Raspberry Bento

Raspberries; local pears; whole grain apple and cheddar flax mini-muffins; broccoli; grape tomatoes; shrimp & carrot curls on spring greens; whole grain oatmeal raisin cookie in the middle. R loves shrimp, and it's been working well this school year, putting them in her lunchbox frozen and with an ice pack. They're thawed by lunch, but still in the safe temperature zone.

Shrimp Flower Bento

Whole grain bruschetta; grapes; raspberry apple galette, blueberries & raspberries; shrimp on spinach with home-grown Japanese Black Trifele tomatoes and grape tomato; cocktail sauce; edible flowers (borage, geranium, marigold & nasturtium).

8.27 Bento Lunch

Cheddar with turkey pepperoni; raspberries and grape tomatoes; carrots and Kashi cheddar crackers; apples, blueberries, and apple-blueberry whole wheat galette; clementine slices.

Olive Bento

Black olives; apple slices; turkey pepperoni and cheddar; homemade tomato quinoa bread; green salad with tomatoes, radishes and celery; granola bar in the center.

Hibiscus Bento

Carrots and a radish rose; lemon hibiscus apples that I canned on Saturday, with oranges; organic granola bar and almonds; cheddar and whole grain crackers on spinach salad; and cherry-flavored dried cranberries in the center.
 
I canned a lot of apples this weekend. My generous neighbor Becky always gives us the apples from her unsprayed tree in October, but this year they were all black at the center (codling moth?), so we only got a couple of jars of pie filling out of them. I finally broke down and used store-bought apples, because we love opening jars of spiced apples and applesauce all year long. I made spiced apples for pie filling, and tried something new with dried hibiscus blossoms. Hibiscus blossoms are high in vitamin C and anti-oxidants, and they have a lot of heart-healthy compounds. They give the apples a fresh, citrusy taste that is complemented by fresh lemons. I infused green tea in the syrup, but the flavor didn't come through. The blossoms turn the apples a beautiful natural rosy color. I sweetened the apples lightly with agave.
 
R really likes these, and the jars look so pretty lined up on a shelf with the sun shining through. The dried blossoms make a nice tea too, either added to black or green tea, or by themselves with honey and lemon.

Flower Bento

Mangoes and raspberries; green grapes; ranch dressing; raisins and carrots; green salad; turkey sandwich on oatmeal bread with carrot curls, cheddar flower and spinach leaf; gingerbread elephant & dog in the middle.

Carrot Owl Bento

Cucumbers and tomatoes from our garden; ranch dressing; corn wheels and a carrot owl; purple grapes; organic peanut butter & homemade strawberry jelly, with flax meal on whole grain bread; carrot curls; cinnamon almonds in the middle.

Colorado Peach Bento

Whole grain crackers; Colorado peaches; cheddar squares and turkey pepperoni; green salad with Ranch dressing and tomatoes from our garden; cinnamon almonds in the middle.

Spring Greens Bento

Cherries and pistachios; Asian pears and orange slices; tomatoes from our garden; roast beef, tomato and spinach on whole wheat, on top of spring greens, with spinach and cabbage butterflies and orange pepper confetti; chocolate covered cashews in the center.

Teriyaki Bento

Cherries; mangoes; carrots; teriyaki chicken on brown fried rice; granola square.

Garden Tomato Bento

Carrots; cantaloupe; tomatoes from our garden; cheese and spinach on a whole grain mini-Sandwich Thin; chocolate covered cashews.

Summer Fruit Bento

Cherries; Tuscan cantaloupe; cole slaw with purple cabbage, broccoli, and carrots; chicken salad with spinach, apples, grapes and pistachios in phyllo cups; yellow pepper heart; gingerbread Scottie dog. Lots of colors means lots of antioxidants!

Love Bento

Watermelon; leftover birthday cake; carrots; whole wheat sausage, spinach, carrot and cheddar pinwheels; yellow peppers.

Birthday Bento

My R is 8 today! Here is her birthday bento for school: Watermelon cut-outs with oranges and watermelon in the middle; homemade whole-grain cornmeal, parmesan and flax cracker flowers; same crackers for the "happy birthday" letters; ranch dip and imitation crab legs (she loves those); Caesar salad (another favorite); and white Toblerone chocolate in the middle.

Butterfly cookies to bring to school for her class treat. I used this King Arthur Flour recipe for whole wheat & oatmeal cookies.

Happy birthday little one. Your Dad and I love you so.

Cheater Chopsticks

Grapes; homemade jardinière pickles from our garden; beef with cashews, carrots and broccoli on tamari brown rice; mangoes; all natural Panda cherry licorice in the middle, and "cheater" chopsticks I bought at an Asian market. They're fastened at the top and have a little loop on the side to keep a child's finger in the right place.

New Lunch Box

Grapes; broccoli and carrots; whole wheat tortilla chips; turkey pepperoni and cheddar; and in the center, a chocolate raspberry whole grain turnover.

I made a batch of these whole wheat crescent rolls over the weekend, filled them with all kinds of fillings, and put them in the freezer for lunches. It's a great dough, very forgiving, and it rolls out easily and freezes and thaws well. It makes crescent rolls, pockets, pinwheels--all kinds of shapes. I learned that R will eat a lot of healthy things if I put them inside a dumpling or turnover. The chips are just whole wheat tortillas brushed with olive oil and sea salt and run under the broiler.

I love this new lunchbox. They have a short lunch period, and when I had lunch duty I noticed that she spent a lot of time unscrewing or unwrapping and then fastening it all back up again when she was done. With a PlanetBox, she just opens the lid and it's all there. So far it has been spill-proof and leak-proof. There is also an insulated carrying bag that holds a drink and an ice pack to keep everything cold.

Butterfly Bento

Peanut butter and flax meal with homemade strawberry jelly on whole grain bread; bunny grahams; carrots with ranch dip; spinach; peaches and raspberries; Toblerone white chocolate.

First Day of School Bento

First day of third grade! Lunch is a whole wheat crescent roll filled with chicken & apple sausage, cheddar, and spinach; whole wheat breadstick with turkey "ham" and cheese; mangoes with an apple pick; cashews; organic bunny gummies and organic chocolate milk. I found a great lunchbox to pack a bento-style lunch and keep everything separate and leak-free. I'll post more pictures of it later.

Valentine's Day Bento

R's favorite, roast beef, on whole wheat with spring greens. Cantaloupe and blueberries, carrots, apple hearts, and a cookie.

Church Envelope

Every Sunday before Mass, R fills out her envelope for the children's collection.

She always includes a little drawing that she's done. This is yesterday's.

And here is today's lunch. I roasted a turkey breast yesterday, so she has a turkey sandwich on whole wheat with spinach; pineapple and blueberries with the plastic rose that she loves to use to spear fruit; broccoli and carrots; whole grain bunny crackers and chocolate milk.