Bento Bliss

Three cheeses macaroni bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 16:33:00 +0000

Several lights from the living room's main light fixture decided to call it a day last night and taking a wel lit picture in these conditions turned out rather tricky. So I apologise for the poor quality of today's picture.

Today's bento has a leftover from last night's dinner : three cheeses macaroni with meatballs and savoy cabbage, a filling wintery dish. And quite easy to prepare, as you can see from the recipe that I posted over on the cooking blog.

The fruit section contains the usual suspects : apple, pomegranate, blueberries and half a banana.

As a little side note : for those of you who would like to learn how to make Japanese dishes to add to their bento for the real asian feel, Maki from Just Hungry will host a Japanese cooking 101 in March. I'll join this free (!) and online class for sure. Go check it out.

Bon appetit !

Deconstructed Tuna Burger Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:38:00 +0000

Hello people,

Long time no see !

I know I have gone MIA for a while but bento is like a healthy addiction and although there might be times that you don't feel like making them anymore, you know you'll always go back to it in the end. I am no exception to the rule, thankfully ... or unfortunately, that's for you to decided. :o)

Anyway, for lunch today I brought this bento to the office. The box is new and I scored it for just 2 EUR. I liked the fact that although it was still my favourite single tier set-up, it still allowed some clean separation of the different elements composing my lunch.

This is actually the same lunch I had over the weekend but not yet put together : a delicious tuna burger sandwich. So in the box, I have a tuna burger, iceberg lettuce topped with a sliced onion, tomato slices, alfalfa shoots, rucola and the little sakura container has a mix of light mayonnaise and sweet mustard. On the side a homebaked Dutch Crunch Bun to complete the burger. On the other side of the box, I added a little leek and ham savoury cake with some purple carrots sticks and for dessert, a couple of failed macaron shells, pomegrenate, litchi and blueberry.

The recipe to the bread and tuna burger can be found over here on my new cooking blog Kitchen Tales of Sugar & Spice. Same goes for the little savoury cakes, of which the recipe was posted here.

Bon appetit !

Green beans bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Another workweek is about to start, so time for me to get my bento gear out of the cupboard again. For today, I have some leftovers from yesterday's dinner : green beans with tomatoes and chicken, steamed potatoes and I added some carrot slivers for colour. The fruit section consists of apple, tangerine, plum and a couple of kiwiberries.

Bon appetit.

Blanquette de veau bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 22:30:00 +0000

The last bentos were quickly thrown together and not worth mentioning, hence the my blog silence for a forthnight. Tonight's bento is no excepton to this new rule but I received a new camera for my birthday and had to try it out on something. I am not sure switching my Sony for this Samsung is a good move, but maybe I just have to learn how to use it properly. The poor quality of this picture is more than probably my fault.

Anyway, my lunchbox has a lightened version of the French dish Blanquette de Veau, so no butter, no cream nor eggs. But tasty nonethless. To accompany the veal, I have some carrots, steamed potatoes and the fruity vitamins consist of tangerine and apple.

Bon appetit.

Ratatouille Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Nothing like a little week off to recharge your mental batteries. After soaking up the Spanish sun, I am ready for another two months of work. And work wouldn't be complete, without a bento for lunch.

No mice in my bento, despite what the title might have made you believe, but a sauteed vegetable dish, typical of the southern french cuisine :o)

Besides the sauteed veggies (zucchini, red onion, red and yellow bellpepper, fennel and green and black olives), I have another of the Valess products, the BBQ filet, and a few boiled potatoes. For dessert, I packed a plum, a quarter apple and some melon balls.

Have a great week and bon appetit.

Thai Meatballs Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Today's lunch is a leftover from yesterday's dinner : rice, thai meatballs, snowpeas, minicorns and pak choy with a bit of chicken broth. For the fruity vitamins I packed an apple which didn't make it in the picture though.

I'm running a bit out of time right now, so I'll post the recipe tomorrow. ETA : done, see below.

Bon appetit.

Thai meatballs recipe (serves 4)

Ingredients

500g ground beef
2 lemongrass
1in piece of fresh ginger
grated peel of a lime
2 garlic cloves
1/2 bussel of fresh coriander (cilantro)
1/2 bussel of fresh mint
sale & pepper
160g basmati rice (dry weight)
1 chili
600 ml chicken stocl
2 pak choy
100g baby corn cobs
75g sugar snaps
2-3 tsp fish sauce

How-to

Put the ground meat in a bowl. Wash the lemon grass, remove the outer leaves. Chop up one lemongrass finely and add it to the meat. Cut the remaining one lengthwise and put it in a pan.

Peel the ginger, grate half of it above the meat and cut the remaining half in strips. Add those strips to the pan with the lemongrass.

Peel and press the garlic. Wash the herbs, dry them and chop them up. Add the herbs, the garlic and the lime zest to the meat, season with salt and pepper and mix everything carefully together. Make 32 little meatballs with the meat.

Cook the rice following the instructions on the package in lighlty salted wter. Wash the chili, cut it in half, remove the seeds. Add half of it to the pan with the lemongrass, together with the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the meatballs and let everythingcook under cover for about 12 minutes, until the meat is done.

Transfer the liquid to a clean pan, reserve the meatballs and remove the ginger, lemongrass and chili.

Heat the liquid. Wash the pak choy, remove the hard core and cut into slices. Cut the baby corn cobs lengthwise, wash and cut the sugarsnaps in half. Add the vegetables to the boilingliquid and let it boil for 2-3 minutes, until they start to get tender. Add the fish sauce.

Divide the rice over the 4 plates and put the vegetables and broth on top of it. Dice the remaining chili and serve the thai meatballs sprinkled with the chili.

Chicken Shawarma Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Horrible colours in this picture, because it was way too late/dark for picture taking by the time I sat down last night.

But if the colours are off, the taste is very well there.
For lunch today I packed some chicken shawarma with ramiro pepper and mushrooms and a salad of iceberg salad and white cabbage. The obligatory aioli is a lighter version as I used a petit suisse cheese than I mixed with garlic and herbs. I have again a little selection of plums for dessert. And the little batcow thing? It's a little cheese :o)

Bon appetit.

Chicken, Nectarine & Mozzarella Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

The start of the last week of August already, time flies. It is also the last week at the office for me before I move off for a week of sightseeing in Spain's capital Madrid.

In order to capture the essence of the last days of summer, I packed a salad in my bento today. It holds a savoury/sweet combo which is always a hit in my book : I have a mix of young lettuce leaves with rucola, panfried chicken & yellow nectarine and (light) mozzarella, sprinkled with toasted pine nuts.

For fruits, today and probably the rest of the week, I have a selection of plums as they were in promotion this week when I went for groceries. And the usual apple.

Chicken, Nectarine & Mozzarella Salad recipe (2 servings)

Ingredients:

200g chicken filet
2 tsp olive oil
2 nectarines (or peaches if you prefer)
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
0.5 tsp sugar
120g mixed lettuce
1/2 ball of light mozzarella
1 tbs pine nuts

Ingredients:

Cut the chicken filet in strips (or dice the meat if you prefer). Heat 1 tsp of olive oil and panfry the chicken for 5 minutes until they are brown and ready. Reserve.

Heat the remainder tsp. Wash the nectarines, remove the core, cut them into pieces, put then in the pan and panfry them for 1-2 minutes until they are soft and brown.

Add the chicken pieces, the balsamic vinegar and the sugar and finish the cooking by stirring everything for 1 minute. Let cool.

Wash the lettuce. Put the chicken and nectarines on top. Dice the mozzarella, roast the pine nuts without adding any oil or butter. Sprinkle them on top of the salad.

Bon appetit.

Meatless Friday - Pasta Ricotta Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Last day of the week again. Time does seem to fly this week, probably because I am looking forward to a week's holiday starting September 1. Next week will therefore be my last bento week before enjoying some welldeserved time off.

Friday is meatless bento day and for a change I didn't use any meat substitutes. I found the recipe for this vegetarian salad in this month's WW magazine and decided to give it a try. So, what's in there? I have tricolore penne pasta, carrots, green asparagus, green beans, snow peas and the creamy dressing is a bit of ricotta mixed with 2 tbs of skimmed milk.

Bon appetit.

Bulgur & Nectarine Salad Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 22 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

For today's lunch, I have a salad of bulgur, mint leaves, cumin chicken, green tiger tomatoes and white nectarine. For dessert, I added some blackberries, bigarreau cherries, the last quarter of the nectarine and some reine claude plums.

Bon appetit.

Chinese Buckwheat Crepes Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

During the heatwave that came over our little country these last few days, standing in the heat in the kitchen was the last thing on my wishlist. Hence the lack of bento, since the beginning of the week.

Temperatures are again down to a more manageable 25 degrees, so I decided I could make myself a bento for tomorrow. I made savoury buckwheat crepes and stuffed them with chicken and a selection of stirfry veggies. For seasoning, I used grated ginger, shoju, liquid honey, lime zeste and lime juice.

For dessert, I have some mirabelle plums, blackberries and a couple of bigarreau cherries. I am learning to eat cherries and although the regular ones are still definitely a no-no, these ones are becoming a favourite.

Bon appetit.

Chicken Jambalaya Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I made a dish last night that is always received with much enthousiasm at our table : Jambalaya. I slightly altered my usual recipe by incorporating diced chicken breast and diminishing the amount on shrimp and breakfast bacon. This new version was welcomed as much as the other ones.

For dessert, I have some black grapes, mirabelle lums, apple and golden kiwi.

Bon appetit.

Chicken Tikka Masala Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I didn't have much time last night, so I whipped up a easy dinner : some chicken breast simmered in WW tikka masala sauce, rice and steamed cauliflower rosets. And today's bento has another portion of that tasty meal. The dessert tier has diced peach, apple, dark grapes and mirabelle plums.

Bon appetit.

Chicken & Mushroom Risotto Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

This week has had fewer bentos than I initially planned, because I was out with a major backache for the last couple of days. On that front, things are going a bit better so I whipped up this little bento last night in order to celebrate the end of the week as I should.

In the bottom tier I have a chicken and mushroom risotto, decorated with some cherrytomatoes and cucumbers. In the top tier, I have a little plum, half a small cantaloupe melon and half an apple.

Bon appetit and have a great weekend!

Yellow Beans Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

A very easy and plain bento (yet again) : panfried pork, steamed potatoes and some yellow beans with shallot. For dessert, I have apple, golden kiwi and some nectarine.

Bon appetit.

Arroz caribeño bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Sun, 05 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

For lunch tomorrow, I have a portion of Arroz caribeño, Carribean Rice. I found the recipe for this on the Spanish Weight Watchers website, and because all the ingredients sounded appealing, I decided to give it a try. And it is a hit: empty dishes at the table and a green light to make it again.

For dessert, I have a piece of apple, half a golden kiwi and a plum.

For those who don't really master Spanish, I am adding the recipe in English below.

Carribean Rice (4 servings - 11pts)

2 fresh chilies - I omitted those because we're not into hot food
2 leeks
480 g skinless, chicken breast
1 (small) red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 tsp olive oil
250 g white rice, uncooked
200 g water
250 ml pineapple juice
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of pepper
1 pinch of turmeric
1 medium sized pineapple
2 tbs of dessicated grated coconut

How-to

Cut the chilies and the leek in rings, dice the chicken breast and cut the bell peppers in julienne.

Heat the olive oil in a pan and brown everything together for 5 mins. Add the rice, stirfry it for a while and add the water and pineapple juice.

Cook on low heat for 10 to 15 mins and finish off with salt, pepper and turmeric.

Cut the pineapple into pieces, sprinkle with the grated coconut and brown them in a non stick pan.

Divide the rice over 4 plates, decorate with pineapple pieces and serve.

Thursday's Pork Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

A very plain bento in yellow, oranges and greens. I have diced lean pork, sprinkled with cucumber and bellpepper, steamed potatoes (more cukes and peppers), and a selection of steamed veggies (carrots, baby corns and snowpeas). For dessert, I only have two types of fruit : half an apple and a plum.

Bon appetit.

Chicken & Oyster Mushroom Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Horribly flashlight picture, that's what happens when you start later than usual on your bento.

I picked my M4SB for tomorrow's lunch and filled it with yummy goodies. In the yellow box, I have wite and wild rice, topped with orange bell pepper, cucumber and a cherry tomato. The purple tier has baked chicken on a bed of lettuce. The green veggie box has more lettuce as well as oyser mushrooms tossed in light boursin cheese. For dessert, I have half an apricot, a piece of pear and a plum.

Bon appetit.

Epigramme d'agneau bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

For lunch today I have leftovers from yesterday's dinner : lamb with celeriac. To fill out the rest of the bento, I used some steamed potatoes, shredded leek and cucumber/orange bellpepper for decoration. The sweet section has a variety of fruits I found at the freshmarket last weekend : yellow and blue plum, strawberries, apricot and pear.

Bon appetit.

BBQ Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Sun, 29 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

With the hot summer weather, we had lots of BBQs last week, which almost invariably (at least for me) consisted of chicken skewers, salad, spring onions, cucumbers and potatoes ... exactly what's in this bento. I just added some leftover green beans from lunch to fill out the box.

This box heralds the end of my week holiday. Ready (but not exactly willing) to go back to work.

Have a nice week everybody and ...

Bon appetit.

Meatless Friday Toscana Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Last bento of the week before I have a week off and after today, I won't be needing/making any bento until August 30.

For this lunch, I made again a vegetarian bento with another of the Valess products. If last week I used the filet with chives and camembert, this week it is a Toscana filet, stuffed with tomato and mozarella. Otherwise for the vegetables, it is a bit deja vu, because reviewing last week vegetables, I just realised I used the same ones : steamed asparagus, sugarsnaps, pumpkin, broccolini and carrot; mixed up with orzo.

The fruit section contains blueberries, peach, dark and yellow plum and a strawberry.

Bon appetit and see you all in a week.

Salmon Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I'm on the last straight line to one week off work and I hope these days will fly by, because I am in desperate need of some free time. We're not going away, as P. can't take time off right now, but at this point even a week at home sounds heavenly.

Back to bento. For today's lunch I have some purple rice, baked salmon and an assortment of steamed veggies (babycorn, asparaus, sugarsnaps and zucchini slices), The fruity vitamins are composed of the usual blue, black and strawberries, plum, apricot and half a saturn peach.

Bon appetit.

Chicken & Beans Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I prepared P's favourite dish last night: green beans à la provençale with chicken, and made enough to fill a bento as well. For lunch today, I have therefor green beans with chicken in tomato sauce, steamed baby potatoes and some carrots slices to fill up the bottom tier. In the top tier, I have the usual fruit assortment (black-, blue- and strawberries, half a saturn peach, a tiny plum and an apricot) as well as two wedges of WW cheese and some crackers.

Bon appetit.

Stuffed Zucchini Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Sun, 15 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

For lunch today, I have the leftovers from last night's dinner. I found some round zucchini during grocery shopping, so I immediately knew what to make : zucchini stuffed with ground pork/beef with tagliatelle and a sauce of tomato and the zucchini innards. A guaranteed success dish at our place.

For dessert and snack, I have a bunch of fresh fruits : apricot, plum, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and half a saturn peach.

I wish you all a great start of the new week and ...

Bon appetit.

Meatless Friday Bento

noreply@blogger.com (Ingrid) — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I haven't turned vegetarian (I am too much of a meatlover for that), but going a day without meat should be good for my health, so there you go. As an alternative for meat proteins, I opted for the dairy product Valess. According to the website, "Valess products are made from a concentrate of fresh milk and dietary fibres from algae. No artificial colouring agents or artificially manipulated ingredients have been used. Valess products are naturally rich in dairy proteins, unsaturated (i.e. ‘good’) fats and are enriched with vitamins and iron." I already tried their plain version a while back, but as I have a craving for cheese today (since I haven't had any for a few weeks), I opted for their camembert and chives version for the bento.

To accompany the proteins, I have some udon noodles mixed with carrots, pumpkin and sugar snaps and some broccolini and asparagus spears to fill out the savoury part. For dessert (& snack) I have a lychee, a strawberry, an apricot, a piece of apple and a cut up saturn peach.

Have a nice weekend and see you on Monday.

Bon appetit.