Bento Boxes....ummmmm it's so....small?!

A reader just emailed me, excited that her bento box arrived, but shocked at it's small size. You read the dimensions online and think okay, cool, and then it comes and you're like, oh my, that is small. But it's so cute. And totally doable.  I am not doing anything amazing with mine yet, but I hope to get more and more creative with them as time goes on.

For now, I use my bentos to create well-balanced, colorful meals. 

Example- Snack for Baby A:
1 mozzarella cheese stick, a silicone cupcake holder filled with diced tomatoes.
Or halved blueberries.

For myself, I might take celery sticks, carrot sticks, and pepper strips with a container of light ranch tucked in. Baby A might take the same meal, but it would all be diced and no dressing (only because you can't really dipped diced veggies in dip)!

I try to plan meals that lend well as leftovers so I can take it for lunch the next day. If I am taking soup, I skip the bento and throw it in a tupperwear.  If I am taking yogurt, I leave it in it's container. When I pack eggplant parm and pasta, I can't fit a huge amount of eggplant OR pasta in, and that's okay. I don't need several servings for lunch, just once. In the other box (top layer), I'll pack veggies/fruit/nuts.  I have yet to be unsatisfied by a meal I have packed.

I did a websearch for bento meals to see what I could come up with.

Check out two by kastinkerbell:

The second one is an italian lunch, and the first is dumplings and veggies. Very simple, very easy. That reminds me, I should do something way cooler with my veggies- look a those pepper stars!!!

She probably used something like this to cut.

I am not completely sure though, as that opening looks tiny. If you know, please enlighten me!

How much would a child love this?

 

This looks like mainly rice and veggies...

From flickr.

This omelet was colored with Betty Crocker food coloring MARKERS!  I have no idea where to get these but they sound amazing!

Sometimes, Baby A's top box looks as simple as this...but with cheerios.

I will fill the top with cheerios for her to snack on throughout the day at babysitting. The bottom will have fruit, veggies, and/or cheese.  Then I will send a baby Tupperware with soup, pasta, or something else substantial.

Ok this is just cool!

Lastly, PBJ!

You don't have to kill yourself with these, have fun, and create colorful meals!

When looking for inspiration, google bento boxes OR laptop lunches.

Send me your pictures!

babyinthekitchen@gmail.com