost peep, a brownie cupcake with vanilla frosting and candy sprinkles, mixed nuts, and a mini mint 3 musketeers bar. In the smaller container, I've got a babybel cheese and a cinnamon apple sauce. The apple sauce obviously doesn't fit, so I just threw it and the babybel in the top of the Mr. Bento thermos and left the container at home.

I <3 udon.

Bento #90 - Spooky Sandwich!

2009-10-27T18:03:00.007-04:00

Sorry this bento is so boring, but I wanted to be able to eat it easily in class, so I had to keep it simple. I've got another spooky ghost peep (only one left!), some mixed nuts, and a banana and nutella sandwich. I feel like this ghost's eyes are further down the body than they should be, haha.

Bento #89 - Spooky Spam!

2009-10-26T18:01:00.014-04:00

Halloween is this week, so I'm attempting to vaguely "spook up" my bentos for a bit. Hence the ghost, which is actually a marshmallow peep. In the bottom tier I've got cheetos, a spooky ghost peep, and some mixed nuts. In the top tier I've got Spam musubi (yes!), some green grapes (separated from everything else by a food divider), a mini mint 3 musketeers, and a lifesavers mint. The heat of the Spam musubi actually melted the musketeer bar a little bit, haha.

Here's a closeup of the little peeps ghost looking super surprised between my cheetos and mixed nuts. So adorable!

Bento #88 - I <3 Egg Drop Soup!

2009-10-23T17:59:00.017-04:00

I ordered Chinese food last night, so I've got delicious egg drop soup, and that means... Mr. Bento! This is actually a pretty simple lunch considering how much space I had to fill... I've got egg drop soup in the water-tight container, salmon rice in the insulated container, cheetos and mixed nuts in the larger container, and in the smallest container I have stale mini marhsmallows, a mini mint 3 musketeers, a babybel cheese, and a muscat gummi. Yum... I <3 egg drop soup! :)

Bento #87 - Deviled Eggs and Miso Soup

2009-10-22T17:58:00.013-04:00

The triumphant return of the Mr. Bento! In the water-tight container I again have miso soup from a packet, and in the insulated container I have more salmon rice, but I was too lazy/late to bother doing nori punch outs. In the larger of the two side containers I've got 2 deviled eggs and a babybel (this container goes in the fridge as soon as I get in to the office). In the smaller container I've got a silicone cup of cashews, a mini mint 3 musketeer, gummi sharks (yes!), and a lifesavers mint.

I really like using my Mr. Bento; it's a good balance of food, and I really enjoy rice (for whatever reason). I'd do it every day, but it's a lot to pack, a lot of pieces to wash every night, and sometimes I just don't want soup (but would feel silly putting anything else in there).

Bento #86 - Boring (But Delicious) Sandwich

2009-10-21T17:58:00.009-04:00

This lunch is really boring, partly because my classes start extra early today (to give us extra time to work on the midterm) and so I wanted to make this bento super quickly. I've got a banana and nutella sandwich, which fills up most of the box. In the remaining space I've got a silicone cup of mixed nuts, a mini mint 3 musketeer, and a lifesavers mint to fix my breath afterwards.

Bento #85 - Sharks!

2009-10-20T17:57:00.011-04:00

Gummi sharks are one of my very favorite candies ever! (Om nom nom nom) In this bento I've got 2 deviled eggs in the top tier, and in the bottom tier I've got a bunch of gummi sharks, a babybel cheese, a muscat gummi, a mint, and as many grapes as would fit. Another snack for studying!

Bento #84 - Tiny Muffin!

2009-10-19T17:56:00.011-04:00

Today is the last day of Fall Break, which means that even though it is a Monday, I have no school. However, I have a midterm Wednesday so I came in to get some studying done. I don't have a proper lunch, just some stuff to munch on while my brain churns away. I've got the last of the green grapes, plus three red grapes (that's all that would fit). There's also a babybel cheese, a mini funfetti cupcake (yummy and cute!), some mixed nuts (mostly cashews), a mini mint 3 musketeers, and a lifesavers mint to freshen my breath at the end. Simple but delicious.

Bento #83 - Candy? Candy!

2009-10-17T17:55:00.009-04:00

Okay, this is probably the most unhealthy bento I've ever made, ever. It is basically all candy... I figure if I have to come in to the office to do work on a Saturday, I can eat whatever I want. I think this is the first time I've ever used this box (it's the one in the top middle in this picture) but that's because it's so small... it even says 'petit amour' on the lid! But it really doesn't hold that much food, so I rarely use it.

Anyway, in the bottom tier I've got mellocreme pumpkins and more of those "stale" mini marshmallows I like so much. In the top tier I've got a brownie cupcake with chocolate icing, three mint mini 3 musketeers bars, and a silicone cup of cashews. OMG, there was so much sugar in this, I almost couldn't finish it. Lesson learned: at least bring a sandwich if you're going to attempt to do some work.

Bento #82 - Spam Musubi and Deviled Eggs

2009-10-14T17:54:00.006-04:00

I love deviled eggs. I'm sure I'll get sick of them soon enough, but until them, they will be making appearances in my bentos. I also love spam musubi! So today's bento is apparently just filled with love. In the top tier I've got spam musubi, two muscat gummis, and a silicone cup of cashews. In the bottom tier I've got strawberries (sugar for dipping in the lid of the bento box) and two deviled eggs. Om nom nom nom.

Bento #81 - Cupcakes and Tortellini

2009-10-13T17:54:00.006-04:00

How delicious does this look? Super delicious, that's how delicious! So over the weekend, I made a whopping 48 cupcakes, because I had some boxes of mix that had expired recently, and if you don't use them soon after, they're not going to bake properly. You didn't see a cupcake in yesterday's bento because I brought in about 30 of them in a big container... and ate like 3, haha. Anyway, I have a brownie cupcake with vanilla icing and candy chips. The brownie cupcakes are weird... they don't rise, but that makes them perfect for bento, because the icing will fit below the wrapper's height (but you can't just ice them with a knife, you need to use a bag). They're also a little greasy and don't peel well off the paper... so basically, they're super weird but still really good. I've also got a silicone cup of cashews, grapes, strawberries (with sugar) and two gummies: one muscat, one apple.

And hey! Remember the last time I had three cheese tortellini with prosciutto in a bento, over a year ago? Had it again! And it's still super delicious! Unlike last time, I made it with peas... if you compare the two pictures (now and then), I think you'll find I was right in that it adds a lot of color to the dish. (The background paper doesn't hurt, either.)

Bento #80 - More Egg Drop Soup

2009-10-12T17:53:00.005-04:00

This is the remainder of the delicious egg drop soup I had yesterday. Still delicious! I've also got salmon rice, this time with little nori apple accents. I also made more deviled eggs over the weekend, so I've got one of those along with strawberries (with separate sugar), grapes, cashews, a muscat gummi, and an adorable mini funfetti cupcake! How cute is that? I completely forgot I had a whole stash of these in my freezer, but they're so adorable that I almost don't want to eat them. This was all really tasty... I wish I wasn't so lazy, I'd make (instead of order) egg drop soup every freaking day, it's so goooooood!

Bento #79 - Tasty Chinese Food

2009-10-10T17:53:00.004-04:00

I ordered Chinese food again, but from a different restaurant than last time. That's why the egg drop soup looks so good, rather than all pale and unappetizing. The chicken lo mein wasn't quite as good as the other place's though... dilemma! Anyway, I've got delicious egg drop soup, decent tasting lo mein with nori stars, grapes on the stem, sliced strawberries (with separate sugar), and string cheese. I've also got a little silicone penguin filled with marshmallows... they're stale mini marshmallows, and I know I'm weird, but they're sooo good! They've got like... a resistance to them, but then they're all marshmallow softness on the inside. Next to the silicone penguin I've also got a piece of a brownie cookie bar I made. I wish I'd taken a picture of the whole pan, it's like a Frankenstein baked good, with brownie as a base and chunks of chocolate chip cookies everywhere... weird, but really tasty.

I also brought some brownie cookie bars in to school in a container and shared them with a bunch of people... I think I ate another two pieces myself though, haha.

Bento #78 - More Salmon Rice, with Nori Accents!

2009-10-07T16:00:00.007-04:00

How delicious and pretty does this lunch look!? I'm finally using those nori punches I bought way back in July! Haha, I am a procrastinator in everything! Anyway, the main dish for this lunch was, as you can see, rice with tamago furikake, cooked smoked salmon, and flower-shaped nori punch outs. The latter held up surprisingly well in the humidity of the insulated compartment, and were delicious at lunchtime!

This is (obviously) in my Mr. Bento, so there's more to it than just the rice! I've also got miso soup (again from a packet), two mini powdered donuts, a mini mint 3 musketeers, a muscat gummi, and a blueberry tootsie pop (I had to shorten the stick to get it to fit, though!). I've also got sliced strawberries (with sugar for dipping), a couple of grapes on the stem, and a string cheese sliced in half to fit.

Bento #77 - Adorable Piggy Box!

2009-10-06T20:17:00.014-04:00

Today I'm using a box that my friend Jane got for me... look below! How cute is it!? Anyway, this is (obviously) a snack bento. So, starting from the top right, I've got sliced strawberries, mixed nuts, a row of delicious powdered mini donuts, grapes on the stem, and sugar for the strawberries. I didn't need to bring a fork because there's on built in the box! (It's also why the left side is in shadow... it's filled shallowly, because the fork compartment "dips" down into the bento box.) I ate basically everything but the nuts with the fork, although the donuts made a powdery mess inside the box, getting cut up and speared and such.

How cute is this box!? Super cute, that's how cute. Much cuter than the other picture I could have included, of the super-boring nutella sandwich I ate for lunch... look at the box! So cute!

Bento #76 - Salmon Rice & Miso Soup

2009-10-05T21:49:00.005-04:00

Yum! This is some salmon rice, a food that has recently been one of my favorites. :) It's just rice with tamago furikake, and a bit of "cooked" smoked salmon. It's super easy, but it's also super tasty! I've got miso soup (from a packet... I have miso paste, but no tofu, so I'm stuck using the packets) in the water-tight container. I've also got grapes on the stem, a string cheese sliced in half (to fit), a babybel cheese, mini powdered donuts, chocolate marshmallows (I believe from here), and a mint for fresh breath after! Like I said before... yum!

Bento #75 - Separated Udon

2009-10-04T21:49:00.005-04:00

One of my favorite things to have for dinner is udon noodles with a fried egg and any other delicious things (fried Spam, button mushrooms, hot dogs, salmon) I can find to throw in. Since the water-tight container in the Mr. Bento isn't nearly big enough to fit a serving of udon, I thought I'd just never be able to have it in a bento. And then I used my brain! :) So I separated the broth and the noodles, putting the broth in the water-tight insulated container, and the noodles and egg and "cooked" smoked salmon (and wakame) in the normal insulated container. So that's what you see here. I've also got grapes on the stem, a babybel cheese, mixed nuts, powdered donuts, a mini mint 3 musketeer, and a mint.

Here you can see the whole thing at lunch time when I poured the broth in with the noodles... the picture's a little blurry because I took it at my desk, so my apologies for that. The whole set up works surprisingly well, with no overflow of broth when combined, or huge mess from the noodles when it's being hauled around.

By "cooked" smoked salmon, I just mean normal smoked salmon that I threw in with the noodles and broth for the last minute or so of it being on the stove... smoked salmon is kind of slimy when it's raw, which is great on bagels, but not so great in udon.

Bento #74 - Snack Snack Snack Snack

2009-10-03T21:48:00.008-04:00

Wow, there's a lot of different foods in here! I didn't feel like making an actual lunch that would fit in this enormous box, so I just threw whatever I could find in here and snacked on it all day! Going from the top left corner, I've got two silicone cups of strawberries, a chocolate pudding cup, peeled and sliced carrots (with ranch dressing to dip them in), grapes on the stem, a container of sugar for the strawberries, 2 mini powdered donuts, a babybel cheese, and a cup of mixed nuts. I used this enormous box because I really wanted pudding and to use the yellow-orange cup I put the nuts in, but they wouldn't fit in any of my other boxes. :)

Bento #73 - And Now I'm Out of Bread Too

2009-10-01T10:03:00.009-04:00

No bread and no bananas means no sandwich (despite the fact that I still have nutella). So all I have today is a snack box with two string cheeses, a banana applesauce, and a silicone cup of mixed nuts. I really like how the string cheeses force the silicone cup into a square shape... I don't have any square silicone cups, and I kind of want some, so it made me happy. I ate this during class (except for the nuts, I ate those later) and it was almost as filling as a sandwich would have been.

Bento #72 - Out of Bananas

2009-09-29T10:03:00.008-04:00

Agh, Tuesday... a 3 hour block of classes is never any fun. I've got a huge homework due tomorrow, so I'll probably be staying late tonight. I've got a sandwich below, but here in my snack box I've got a string cheese, a silicone cup of mixed nuts, a cinnamon applesauce, a gummi hamburger, and a muscat gummi. This isn't a lot of food, but I haven't had time to make a trip to the grocery store and hence I'm lacking a lot of my bento staples.

You look at this picture, and you say "But... I thought you weren't going to take any more pictures of your super-boring nutella and banana sandwiches?" And I reply "For your information, first off, they may be boring, but they're delicious, and secondly, this isn't a banana and nutella sandwich... If you'd paid attention to the title, you'd know I was out of bananas. It is a nutella and cinnamon sugar sandwich, and it may be even more delicious than a banana and nutella sandwich." So there.

Bento #71 - More Spam and Chinese Food

2009-09-28T18:00:00.009-04:00

Yay, Spam again! I get on these "kicks" where I'll eat the same thing over and over for days... it doesn't make for exciting bentos, but it works for me. So, today, I've got a Spam musubi again, a silicone cup of nuts, and a gummi hotdog in the top tier. In the top tier I've got a string cheese, peeled and sliced carrots, and a container of ranch dressing for the carrots. I knew today was going to be a long day, so I have even more food below.

Here's some cold Chinese food that I'll put in the fridge at work, and then microwave when I want to eat it. I'm a little worried that the Lock 'n' Lock box might not hold up to steaming hot chicken lo mein, but hopefully nothing will melt.

I've also got some sandwiches again for a snack. Nutella on the left, strawberry jam on the right... you all know the sandwich drill by now.

Bento #70 - Spam Musubi, How I Have Missed You!

2009-09-27T17:57:00.004-04:00

Yay, Spam musubi! I still had some in my freezer from the last time I made it, but I haven't had it in a bento in a while (since bento #51, to be exact). So I broke it out, nuked it up, wrapped it in nori, and had it for lunch! Delicious! Also in the top tier is a silicone cup of mixed nuts. In the bottom tier are some grapes on the stem, peeled and sliced carrots (with a container of ranch peeking out from underneath), and a Black Cherry lollipop. Unfortunately, I put the bottom tier in the fridge to keep the carrots and grapes fresh, and when I pulled it out the lollipop was all goopy... I thought they melted in heat? Ah well... I also had a banana and nutella sandwich for a snack between classes.

Look at those big, huge slices of banana... normally the slices are maybe a third that size. I don't know why, but I just felt like making a monster banana nutella sandwich. It was (obviously) tasty, and it actually held up surprisingly well (I expected it to go sliding all over the place, what with the bananas not allowing the nutella sides to touch).

Bento #69 - Chinese Food

2009-09-26T10:00:00.009-04:00

Omigosh! I'm finally using my Mr. Bento, which I bought over a year ago! I guess I just needed the motivation of hot food in order to use it, and leftover Chinese food is hot food if anything is. In the soup container I've got egg drop soup (it wasn't very good, unfortunately, so I'll be trying other take out places in the future). In the non-leakproof insulated container I've got chicken lo mein (which was delicious!), and in the larger of the two snap top containers I've got a whole bunch of grapes on the stem. In the smaller of the two containers I've got a silicone penguin full of mixed nuts, a mini funfetti cupcake, a muscat gummi and a mini mint 3 musketeers bar. Yummy!

My food was still warm when I ate it a good 4 or 5 hours later, so I'd say the claim that the food will stay warm (or cold) is true. Yay! I'll be using this a lot more now that I know how much food it holds (a lot... like, lunch plus a good-sized snack) and how well it works.

Bento #68 - Snack Time Again!

2009-09-25T10:00:00.006-04:00

Wow, it's like yesterday all over again. This is the last boring bento for a while, I swear. This is exactly the same as yesterday's: grapes on the stem, mini powdered donuts (only 2 this time), and some mixed nuts; with the addition of a Babybel cheese. Again, the donuts and nuts are saran wrapped so I can leave them in my desk when I put the grapes and cheese in the fridge.

Bento #67 - Snack Time!

2009-09-24T10:00:00.008-04:00

Om nom nom, snack time! I seem to be continuing in the vein of "boring bentos," this one consisting merely of a whole lot of grapes on the stem, 3 (semi-crushed) mini powdered donuts, and a silicone container of mixed nuts (turned upside down to prevent them from getting everywhere). The donuts and nuts are wrapped in plastic wrap so I can put the grapes in the fridge without having to eat cold, hard donuts later. Simple but tasty!

Bento #66 - Sammich

2009-09-23T09:59:00.005-04:00

This is probably the most boring bento I've ever put up here... it's just two sandwiches. A nutella sandwich on the right, and a strawberry jam sandwich on the left. That's it. Seriously. I was just feeling that lazy.

Bento #65 - Super Colorful!

2009-09-22T09:59:00.007-04:00

Isn't this lunch just so... colorful? I've got a banana (YELLOW) for breakfast (yay for waking up too early to eat breakfast!) and then a bunch of fruits and veggies to snack on. I've got carrots (ORANGE) with ranch dressing, strawberries (RED) and sugar, including one strawberry with its little leafy top intact (GREEN). The box is BLUE, and then I have some grapes (PURPLE) as well. There's also a mini mint 3 musketeers under the whole strawberry, a "fun size" 3 musketeers, and one and a half powdered donuts. I also had another banana and Nutella sandwich, but I figure you don't need a picture of the same thing 3 days in a row. :)

Bento #64 - Last of the Deviled Eggs

2009-09-21T09:59:00.007-04:00

This is the very last deviled egg... 3 of them got eaten over the weekend (my parents came up, and Jane had never had one, so she got one too), so there's only 1 left. I'll have to make more soon. I've also got a silicone cup of strawberries, and a bunch of grapes on the stem, with a container of sugar and a fork for dipping the strawberries. I've had this bento a couple times now, but I repeat it because it's delicious and easy!

And once again, I have a banana and nutella sandwich. I don't have a 3 hour block of classes today, but the amount of food I can fit in the box above just isn't enough if I want to stay late. So I packed something easy. :)

Bento #63 - Eating in Class

2009-09-17T17:14:00.005-04:00

So my schedule on Tuesday and Thursday is that I have class from noon to 3. That is prime lunch eating time for me, so by the time 3 rolls around I'm starving. To alleviate this, I've decided to pack myself a sandwich that's easy to eat in the middle of class, without pulling out silicone cups or a fork or little containers. It's a nutella and banana sandwich, and it is delicious! The best thing about it is you can use bananas that are too mushy to be pleasing to eat by themselves, and you won't notice! The picture at the top is the snack I packed for afterwards, when I hang out in my office and do work until around 6. I've got grapes, strawberries (and sugar for them), and 2 deviled eggs (again, in silicone cups to keep them from moving around too much). This is one of the small boxes, so I can't fit a lot of food in it. It was, however, delicious.

Bento #62 - So Much Food

2009-09-16T17:13:00.009-04:00

I only have one class on Fridays, so after it's over at 11 I normally hang out and do work in my office until at least 3 or 4 PM. I didn't feel like eating breakfast, so I knew I would be super hungry by the time that class was over, and hence I packed tons of food. In this box I've got grapes on the stem in the top left, a chocolate glazed cake donut cut into pieces in the top right, a strawberry jam sandwich in the bottom right, and a banana in the bottom left. To keep the banana from browning I rubbed some lemon juice on it... it affected the taste, but not a lot.

And then I had another box! In the top tier I've got some sliced strawberries, and then two deviled eggs. If I put them in the silicone cups like that, they don't slide around or turn over, which is really nice. In the bottom tier I've got sliced carrots, ranch dressing for dipping them, and sugar for the strawberries in the top tier. I was still kind of hungry after all this! I guess I'm a bit of a pig when it comes to snacking. :)

Bento #61 - Tiny Box is Tiny

2009-09-15T17:13:00.004-04:00

I didn't realize how small this box actually was until I tried to fit a whole meal into it. As you can see, I had to cut my (zebra-striped cake) donut in half so I could skew it enough to fit into the top tier. In the bottom tier I've got strawberries, sugar, and a fork for dipping the former into the latter (how civilized!) I've also got a Babybel cheese... but the box is so small I could only fit half of a strawberry jam sandwich (I ate the other half while packing the box). So these boxes are better for snacks than whole meals, I guess. Good to know. (om nom nom donuts!)

Bento #60 - I <3 Donuts

2009-09-14T17:13:00.004-04:00

So my friend Jane brought donuts over... she's no longer my friend, because donuts are my new best friend! I could live off of donuts for years and years... it's kind of disgusting. Anyway, she brought over a box of 8 and I ate 3 right then and there... darn you, Jane!

Anyway, I <3 donuts, if you hadn't picked up on that yet. :) So in the top left corner I've got a chocolate cake, chocolate glazed donut. Next to that I've got some salt & vinegar pringles. I took out the other half of the compartments, and managed to squeeze in two pieces of a bagel sandwich (ham, mayo, and smoked gouda), as well as some strawberries in a silicone cup and a little container of sugar for them. I ate the donut first. ;)

Bento #59 - First Bento of the New School Year!

2009-09-13T17:13:00.006-04:00

How happy does this bento look? It's so bright and cheery! :) As the title states, it's the first bento of the new school year... a school year where I will be attempting to actually DO WORK (don't ask about last year...) and so I'll be going in to my office a lot, and hence packing bentos nearly every day of the week. Look forward to it!

In the box on the left, I have a nutella sandwich (on the top) and a strawberry jam sandwich, the latter of which I couldn't manage to cut very even. In the box on the right, I've got a silicone cup of strawberries, an upside-down container of applesauce, a string cheese that I had to crush a little bit to get into the box, a muscat gummi, and a hard candy. I neglected to pack any sugar for the strawberries, so they were a little tart. But other than that, this was super tasty!

Bento #58 - Return Trip

2009-08-26T15:10:00.002-04:00

I was only home for a doctor's appointment, so I headed home pretty soon. Sometimes I'm amazed with the bentos I manage to make when I'm away from my own kitchen and food with no prior planning, and this is probably the most impressive one. In the top left compartments I've got mixed nuts including cashews, which are probably my favorite nut ever. In the top right compartment are Pringles I snagged from the pantry and the mini Cadbury creme egg, which I couldn't bring myself to eat on the way down. (I have this pack-rat mentality where I won't eat something if I don't know I can get more of it... it's weird.) In the bottom right compartment is a slice of hawaiian pizza cut up into pieces, minus the crust... I stuck the food picks in it to make it look prettier. In the bottom left compartment is the last of a prosciutto roll that uses soft mozarella instead of normal mozarella and adds basil... I like the basic rolls better, but this is also pretty tasty for the first few slices. (The other stuff I can eat until I'm sick!)

I took this picture on the paved walk in front of my house while my dad waited rather patiently, and I think it came out rather well, all things considered.

Bento #57 - Going Home with Hilly

2009-08-23T15:08:00.006-04:00

Hilly came up to visit me in Philly! It was super exciting, and then we took the train home together, so I made us a bento. In the top left compartment, there are grapes, a babybel cheese, and a container of sugar for the strawberries. In the top right compartment I made 2 ham & cheddar cheese tortilla rolls, and used food picks to hold them this time. It's still not a very compact food to pack, save for the fact that it's incredibly filling for how large it is. In the bottom left compartment are some Hello Panda cookies, a muscat gummi, and a mini Cadbury creme egg. And finally, in the bottom right container, are some sliced strawberries. This was plenty of food for the two of us, and it was super tasty to boot! :) I also really like this picture, it's got a good balance of colors and it's brightly lit.

Multiple Salads

2009-08-07T15:05:00.004-04:00

Picture post! I've blogged before about how I make multiple salads at once to eat later at my leisure. I got crazy today and made 7 of them (one of which I ate then).

They're pretty simple salads, with hard-boiled eggs, shredded cheddar cheese, pieces of sliced ham, baby spinach, and ranch dressing added later. Some of the eggs I shaped with my new egg molds that I got before Ichiban Kan closed its online store. It was hard arranging them so that none of the additions touched each other... everything discolors egg if it touches it, and I didn't want the ham touching anything else either since it's wet...

When I was done I sealed them all up in Ziploc containers and stuck them in the fridge... but then I had to wash all the containers! Maybe from now on I'll just pre-prepare the additions and put them in little Ziploc containers to add to individual salads later...

Bento #56 - A Foray into New Jersey

2009-07-24T15:03:00.006-04:00

Went on an ill-advised trip to Giambri's in a fruitless attempt to procure lemon sticks. Only in New Jersey could a store just decide not to be open on FRIDAYS during the summer. Argh, so much frustration with Giambri's, so little information on the website... it says to call for summer hours, when summer hours are 11-4 Monday through Thursday, and that's it. How hard would it be to put that on the stupid website? However, instead of Giambri's we went to a shady looking store selling "tobacco, cigarettes, and candy" ... and came upon what you see to your left (click to embiggen). Screw Giambri's overpriced handmade candy... this place had everything in bulk! It's apparently called Bee Gee Candy Co, and it was amazing, with even more not pictured... the tobacco and cigarettes were relegated to behind the counter, and the placed reeked of sugar! It made the trip totally worth it, and took away the sting of Giambri's being closed. I guess New Jersey isn't that awful after all. :)

Anyway, on to the bento... it was for two people and this was to be our lunch, which is why there's a lot of food. On the top left there are sliced carrots with a big container of ranch dressing for dipping. The top right has three sandwich halves (it's all that would fit) with the two nutella sandwiches flanking the lone strawberry jam one. The sidecar holds more carrots, and the bottom has three onigiri (from left to right: spam, tamago, and plain with sesame seeds), and two cupcakes with sprinkles. I used my silicone bear-shaped food dividers to keep the cupcakes from touching the onigiri. You can see the closeup to your left... they're pretty cute for food dividers, huh? This was a lot of food, and we barely managed to finish it, but it was pretty darn tasty. And then there was tons of candy for dessert! :D

Bento #55 - Random Food For the Train

2009-07-19T12:39:00.002-04:00

This is quite possibly the least healthy bento I've ever packed. In the top tier I've got more cinnamon bread, again spread with Country Crock and cinnamon sugar. In the bottom tier I've got two unpeeled string cheeses cut in half and folded over (to fit in the box), two mini chocolate cupcakes, and 2 pieces of hershey's chocolate. I made this at Hilly's house with no warning, and there wasn't really any bento-ready food so I just threw what I could in there.

Bento #54 - Last Minute Packing

2009-07-17T12:38:00.006-04:00

Went into town, but didn't think I'd have time for lunch, so I threw this together at the last minute using the box I used yesterday. In the bottom tier I've got 2 pieces of cinnamon swirl bread (spread with Country Crock and cinnamon sugar, because I've got a crazy sweet tooth) and the muscat gummi that I didn't eat yesterday. In the top tier I've got a string cheese peeled and cut in half, the mini mint 3 Musketeer I didn't eat yesterday, and the heel of a salami cut up into pieces in the silicone cup. It looks like a weird amalgamation of stuff, but it was actually really tasty.

Bento #53 - Using New Gear!

2009-07-16T12:36:00.005-04:00

Yay! This is my first chance to use all the new gear I got from Ichiban Kan! The new gear also inspired me to start bentoing again, so we'll see how long this lasts. :) I actually took this home with me on the train, so you'll see the box get used a few more times in the next couple of days. This also marks the first time I got to use scrapbooking paper as a background! Doesn't it look pretty? :)

In the bottom tier (on the left), I've got a Philly roll, topped with nori stars cut out using one of my punchers... the stars were in an attempt to prevent the cream cheese from smearing all over everything it touches. There's also a soy sauce fish and a babybel cheese. In the top tier, there's some sliced carrots (which stained the plastic white lid, sadly), ranch dressing to dip them in, a muscat gummi, and a mint for after I eat all this stuff.

I also packed a side car, with a closeup to the left here. I've got sugared strawberries (they're super slippery so I put them on food picks), a mini blueberry muffin, and a mini mint 3 Musketeers bar. The original plan was to put the strawberries in the same tier as the sushi, but I underestimated how much room the sushi would take up, so it was relegated to the side car.

Ichiban Kan Gear

2009-07-10T12:57:00.021-04:00

Oh yay! A gear post! I haven't done one of these in forever! So, as most online bento-ers know, the Ichiban Kan online store closed recently. Having read that the closing was imminent, I finally made the decision to order some stuff. I had a problem doing this before because their stock (understandably) fluctuated a lot, and I wanted to make one order with everything I wanted. But since they weren't getting anything more in, this was my last chance to order all the stuff, so I just did. (Click on any of the pictures to go to the flickr page, which has notes and a larger view.)

I ordered some cutters in various sizes (2 of the variety packs) and I figure I'll use them sometime. I've got leaves, flowers, clouds, trees, and lots of random shapes like a house and a car. (The silver cutters you see underneath are three different size star-shaped cutters, and aren't from Ichiban Kan.

I also got some nori punches... an apple, a rabbit (I ordered the sakura, but it was out of stock when they went to ship it, so they took off the charge and gave me a free rabbit shape), a large heart, and a large star. I also got a flower-shaped paper punch from the craft store, which works just fine. I always heard people complaining about nori punches, but I'm having absolutely no problems so far.

I bought two bags to carry my bentos around with me, so I don't have to stuff them in my backpack or suitcase or purse. The silver one is actually from Daiso, and only holds the two-tier bento boxes. The green and brown ones are from Ichiban Kan, and they're both big enough to hold 2 normal-sized boxes and a water bottle. They read "Lunch time will make everyone happy" next to a spoon, fork, pitcher, and sugar and salt bowls.

I also bought boxes... ohmigosh, did I buy boxes. Counter-clockwise from bottom left, I've got an onigiri box with a bear on it, two staggered 2-tier boxes, 3 sidecars, 2 normal-sized two-tier boxes, a slightly smaller two-tier box, and a Monokuro Boo box with fork. (That last one is from a friend, not Ichiban Kan, but it's never been on the blog before because it's new.) Below there's a closeup of the sidecar (with quarter for size comparison) and an "exploded" view of the onigiri box.

Here's two views of the staggered two-tier box, one "exploded" and one not. Similar to how the lower tier fits in the upper tier when empty with the normal two-tier boxes, the upper layer can be flipped upside down and put into the lower tier when empty. There's a "lip" on the upper tier that prevents it from falling into the lower tier when it's right-side up, as well as a (mostly watertight) lid for the upper tier. The green one is closed with the upper lid flipped, so it can be pretty compact.

I also ordered some stuff not pictured, like 2 sets of chopsticks, a set of sea-themed food picks, and silicone food dividers, but you'll be seeing them in bentos from now on. And lastly, I (finally!) managed to get my hands on some straps to hold the boxes closed!!! I am so excited about that. :)

Bento #52 - Ham & Cheese Rolls!

2009-05-07T13:34:00.007-04:00

This is such an odd looking bento to me... normally, I fill every single corner of my box with stuff, so to see all the empty space (mostly because of the toothpicks) is really weird. Anyway, this is another bento using a tortilla roll, except this time it's parmesan cheese with ham (as opposed to cheddar with ham). I've also got some baby carrots in a silicone cup, some ranch dressing to dip them in, a miniature Cadbury creme egg, and a muscat gummi. This doesn't look like a lot of food, and it's not -- it's a snack. A delicious snack. :)

Salad For Later

2009-05-04T13:34:00.005-04:00

I like having salad, and I like putting a variety of things in it... but sometimes, the work of preparing a salad is the very thing that keeps me from actually having one. It's especially frustrating when I buy a bag of baby spinach (the only "salad green" that I like) and then use only a small amount (or none at all) before it goes bad. So now, when I make a salad, I also prepare one (or more) for later. Here we can see I've got baby spinach, a sliced hard-boiled egg, sliced mushrooms, shredded cheddar cheese, cheese crumbles, and sliced ham in a paper cup. I'm missing the salad dressing, but I plan to eat this at home, so I'll just pull it out of the fridge when I need it. The only thing you need to realize when doing something like this is that the foods might "react" to one another. For example, the mushrooms will make the eggs brown wherever they touch, but that doesn't mean the eggs have gone bad.

Bento #51 - Spam Musubi (& An Old Box!)

2009-05-04T13:31:00.006-04:00

Look, look! It's one of my old boxes! I haven't used these since Bento #24, in August! Excitement! I wanted to take a spam musubi [good tutorials here and here], but it wouldn't really fit in any of my Lock & Lock boxes without taking over the whole thing and then leaving gaps at the top. So I busted out my old 2-tier bento boxes! (Bonus: Limited edition Hawaiian SPAM) In the top tier (right), I've got a spam musubi, a mini Crunch bar and LifeSavers mint, and edamame in a silicone cup. In the bottom tier (left), I've got grapes in a silicone penguin cup, and a cheddar cheese and ham wrap in a tortilla.

All I do to make this is get out a tortilla, layer a couple of ham slices on it (the thinner the slices, the better), sprinkle liberally with shredded cheese, and then microwave it for 30 seconds. When it's done, I roll it up, pin it in a couple places with toothpicks, and then cut into pieces. It's easy, tasty, and prettier than a sandwich. (It's also good both hot and cooled down.) The only problem is how big the toothpicks are... I probably should have used my food picks instead.

Bento #50 - More Snacks

2009-04-27T13:30:00.002-04:00

Almost done with this second project! I'm running out of onigiri, so I decided to bring sandwiches instead today. They don't really need to be in the dividers (sandwiches have a hard time squishing other sandwiches) but I felt like using them anyway. The top is strawberry jam, and the bottom is Nutella. In a separate box I've got carrot sticks with ranch dressing, grapes, and a mini Cadbury Creme Egg. My friend (the same one who made the cupcake sandwich) got these for Easter, and then realized they would be perfect for bento, so he gave me the half-dozen or so he hadn't eaten. Let's take a closer look...

Isn't it adorable!?

Bento #49 - Snacks

2009-04-26T13:28:00.006-04:00

Even though my big project is over, I still have one for another class, so I'm heading into the lab again. Here I've got some food to snack on while I work, without getting crumbs everywhere. Clockwise from top-left, I've got a Babybel, a muscat gummi, grapes, a little container of salt, edamame (it's what the salt is for), and cashews. This isn't enough to tide me over, though. So I've also got 3 onigiri for actual substance. From the top, I've got sesame seed, plain, and tamago furikake (egg-flavored rice seasoning). Yum!

Inside Icing Cupcakes Tutorial

2009-04-24T14:37:00.012-04:00

Cupcakes are one of my favorite foods, not to mention a great bento staple, and for a while I was making (and frosting) them 2 or 3 times a month. However, a frosted cupcake tends to make a mess and doesn't transport well, so I was just packing plain ones or ones I had put sprinkles on before baking them (example). But then I handed a friend a particularly heavily iced cupcake... and he tore the bottom off and put it on the top, making a cupcake sandwich! Hence, the idea for Inside Icing Cupcakes.

These are the materials you'll need: a cupcake, frosting, a cutting board, a (bread) knife, a spoon, scissors, and a Ziploc bag. Not pictured: a (small) fork, and a flat edge such as a ruler or table crumber. (If you have a bag for piping icing, you can omit the scissors, plastic bag, and flat edge.)

Step 1: If necessary, unwrap your cupcake from its paper wrapper. Cut it in half hamburger bun style, as straight and in the middle as you can.

Step 2: With a small fork (I had a seafood fork) hollow out the two cupcake halves... don't go too close to the sides or the bottom. And don't forget to eat the scraps!

Step 3: With a spoon, scoop out some frosting and place it in the Ziploc bag. Try and get it as far into one corner of the bag as possible, and use your fingers (outside the bag) to squeeze it off the spoon. Repeat until you have enough icing (I used about 3 spoons for 4 cupcakes).

Step 4: Using the straight edge, scrape the icing into the corner. Don't worry if it doesn't go all the way to the corner, just get it close.

Step 5: Cut the corner of the bag off. This is the easiest step (only step?) to mess up, so start small. I cut off a tiny piece (smaller than my pinky nail), and my hole was more than big enough. Remember, you can make it bigger later, but not smaller.

Step 6: Ice the hollow in both halves of the cupcake. Start with the bag almost touching the bottom (to prevent gaps), and don't be afraid to "overfill" a little. (Frosting the cupcakes using a knife instead would result in the inside of the cupcake tearing and crumbling, since you'd be scraping a knife all over it.)

Step 7: Frost small "anchor points" on the rim of one of the cupcake halves. They will help the cupcake stick together in the next step.

Step 8: Reunite the cupcake halves! (They're like long-lost lovers! Awww!) You can try to line them back up, but it's pointless (and impossible) unless you made a really angled cut.

(Optional) Step 9: Place the cupcake in the silicone cupcake wrapper, and then wrap in plastic wrap. Having done this, you can store it in the freezer, and then just plop it in your bento when you need it! Even if you're going to use it right away, I still suggest the silicone wrapper to prevent any excess icing from making a mess. Enjoy!

Bento #48 - I Miss Making Giant Bentos

2009-04-23T01:28:00.008-04:00

It's the day after the project was due and presented... and I miss making those giant bentos! It's so easy to just make 3 onigiri, peel and slice some carrots, and then throw other stuff in until all the gaps are filled. When I make a normal sized bento, I have to think! About what to put in, where to put it, how to orient it, and which box to use! Unfortunately, none of my short bento boxes will fit an onigiri standing upright, and none of my tall ones are short enough for the silicone cups to touch the top (and prevent stuff from spilling).

Anyway, enough complaining. From the bottom left, I've got a plain onigiri, a muscat gummi, some grapes, a Babybel, carrot sticks, and ranch dressing in the middle. Darn triangle shape of the onigiri... maybe I should have put it in the middle along the bottom, and put the two silicone cups on either side. Oh well, it was all tasty in the end.

Bento #47 - Last Day of Living in the Lab

2009-04-21T08:12:00.006-04:00

Finally! It's the last day of living in the lab! Can you tell I'm excited? The class was given an extension for the project, so instead of being due 8 hours ago at midnight, it's due at 6 AM tomorrow, for a 30 hour extension. We'll probably be up until then, too... and then we present at noon, and then I have no more class that day, so I'll go home and sleep.

Anyway, this bento was super-easy: I've got a cupcake with sprinkles from the freezer, a container of strawberry-flavored apple sauce (upside down so it fits better), a single carrot cut into carrot sticks, and some grapes to fill in the gaps. It was looking a little sad (and orange) so I added a muscat gummi after I took this picture.

Bento #46 - Multiple Boxes

2009-04-20T08:10:00.004-04:00

Packing lunch for everyone, again. Darn project. Anyway, I've got what everyone's come to expect: onigiri, carrots and ranch dressing (with extra carrots in a sidecar since we always seem to have extra dressing and no carrots to use it with). I've also got cookies (these are some of my favorite... Keebler chewy chocolate chip or something... so good!) and a couple mini 3 musketeers bars. In addition, I made sandwiches, since they're filling and super super easy to make. From the inside out, I've got nutella, strawberry jam, and honey (yes, I ate the other half of the nutella). The honey didn't really work well... it's much better when the bread is toasted, so I don't think bread and honey are going to be a bento food again.

Below, I took a couple closeups for fun.

Bento #45 - Same Day, Another Bento

2009-04-19T08:09:00.003-04:00

Just like the title says, I came back to grab some stuff that I'd forgotten. It was a couple hours later, so I made another bento, with just carrot sticks and ranch dressing for dipping, plus some candy. Hopefully this project will be finished soon, and I can stop living in the lab (although it has given me an excuse to pack a lot of bentos).

Bento #44 - Unsquished Sandwiches!

2009-04-19T08:07:00.004-04:00

After being saddened by my squished sandwiches yesterday, I took extra care this morning to prevent a repeat, putting my nutella sandwich in a separate little divider. I doubt the sushi would have squished them (carrots and onigiri are what did it last time) but I wanted to be sure. In addition to the super special unsquished sandwich, I've got fake crab sushi, which I had to cut pretty tall to reach the top of this container, plus a little fishy bottle of soy sauce. (I'll need to refill them all soon, I'm running out of prepared ones.)

In addition to a sandwich and sushi, I've got a little sidecar with grapes, cheese, and some candy for snacking on. Everything was super tasty!

Bento #43 - Sandwiches are Squishy

2009-04-18T08:06:00.007-04:00

I'm in the lab again today, and I was feeling rather lazy, so I made a super-easy giant bento. The only "hard" thing here was doing the carrots, and that's only because they take some time... it's not difficult at all.

I've got 3 onigiri in the top left (sesame seed, plain, and with tamago furikake inside), then carrots with ranch dressing (using the new container I bought), then some Thin Mints in a silicone cup. To get them to be tall enough, there's one Thin Mint lying flat at the bottom, and then the rest stand on it. I've also got two halves of a nutella sandwich, and three-quarters of a strawberry jam sandwich (I couldn't fit a whole half, so I cut the half in half).

You think I would have learned my lesson about how I "orientate" my bento after the ranch dressing fiasco, but noooooo. I put this in my backpack on its side, so that the sandwiches were on the bottom... meaning that the inner container with the carrots and the onigiri slid down, squishing the sandwiches. They were still super-tasty (they're sandwiches, they're basically indestructible) but they were still squished.

On a separate note, is this not the cutest onigiri ever? With its perfect, crisp edges, and its sharp little corners, it reminds me of a tux-wearing... umm... rice ball. Cute! :D

Bento #42 - For a Late Night

2009-04-17T08:04:00.003-04:00

This project I've been working on (i.e., the reason I've been in the lab all the time) still isn't over. So, heading into the lab on a Friday night (my life is so sad) I figured I might as well pack a bento. From bottom left, clockwise: I've got a babybel, a mini 3 musketeer, a silicone cup full of cashews from the freezer (they thaw pretty quick), a silicone cup of red grapes, and an onigiri.

The onigiri has tiny diced up pieces of fake crab, as well as tamago furikake mixed in. I was making some onigiri to freeze, and I figured I should make myself a fresh one, so I did! I put too much crab in the middle though, so when I popped it out of the mold, it only popped out the bottom half, and I had to fight with it to get the top half. But once I wrapped it in nori, everything was fine. It was super tasty. :)

Bento #41 - New Rice Mold

2009-04-14T08:03:00.007-04:00

Once again, I knew that I would be working after I got out of class at 3, so I decided to pack myself a bento. This bento is kind of boring, just carrots (with ranch dressing), grapes, a chocolate star, a Babybel, and some tiny onigiri. However, there are 2 exciting things here:

1) The onigiri I have are not only tiny compared to the ones I've packed in previous bentos, they're also shaped like a flower and a triangle! I'm using my new onigiri mold that I bought at the H-Mart in Philly. When I was making them, I was afraid I had over-salted the mold, and that the rice would be too salty. But since there is no other flavoring (sesame seeds, filling, furikake, etc.) it's actually perfect!

2) After the fiasco with the ranch dressing in my train bento, I headed over to the Container Store and bought a couple of tiny little sauce containers (click for a better view). I bought two little ones with a flip top, which hold about a tablespoon (~15 mL) each, and a big one with a screw-on top that holds about 4 tablespoons (~60 mL). I can safely say that they work much better than a silicone cup with a food divider on top. :)

Bento #40 - For Me and Hilly!

2009-04-11T08:02:00.010-04:00

This bento was supposed to be for me and Hilly to eat when we went to see the cherry blossoms in D.C., but the weatherman lied, and said that Friday it would rain (it was gorgeous) and that Saturday would be pretty nice (it poured) so we ended up eating in on the floor in my living room, like 5 year olds having a "picnic." It was tons of fun. I actually brought the grapes, food dividers, SOLO cup (for the ranch dressing), sillicon cups, and cupcakes down from my apartment in Philly. I bought carrots, a couple of apples, and the nori at the H-Mart by my house, and we already had the rice. I also brought the mold for making the onigiri, since I am still woefully inadequate at molding them by hand (partly because I use the mold all the time).

Anyway, I have some red grapes, onigiri with smoked salmon in them, and peeled and sliced carrots with ranch sauce for dipping. In the bottom right, I have two cupcakes: one with sprinkles, and one with icing in the middle (~~I plan to put up a tutorial for the latter soon~~ done!). Next to the grapes, I have some checkerboard apples. This was actually really easy to do, and I might actually like apples this way, since it's a perfect balance of skin and no skin. There's a tutorial on Just Bento, although I find the checkerboard much easier than the apple bunny. Also, being a huge dork, I totally want to do this and use the squares as pixels, making tetris pieces, or perhaps even space invaders, if I want to be overly ambitious.

We totally devoured this, and it was so much fun to make and eat. I think it's the cutest bento I've ever made, and you can't really see the food dividers, so it's all about the apples. :) Please note, however, the lack of green food. :P

Somehow, I never managed to take pictures of these animal food dividers after I bought them from Daiso last summer. So here's the remainder of my food dividers, with the rest here and here. The two sets of baran (food dividers) pictured here are made by Ciao!, who make a lot of bento accessories, almost all of which center around the bear, bunny, elephant and/or dog characters.

Bento #39 - Another Bento for the Train

2009-04-09T11:00:00.006-04:00

Is this bento not adorable!? It totally is. :) I've got two nutella sandwiches shaped like dinosaurs (which actually involved 4 pieces of bread, since the bread I buy is too small to make 2 proper dinosaurs per slice. I have the exact same cutter that Biggy does, but I guess her bread is bigger than mine.) Next to that, I've got some grapes in an aluminum muffin cup; I would have used silicone, but I wanted to stuff as much food in as possible, but I didn't want to use normal muffin cups because they'd get soggy. I've also got some peeled baby carrots... but where is the ranch dressing? It's underneath the chick & rabbit, in a tiny silicone cup, covered by a food divider. This is actually the first time I've ever used my food dividers in a bento... and I used not one, but two! (You can always click on the photo to get taken to the flickr page, which has notes on everything in the box.)

Unfortunately, I wasn't thinking at all when I put this in my suitcase... and I put it so the ranch dressing in the silicone cup was at the top... meaning it kind of tipped over and leaked about halfway down the box. This probably wouldn't work at all unless I managed to keep the whole box flat, which isn't that difficult (unless I'm shoving it in a suitcase). Oh well, lesson learned, and it didn't make that much of a mess... thank god for Lock&Lock! :)

Also, while I was making it, I took pictures, and they just happened to basically be at the same angle and distance away, so I made them into an animated gif. Pretty cool, huh? :) In the bottom right corner, you can see the tiny silicone cup of ranch dressing -- or rather, you can see the little divider covering it -- before I put the chick and bunny on top.

Bento #38 - Another Huge Bento! And a Tiny One. :)

2009-04-06T14:03:00.005-04:00

Again, working in the computer lab on the same group project... *screams* Look out it's-- it's-- it's... ENORMO BENTO!!!! Haha, seriously, this box is enormous. Even my friend who we joke could eat a 4-tier bento box worth of food looked at this and was like... that's a lot of food. I've got more of the same as yesterday: cupcakes, rice balls, and carrots were a hit with me and the other person who demolished this yesterday. And I decided that instead of cashews and candy, I should do edamame and Thin Mints, which I think was a good call. There's actually two silicone cups of edamame; I realized that it didn't even come close to the top of the box, and if I just stuck one in there it would go everywhere. These are also the last of my freezer stash of onigiri... and I'm running out of frozen cupcakes too!

One of my group members had class from 8 to 9, and then a meeting from 9 to 10, so I decided to make him a quick breakfast bento! (We're also friends outside of class, so this isn't creepy at all.) I just microwaved 5 mini pancakes I had stashed in the freezer, and tucked a bottle of maple syrup in with them. Simple... but it's pancakes! This is packed in the tiny little box I used before for Cheerios. Here it is next to a quarter... it's tiny!

Bento #37 - For More Than Me!

2009-04-05T12:23:00.002-04:00

Today is a Sunday. And I am heading in to the computer lab to work on a group project... but I won't be the only one there, and we're going to be there for a while. So I thought that this would be a good time to use my enormous 1.6 Liter Lock & Lock box, and make a bento for more than just myself. I thought it was only going to be three of us (it ended up being five!) so I packed 3 (plain) onigiri, 3 cupcakes, some cashews, 3 pieces of candy, and 4 or 5 carrots peeled and sliced, with ranch dressing for dipping.

I think I ate two of the rice balls (I am a pig) and I had a cupcake and some carrots... some of my group had brought lunch, or they didn't want any of my delicious food (why!?), and three of us went to Chipotle for dinner, so no one starved. :)