2 Bento #221 - Angry Birds Gnocchi

This is my take on Angry Birds, a la bento.  First, we have our piggy antagonist.  He is amid some bell pepper debris, and he's seeing "stars". Okay...I don't think they actually see stars in the game, but they should, right?

Next, we have our protagonists.  The angry, angry birds.  The only fowl picks I have are ducks, so the hatching duck eggs must do.  They look pretty angry, no?  They are in some very delicious Trader Joe's gnocchi (frozen section) tossed with some extra parm.

Bento #221 - Gnocchi alla Sorrentina, red grapes, yellow bell pepper, dip and yogurt stars.  Snack - Banana muffin and garlic focaccia croutons.

P.S.  I'm very excited to have won a whole month of syndication at The Blog Entourage!

4 Bento #220 - Lego Lunch

I finally got one!!!  Oh Lego lunch box, how I've wanted you for months now, but were only available in the UK....  Long story short, I ordered one and had it shipped to my cousin in London, and we were to meet up on our trip and make the hand off, but it slipped our minds and I returned home to the US empty-handed.  With busy schedules, my adorable pink Lego lunch box hasn't made it over to my side of the pond yet.

So how did I get my hands on this one?  Lo and behold! The Container Store carries them now!!  I was killing time with my daughter (who was off from school) Tuesday after lunch and we headed over to that dangerous wonderful place.  We were browsing a section that wasn't even food-related when we stumbled across these.  They had a range of colors (but no pink, alas) in both the large and small sizes.  By the way, these are food and dishwasher safe.

The small size wasn't available when I purchased my pink one, so that was a bonus!  It's really tiny, so it's a good size for dip, which is what I used it for here. It fits perfectly inside the large Lego box. They only had the two sizes, and I'm curious what a medium would look like.

I know what you're thinking.  "Are those croutons?  That poor kid gets croutons for a snack?"  People listen to me.  These are the most amazing croutons you will ever put in your mouth.  They are garlic/parmesan/herb croutons from a brand called Nonni's, which I picked up at Costco (shocker, I know.)  They are amazing (I want to type that with all caps.)  They are addictive, and yes, today they are a yummy snack.  Ella will thank me later today, I just know it. ;)

Bento #220 - Pasta Prima chicken & mozzarella ravioli, julienne yellow bell pepper, strawberries and ranch dip.  Snack - Nonni's croutons and applesauce.

0 Bento #218 - PB&J Rolls & Bell Pepper

Enter the Bon Ami Giveaway!

The PB&J roll that I made in the post the other day made it into this yummy bento lunch.  

Bento #218 - PB&J roll, yellow bell pepper, dip, fresh raspberries & an octopus mozzarella stick. Snack - Apple carrot Crusher and banana muffin.

0 Bento #209 - Waste Free Wednesday Ham Sandwich & Bell Peppers

I desperately need to go grocery shopping after this long weekend; I'm down to my last fresh veg, and I think I only have a couple of oranges left.  I'm relying once more on some dried fruit, which is always nice to have around, especially since it's so portable.

By the way, this is part of E's school's Waste Free Wednesdays!  She received a tie-dye cloth napkin for packing a waste-free lunch!

Sandwich today is grilled baked ham and cheddar on rye.  The alphabet picks spell H-A-M (shocking, I know.)

I sliced half a yellow bell pepper and included a little piggy sauce cup full of ranch dip, and of course the aforementioned dried cherries with ring picks.  By the way, if you ever get a package of picks with these in there, tell your kids not to put them on their fingers!  We had a date with some dish soap and that ring last year.

I always say that you can find neat lunch containers in unexpected places.  This bento box came from a Crocs store!  They said that it was for storing Jibbitz, but it's a totally a 2-tier bento box, complete with a divider and an adorable bow band.  It even has space on top for utensils.  I think it was on clearance for $4.  I have been packing snacks in a drawstring bag one of my older bento boxes came with.  If something in her snack needs to be kept cold, I just stick it in her lunchbox with everything else.

Bento #209 - Baked ham & chedder on rye, dried cherries, sliced yellow bell pepper and dip.  Snack - String cheese and an Apple Carrot Crusher.

Speaking of bento boxes, AllThingsForSale is having a bento giveaway on their blog right now, check it out!

3 Bento #208 - Beef Stir Fry Noodles & Veg

So we are in the middle of our third week of school!  It's a bit of an adjustment (OMG, waking up at 6ish am every morning is KILLING ME) but we are excited about what the year holds.  I volunteered to be room mom again, so I have some work cut out for me, but since I'm crazy and love all that organizational stuff (charts, calendars and to-do lists) I think I'll do okay.  Once or twice a week I let Ella get school lunch, which is amazingly healthy, for the most part.  Yesterday they had a fruit/yogurt/peanut butter plate and salad as a choice.  Love it!  Takes a little pressure off me.  

Today's lunch is delicious.  I made my Korean barbecue stir fry with carrots, bell peppers and spring onions. 

Bento #208 - Korean stir fry with noodles, organic carrots, yellow bell peppers and spring onions, frozen blackberries, and multivitamins.  Snack - Applesauce and spiced nuts.  

0 Bento #206 - Mac n' Apple Sausage

We have a Planetbox lunch today with Aidell's chicken & apple sausage and Trader Joe's organic white mac n' cheese.  Yummy!  The bell peppers didn't photograph too well, but they are cut in the shape of flowers.

Snack was an apple & banana crusher, (also from TJ's) which was completely new to us.  Also some organic baby carrots and dip.

Bento #206 - Chicken & apple sausage, organic white mac n' cheese, yellow bell peppers, dried blueberries and organic craisins.  Snack:  Organic baby carrots, dip and an apple banana Crusher.

0 Bento #202 - Vegetarian Yellow Day

Ladies & gentlemen, I think we have a theme.  Today is Yellow Day in Ella's class, and so I planned a nice lunch with all yellow(ish) foods. At least she's getting her daily doses of vitamins A, C & D. Yesterday happened to be Blue Day, but I really couldn't think of all that many natural blue foods (and I don't like to use artificial dyes.)  I let her go through the school lunch line that day for the first time, after discussing her choices.  Instead of popcorn shrimp, she decided to get a vegetarian Caesar salad, peas & carrots, mac n' cheese, cornbread and her ubiquitous water, which is her favourite drink in the entire world.  That sounds good to me!

This lunch is packed in a Greentainer.  It's a two-tier, so what you see above is all combined into one container.  I have a little yellow "Y" in the spicy yellow lentil hummus, with a sweet apricot salsa topping from Eat Well Enjoy Life that we just discovered at Costco.  Delicious!!  They also have edamame hummus which is also great.

Her snack below (which isn't yellow, unfortunately) is packed in a separate Greentainer.

Bento #202 - Fresh corn-off-the-cob with sea salt and cracked pepper, sliced yellow bell pepper, yellow lentil hummus, Pasta Prima five cheese ravioli with herb Parmesan and extra-virgin olive oil.  Snack:  Mozzarella cheese and fresh strawberries.

One last note - if you haven't "Liked" Bentobloggy on Facebook, you are missing out!  I just started doing some Facebook-only giveaways for my fans (simple, simple!)  Click here to check it out.  Oh, and please vote for Bentobloggy on Parents.com!