Bento Box Lunches

When my daughter started in grade one this year, I was determined not to send her to school every day with a boring brown-bag lunch. I had seen a few websites that showcased the concept of using a traditional Japanese Bento box and filling it with small bites that would be appealing to a six-year-old. I found a double-decker bento box at a local import store and began creating her Bento box lunches. Her box came with a spoon and fork and we bought some small matching containers (1/2 oz) for her to put in dipping sauce or salad dressing. We use plastic picks for fruit and silicone muffin cups for holding smaller items and dividing food.

I usually choose one main item and two side items and use fillers as needed to use up the space. It also took me a little while to determine the right amount of food for her. The primary idea is to be creative, and provide a healthy lunch in small portions, which kids seem to prefer. As a bonus, this is environmentally friendly as we eliminate the need for wrap or bags. Here's a starter list of things I've used in the past.

Mains (pick 1):

• sandwich cut into shapes with cookie cutter
• cheese and crackers
• cold pasta salad (watch that they're not too saucy, or will leak)
• tortilla's rolled with cream cheese and ham
• mini pita sandwiches
• sushi
• left-over fried rice
• hard-cooked egg
• thin egg omelet, rolled up
• ham with pickles rolled up inside
• left-over meat with BBQ sauce for dipping
• cold chicken nuggets
  
• mini bagels and cream cheese

Sides (pick 2):

• vegetables (invest in a crinkle cutter for wavy veggies)
• ants on a log (celery stuffed with spreadable cheese and topped with raisins)
• fruit
• mini muffins
• dried fruit on sticks with marshmallow's
• fruit roll-ups
• cheese squares or baby bell
• yogurt

Fillers (use as needed):

• Craisins or raisins
• trail mix (dried cereal with dried fruit)
• pretzels
• cookies
• goldfish crackers
• mini rice cakes
• mini chocolate bars
• breadsticks
• mini jello's (in Asian section at grocery stores)

There are a lot of websites dedicated to Bento Box lunches. Take a look at these to get you started and you will get the idea.

http://www.coffeeandvanilla.com/
(This website actually does a Bento Box contest every month. Some people are extremely creative, or have too much time on their hands. In any case it's always inspiring to look at.)

http://adventuresinabentobox.blogspot.com/

http://lunchinabox.net/

http://justbento.com/