Bento (Japanese style) packed, vegan meals

[Sarah_]

Monday: "beef"-stuffed collards, gherkins, root veggie soup, cheese crackers, grapes



yesterday: roasted beet salad over leaf lettuce w/ soy bleu cheese, multigrain tortilla strips & tangelo dressing, dark mint chocolate



tomorrow: mini crustless tofu quiches, parsley mashed potatoes, raw chard salad w/ grapefruit, grapes

Those all look fantastic! Is the blue cheese very good or eh? I'm scared of fake cheeses from an incident I had with a vegan pizza once, and I"m wondering if it's alright or not so much.

[jamboxrock]

Sarah - the kind I used there, Sunergia soya bleu, is just okay. The taste is good but the texture is a bit spongy. The kind I really like is Bleu Sheese, which I haven't really seen available for sale anywhere, I think the times I had it I ordered online. That stuff is phenomenal, and a little bit goes a long way. The only (minor) complaint I might have about the sheese is that it's really sticky, hard to cut up or grate. Worth it though.

today: lentil & tempeh stuffed collards, dill pickle cashews, pretzel nuggets, rosemary focaccia, boiled beets, strawberries



tomorrow: sandwich (multigrain toast, tofurkey, tofutti cheese slice, baby greens, gourmet mustard & red onion jam), broccoli & carrot sticks, goddess dressing, dried apricots, raisins & sour gummies

[Sarah_]

Why wasn't I born your neighbor so I could commission you to make my lunch?

[KarmaGirl]

My daughter just got a laptop lunch system for Easter. Here is what her lunches have been so far:



Cucumbers, tomatoes, wasabi sauce (wasabi + veganaise), grapes, vegan brownie and formed rice w/decoration:




Cucumbers, tomatoes, wasabi, formed rice w/chives, vegan brownie and orange slices:



Cucumber flowers and tomatoes (can you tell her favorites?), wasabi, vegan brownie and cookie, grapes and homemade sushi:



Cucumbers, vegan cookies, orange slices, "mozerella" cheese cubes, "American cheese" and lightlife "ham" stackers, crackers.



The vegan brownies came from Whole Foods. The cookies are a Vegan thin mint (recipe is on the net somewhere).

[DiaShel]

^ Lucky daughter! How old is she? I don't know any kids that like wasabi. Actually wait... I don't know any kids...

[Tigerlily]

I bought lunch stuff!!!! I bought a round, cute, thermal container for hot/cold foods. I also bought a pack of clear plastic sandwich containers. I work in a food place [omni] and we're technically not suppose to bring outside food to work. We don't have a staff room, so we have to eat in the dining room and they say it 'looks bad' to be eating food not from their place. Well, I've had enough! They can go f@$& themselves. I'm sick of eating boring vegetable-only sandwiches on my break or skipping food all together. I'm gonna start packing my own lunches! :3 :3 :3

PICS TO COME LATER TODAY!

[KarmaGirl]

DiaShel, she's 10 years old but seems old for her age. She's already discovered that kids find "vegetarian" or "vegan" to be weird, but they think her calling herself an "herbivore" is cool. Kids are weird. She also likes to eat everything with chopsticks...and I mean everything. If she can't pick it up, she uses the sticks to stab it. LOL

Here's today's lunch. It's cucumbers, tomatoes, strawberries, pecans, veggie dip (herbs added to veganaise), "ham and cheese" pinwheels and my attempt at cake...which didn't rise and now is a gooey brownie like substance. I have yet to concur vegan baking, but at least she had a treat.

[KarmaGirl]

Here are more of her lunches:

Homemade veggie Sushi, tomatoes, strawberries, wasabi, and Pistachio pudding.




"Ham and Cheese" stack cut-out in the form of dogs, cats and a duckie along with dog and cat picks to eat them with, grapes, pecans, crackers, cookies, broccoli, radish and veg dip.





Salad (dressing is in the small container), fresh pineapple, pecans, soy jerky, and thin mints.

[Ruby Rose]

Oh! Oh! We're loving the stack cut outs doggies and kit-cats!

[KarmaGirl]

Yeah, those were a hit for sure! I have a whole set of mini-animals, so I'll have to do more cut outs.

What kind of dog is in your avatar? It looks like a long haired Dachshund.

[jamboxrock]

The animal cutouts are very cute! I've been wanting some shaped cutters, must get some.

My internet was down for a while, so I'm way behind on posting!

4-9 garlic crusted grit cakes, succotash, mango-habanero sauce, snapea crisps, lime cucumbers, prunes & dried cherries



4-13 tofusteak sandwich on ezekiel bun with greens & mustard, bbq crisps, coleslaw, strawberries



4-14 salad stirfry, brown rice, clover sprouts, cucumbers & sesame seeds, tangerines



4-16 lentil & tempeh-stuffed collards, pasta salad, corn muffin, kiwi & strawberries



4-17 lentil & tempeh-stuffed collards, multigrain crackers, apple pieces, carrots with goddess dressing, cookies

[jamboxrock]

4-20 chinese greens w/ garlic over steamed rice, sopa, snapea crisps, dried cherries, strawberry soy yogurt w/ kiwi



4-21 succotash, grit cakes, pickled cucumbers, mango-habanero sauce, cinnamon-sugar muffin



yesterday: chard risotto, corn pudding, carrot sticks, edamame, dried apricots

[pavotrouge]

ooh sopa! are the grit cakes homemade?

I decided that my collection of nearly 20 bento boxes can't come to London with me, so I have a few that I'd like to sell/swap... details are on my blog:
http://applesntwigs.blogspot.com/200...ento-swap.html

[Ruby Rose]

Bento picnic for me and my sister yesterday.
Clockwise from top left - avocado, spinach, tomato and pine nut on wholemeal rolls; cloudy lemonade to drink; hummus, marinated artichoke hearts, carrot, cherry tomatoes, celery with cream Sheese and smoked paprika; Japanese seaweed peanuts, pretzel sticks; fruit and nut bars, peppermint creams.

[fondducoeur]

^^

What a wonderful picnic lunch, Ruby Rose! It all looks delish!

[jamboxrock]

Pavo, the grit cakes ARE homemade. Very easy to make.

Ruby Rose, that looks like a great lunch for two. Love the variety.

last Friday: roasted sweet potatoes, chickpea masala w/ spinach, whole grain orzo, kiwi



yesterday: waffles, tofu scramble, veggie sausage, maple syrup, fruit salad



today: tofu scramble, cinnamon raisin toast, carrot sticks, gherkins, strawberries



tomorrow: grit cakes, succotash, pickled cucumbers, mango-habanero sauce, blueberries, sour gummies

[DiaShel]

I love the top two Jambox!! Especially the sweet potatoes

[fondducoeur]

Jambox, I just noticed you tried the dill pickle cashews! What did you think?

[speedylemons]

Jamboxrock, I love the breakfast for lunch bento! Adorable! [as always!!]

[jamboxrock]

fondducoeur - Yes! I meant to thank you for the recommendation after the first time I tried them. They're really good, although they're the kind of thing I don't want to have more than a little bit of at a time. So they're kind of perfect for filling in lunches. I bought a bunch of different Archer Farms brand stuff last time I went to Target too.

theashleybeyer - I don't know why I don't do breakfast for lunch or dinner more often. That lunch was the kind I looked forward to all morning.

[cedarblue]

does the succotash have a dressing or something on it, erin?

[jamboxrock]

No dressing persay, Cedar. The moisture from the okra and tomatoes make it kind of squishy and it has some apple cider vinegar added, and I ate the hot sauce with the grits and succotash too.

[cedarblue]

you always seem to have an array of odds and end to make the lunch interesting erin, from dipping sauces to fruit to sweet treats. i'm continuing to enjoy this thread so much!

- so, is succotash simply like a veg medley/stew?

[jamboxrock]

Thanks! That's definitely one way I keep it interesting for myself.

I'd classify succotash as more of a saute, just a bunch of stuff cooked in a pan together. It's a southern dish, as in southern USA, like Florida/Georgia/Tennessee. I've got a recipe if you want it

[cedarblue]

I've got a recipe if you want it

what do you think? is it on your blog?

[jamboxrock]

Nope, not blogged yet. I'll pm it to you when I'm at home.

5-1: spaghetti casserole, salad w/ carrots, radishes & raw corn, goddess dressing, prunes, apricots & dark mint chocolate



5-4: avocado-ranch twice baked potato, grilled asparagus & mushrooms, bbq tempeh, gf shortcake w/ strawberry juice (leftover from strawberry shortcake)



today: pizza w/ mushrooms & peppers & a packet of red pepper flakes, dill pickle cashews, orange wedges, dark mint chocolate

[cedarblue]

funny how common foods we all cook and eat look so much nicer done by other people - it's only because we didn't have to cook it ourselves, of course!

[jamboxrock]

This is true, Cedar!

today: roasted zucchini & carrots w/ dill, soy nuggets w/ bbq sauce, chex cereal, garlicky sauteed swiss chard, sweet potato-pecan muffin, prunes

[Melanie]

Wow that looks gorgeous jamboxrock

[jamboxrock]

Thanks Melanie!

Monday: multigrain wrap w/ Tofurkey slices, greens & dijon mustard, couscous/orzo/veggie salad, broccoli florets w/ ginger miso dressing, prunes



yesterday: roasted potato & fava bean salad w/ miso-mustard dressing, baby greens, sauteed chinese broccoli & carrots w/ garlic, extra dressing, strawberries

[matt35mm]

I just hate clicking on this thread!

(sigh)

Well done to you, though, jamboxrock. These look amazing.

[speedylemons]

gahhhhhhhhhh Monday's lunch looks so fantastic I can't handle it!

[speedylemons]

P.S. Aren't fava beans AMAZING?!?! Did you use fresh ones? They are either in season or in the end of their season here in Nagasaki [Japan] and I tried them for the first time a few weeks ago. Instantly fell madly in love with them. YUM!

[jamboxrock]

Ashley - Yes! Fava beans are amazing. I'm not sure I had ever had them fresh before last week. I had them at a restaurant Friday and they were very mild, so I bought some at the farmer's market Saturday and they were kinda nutty and almost spicy in a way. Shelling them is kind of a pain but totally worth it.

[RubyDuby]

mmm fava beans

[herbwormwood]

IN the UK fava beans are known as broad beans. They smell of smelly feet.

[jamboxrock]

...and taste of delicious fava beans!

Monday: paella w/ seitan, tempeh & kidney beans, carrot sticks, vanilla soy yogurt w/ stewed rhubarb



somehow I am missing Tuesday's...

today: bbq baked tofu, steamed summer squash & carrots, corn pudding, sandwich cookies, pecan/almond/peanut clusters

[RubyDuby]

ooh, just got a bundle of rhubarb and don't know what to do with it. Is the recipe on your blog?

[jamboxrock]

I didn't really use a recipe, just went by some stuff I saw online. Diced one big piece of rhubarb first. Put equal parts sugar and water in a pot (probably used a few Tbs each) and bring to a simmer so the sugar dissolves. I added a split vanilla bean here but I'm sure a small bit of vanilla extract or maybe almond extract would be good too. Added the rhubarb and a squeeze of lemon juice and let simmer until I remembered it was there It was probably about 20 minutes. The rhubarb breaks down and gets all squishy. I'm not a huge rhubarb fan and wouldn't want to eat this by itself, but it was good on yogurt and would be really good on ice cream or cake I think.

[jamboxrock]

found Tuesday: whole wheat wrap w/ tofu steak & broccoli slaw, paella, broccoli, cherries, dried figs

[jamboxrock]

yesterday: Jamaican baked veggies, island rice salad w/ mango, lettuce to go w/ the salad, wasabi soy almonds, dried figs, piece of dark chocolate

[cedarblue]

yummo

[RubyDuby]

jamaican baked veg sounds yum.

thanks for tips on rhubarb. I boiled mine with the sugar water and some leftover syrup from jar of strawberries. turned out pretty good.

[vava]

If you cut rhubarb into chunks and cover them with water and then bring them to the boil and turn the heat off as soon as the water boils. Your rhubarb will be lovely and tender but the chunks will remain whole. you need to leave the chunks in the boiled water until they are cool.

[RubyDuby]

still have quite a few stalks. I'll give it a try. I'm not a big fan of the taste though either, so will have add something.

[herbwormwood]

Rhubarb sticks go nice with dates, if you boil them with the dates you need little or no sugar and they taste yummy.

[speedylemons]

Rhubarb sticks go nice with dates, if you boil them with the dates you need little or no sugar and they taste yummy.

GASP! I've always steered clear of rhubarb because of the need of mass quantities of sugar... INTERESTING! I'll have to try that next time I see rhubarb [and have access to dates.. heh.]

[jamboxrock]

6-8: veggie burger on homemade bun w/ lettuce & tomato, ramen slaw, grilled corn, black bottom blondie



6-9: Amy's pot pie, carrot sticks, corn casserole, black bottom blondie



6-10: roasted seitan fajitas w/ guac & peach salsa (& a tortilla under the lid), refried black beans, jicama, cucumbers, black bottom blondie

[jamboxrock]

6-11: grilled tofu w/ chimichurri on wheat bread, roasted brussels sprouts, steamed spinach, corn casserole, honeydew



yesterday: rice & beans, veggies w/ ranch, roasted brussels sprouts, blackberries



today: samosa burger in a spelt wrap w/ cheese slice, ketchup, mustard & pickles, cherries, broccoli w/ ranch, wasabi soy almonds, maple cookie

[Est]

JBR, that all looks AMAZING