Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Finally something new! I made these at the end of the dinner and although they kind of dried out in the fridge (inside the boxes), I found that leaving them at room temperature for about 10 to 15 minutes rehydrated the skins due to condensation.

Takoyaki has hers with some (thumbsucking delicious) homemade garlic fish sauce dip.

And Mouse, who doesn't like the rolls, got two 叉烧包 char siew bao.

Wednesday - Ham and Cheese rollups

Roast Meat requested for Oreos so I rolled a slice of shaved ham and a slice of cheese around a cucumber stick, then secured it with a long piece of cucumber skin for the protein factor.

I will not be packing a bento for RM or Takoyaki tomorrow because they will be having Children's Day celebrations and from experience, the teachers will be giving out a lot of goodies.

Pseudo Kappa Maki Bento

Kappa maki (seaweed rice roll with cucumber filling) is one of the kids' favourites but I did not have any sushi rice at home.

Pseudo Kappa Maki Bento

Menu:
Pseudo kappa maki - Jap cucumber wrapped with rolled out bread wrapped with nori
Seaweed chicken
A halved cherry tomato
A clementine
Some M&Ms

Spaghetti aglio olio

Two boxes for Roast Meat today as he has enrichment classes after school. 

I tried something new which he loved - veggie ham rolls. Just take a slice of honey baked ham (because over here it's bigger than the other hams, and it's round), wrap it around some raw carrot and cucumber sticks in spring roll fashion, then use a thin strip of cucumber (use a peeler to obtain long thin strips) to secure it. If you're gentle and careful, you won't need any picks to secure the cuke strip.

And lunch is the spaghetti aglio olio which we first had for Takoyaki's birthday 3 days ago. He liked it so much he asked me to make it for his bento, and Mum is only too happy to oblige, yes? The recipe is from Laura Vitale, I think the addition of pine nuts makes all the difference.

Spaghetti aglio olio with strips of roast chicken, some cuke rolls, a cocktail sausage and some red capsicum.

Everyone's counting down to the March school hols next week. I completely forgot.

Unexpected (and really) last bento of 2012

Mr Roast Meat has to get up really early and go out tomorrow morning, so lazy Mum, instead of also waking early to get him a fresh breakfast, decided to bento tonight so he can grab it before he heads out the door.

Some raisin bread cubes (Gardenia, in case you were thinking I baked it myself, hurhur), ham and cuke rolls, plus some chocolate covered nuts and raisins (I can hear him "yay!" already) I loved as a kid, and which he loves, but Takoyaki does not. Oh well.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

And... AH!! A giveaway by Bento Monsters! Quick quick head on over there!!

Fuss free and count down to end of term

The kids are in a joyous mood since this is the last week of term, especially since they only have to officially attend school on TWO days, there being a public holiday yesterday and home-based learning taking up one day, AND Friday being Speech Day (prize presentation) so there're no lessons.

So today is my second last bento day, tomorrow being the very last. Both Takoyaki and Roast Meat went to school early in the morning, the former for interclass netball tournament (and refused to bring a proper bento), and the latter for lessons.

I told Takoyaki she would definitely be hungry and made her bring a box of cheese crackers as well as some Choclairs, and RM will be having bread logs (rolled up with Nutella and kaya), a cheese wedge, grapes and a chocolate.

Ham and seaweed rolls

They may look like maki (sushi rolls) but are actually ham and bread rolls wrapped with dried nori (laver). I made two rolls last night, one each for Takoyaki and Roast Meat. Might as well since I had to take out the rolling pin and use up a piece of clingwrap.

Takoyaki had hers on skewers plus a tub of frozen yogurt which will be nicely defrosted but still cold by her recess time.

Roast Meat has an extra car bun which is filled with yummy liver pate.

Almost-picnic lunch

It's Wednesday again, but this time I had to be in school for a Full Dress Rehearsal for the Teacher's Day concert (taking place this Friday). After mulling over my options, I decided to do a combined bento for Takoyaki (who was waiting for me in school) and myself (and the tot).

Wrapped up are ham-cheese-cuke sandwiches for us, plus one little liver pate roll for the almost-2yo. The rest of the bento is made up of fish bites, cherry tomatoes, longans and kiwifruit.

I'm using my Tupperware tiffin cake box. On days like today, I WISH I had a proper picnic bento box in the Japanese style. Sigh...........

Happy appy

Sandwich bread is so versatile. You can make moulded buns out of it, sandwiches, mini sandwiches, bread rolls, bread cups (although I have yet to try this), breadsticks... So this week the main carb will be bread.

Roast Meat used to like apples, now he finds them time-consuming (seriously!). But I have to use up the apples, so in it goes. I did give him a "discount" - just a quarter rather than half an apple.

Nutella and cheese spread rolls, fish bites and halloween apple

Crabstick rolls and a filling lunch

Crabsitck bread rolls, cherry tomatoes and grapes

I had planned to let Mr Roast Meat bring some potsticker dumplings (aka 饺子 jiaozi) to school today, but between the two of us we finished the whole pack for breakfast! So as a last minute resort I poached some crabsticks (leftover from last night's sukiyaki) and rolled them in bread for him.

And here's the box that really pleases me today. Takoyaki has an enrichment class after school, plus I'm going for PV duties, so here's her hot lunch. Hurray for leftovers!

Kimchi pork soup with glass noodles, cherry toms and kiwifruit, plus a Chewy Junior for dessert

I adore packing what I consider a "proper meal" for Takoyaki. And she can eat!