Bento 101: Simple Bento

For first-timers, the world of bento-making could be overwhelming. Take my word for it, when I started out making bento meals for my then 5-year old daughter, A, I would do it sporadically. Like I said in my previous post, bento-making takes a lot of dedication. Not to say it is difficult to start doing it, since once you get a hang of it, it becomes fairly easy. 

There are three things I would advise first-timers in bento-making. These are as follows:
1) You can use leftovers... and whatever you have in your pantry. 
2) Use photos of other bentos as a guide, but don't let it limit your creativity! (You can use kamias to fill in the spaces in your bento. LOL)
3) It won't hurt to collect more tools. Hoard if you must. LOL.

I decided to teach the kids a little bento-making today. We were having quite a slow Saturday - the nanny was out to see her kids, and Momma woke up a wee bit later than usual. I figured if I had them participate in making lunch, then that would keep them busy. I didn't want another Saturday in front of the telly, so I dubbed today "Activity Saturday", and did all sorts.

The key to bento-making is keeping everything in proportion. In fact, bento is a great way to keep food proportions in check. The Japanese use the 1:1:2 ratio when filling their lunch boxes: 1 part rice/grain, 1 part protein, 2 parts vegetables/fruits/dessert. There are others who prefer the 4:3:2:1 rule in bento-making (4 parts vegetables, 3 parts meat/ protein, 2 parts grain, 1 part fruit/dessert). I like to keep things practical, so I usually go with the Japanese ratio (1:1:2) but I don't let it limit my ideas. There are days when my pantry isn't stocked, and I break the rules. Haha!    

Anyway, let's show you how to put together a simple bento lunch.

With simple bento, all you need are a few tools. Don't be discouraged if you don't have much, there are other ways to beautify that lunch box!

WHAT YOU NEED:

FOOD
Rice
Meat/Protein
Vegetables/Fruit

TOOLS

Bento Box

Silicone Cups

Picks

Barans (optional)

Rice Molds (optional)

Bento tools - all available at Saizen!
(Top L, clockwise): Hand-held tools, Assorted picks, Silicone Cups, Rice Mold, Barans. 

The kids and I decided to use bento boxes with different shapes and sizes. 

The small rectangular box was mine, RL had the small round one, and A had a big appetite. LOL.

I thought it would be appropriate to use what we already had prepared for lunch. I had marinated beef for Salpicao in the chiller, so I cooked that. I also had some hotdogs, broccoli, baby lettuce, cherry tomatoes and green apples prepared for balance and box fillers.

I like keeping fruits and vegetables handy because my kids love them!

Rice is our grain of choice today!

PROCEDURE

1. Take your rice mold and scoop some rice into it. Make sure you pack your rice (so it will hold its shape), and flip onto your bento box. 

2. If your main dish has sauce, it is best to use a silicone cup to hold that sauce. You don't want the sauce to mix with your rice. 

3. Take some fillers (in this case, some hotdogs, broccoli and fruit) and fill up those extra spaces. 

4. Use barans to separate the fruit/sweets from everything else. 

5. Decorate your bento with picks.
Optional: Add cut cheese or carrots (shaped like stars, hearts, etc.) to spruce up your box. 

The best way to demonstrate how to put together a bento box is to show you. So I took a few photos of the kids putting together their bento lunch.

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RL's BENTO

RL scooping his rice onto his bento box.

RL chose a small silicone cup to hold his steak. He prefers hotdogs.

Carefully filling out the spaces in his bento box with a green apple slice.
Notice he uses two silicone barans to separate the fruit from his rice.

Adding picks to his bento.

Voila! My little boy's first bento ever! I think he did pretty good, donchatink?
Guess all that bento lunch he brings to school gave him pretty much an idea how to put this together.

"I wanna eat it up!" - RL

A's BIG APPETITE BENTO

Pretty girl getting ready to make her own lunch.

She was reluctant to use the molds, because she wanted to fill her box with rice. Hehe.

Carefully filling her silicone cup of choice with Salpicao.
I intentionally cut the pieces that small for the little boy's benefit.

Once you've placed your rice and main dish in the box, work on filling up the spaces.
A chose to put her hotdogs in a silicone cup as well.

My daughter is a big rice-eater. She can have just rice and no meat or veggies.
Excuse the broccoli, it has been sitting in the fridge for a while.

My not-so-little girl is very proud of her work. She says she will try to make her own lunch everyday.

KAYE's BENTO

My bento lunch, showing the right ratio: 1 part grain, 1 part meat, 2 parts veggies/ fruits.

~~~ * ~~~

Like I said, bento-making need not be complicated. The usual bento in other countries are made this way - simple. It takes about 5 minutes (or even less!) to put together a simple bento, provided everything is ready to go in the box. Remember, a big part of bento-making is in the planning. Plan ahead! Keep a bento notebook and write down all you're going to need for the next day. That way, you have everything prepared and bento assembly will be a breeze.

Follow me on Instagram at:
http://instagram.com/momma_makes_imbento



Wanna try your hand at bento-making? Or join a bento-making contest maybe? SAIZEN IS CELEBRATING BENTO MONTH! Purchase a few bento tools at Saizen, make a bento lunch, take photos, and get a chance to win P3,000 worth of Saizen gift certificates!

Visit Saizen on Facebook for details!

| facebook.com/saizenph 

| twitter.com/SaizenByDaiso 

| instagram.com/saizenph

New Carrot Fantasy Walkthroughs?

I have a couple on draft and will post them soon! I'm done with the new levels - have been since Day 3 (after the last update), actually. BUT! I have been playing Level 33 everyday since then, and the randomness of the hidden towers irritates me to no end! It takes about a dozen tries (or more) for the right towers to appear. Otherwise, the wrong towers are sure to let those pests get to the carrot. So far, I've probably gotten Golden Carrot about two dozen times only. Yes, since the update! Argh! So frustrating.

So if you're looking for a Level 33 walkthrough, I still need the right permutations. There could be a better way! So stay tuned.

Meanwhile, those other levels already have walkthroughs, and they're coming out soon!


| Need a walkthrough? Post your request and leave a comment!

Because YOU Asked - Extreme 23!

I am currently stuck on the new extreme levels - 33 and 35, to be exact. My brain is on vacation, INERTIA, at rest - playing the no-brainer, HAPPY STREET. LOL!

I think, though, that the truth is this: my brain is trying to slow down when it comes to Carrot Fantasy. Who knows when the next update is?! So yes, maybe I am taking it slow. I don't mind. At least I still have those two levels undone. My brother spent a good part of the early evening in my office trying to get past wave 3 on level 33. I have gone as far as wave 18, only to have a pest bite into that lovely carrot. So sue me, I want GOLD! LOL! So yes, in the middle of trying to figure it out (and working on extra patience), I am playing Happy Street instead. Haha, it's such a lazy game. And because some folks asked for the walkthrough for Level 23, here it is.

Start by planting ELECTRIC BALL towers as shown below. Upgrade the upper right one once. Aim for the giant chest on the right. The lone ELECTRIC BALL on the left can take care of the pests.

Once you kill ONE pest, you will be able to plant another ELECTRIC BALL on the top of the track. Plant it. This will help you kill pests as you try to clear the right side of the track of obstacles.

Work on eliminating all obstacles on the right. Start with the giant chest, the the big yellow fish in between the two ELECTRIC BALL towers. And so on and so forth. Use the photos below as succession guide.

Giant chest will reveal four SHOOTING STAR towers.

The big fish will contain an ANCHOR tower.

The rocks below the SHOOTING STAR towers will not contain anything.
Plant MUSHROOMS to earn coins. Upgrade MUSHROOMS as you go.

Once you get the obstacles on the right out of the way, work on clearing the obstacles on the upper left of the track. Remember to plant another MUSHROOM tower (beside the first one you planted) in order to slow down the pests and earn extra coins.

Start with the rocks on top of the track.
These rocks actually contain GREEN SHOOTERS.
Replace with ELECTRIC BALL towers.

Plant an ELECTRIC BALL tower on lower left of track (right by the start of the track). Aim for the green liquor bottle right beside it.

When you have enough coins, upgrade your ANCHOR tower.

The set of rocks below will reveal empty plots. Plant MUSHROOMS in its place.

Next, aim for the remaining giant chest.

Don't forget to upgrade your MUSHROOM towers to max when you can.

The giant chest will contain GREEN SHOOTERS. 

Work on clearing the left side of the track.
Do not upgrade any of the towers that come out of the obstacles.

Replace the four GREEN SHOOTERS with ELECTRIC BALL towers, except for the lower right SHOOTER, which you will replace with a MUSHROOM.

Once you've cleared all obstacles. Delete the towers on the left (two POO/MUD towers and the left ANCHOR and ELECTRIC BALL). See below for reference.

Plant two more MUSHROOMS as shown below. Upgrade to max. Delete left-most ELECTRIC BALL and plant two more on the right (top of track).

Then work on upgrading your TOWERS, starting with the ANCHOR and the SHOOTING STARS. Plant another ELECTRIC BALL above the right-most MUSHROOM just for additional defense.

Upgrade all those ELECTRIC BALL towers!

You can add more ELECTRIC BALL towers if you wish...
But the original ones should get you to the Golden Carrot.

And voila! It's that easy. Just a tad frustrating because it goes up to 25 waves. But nothing a little patience and persistence can't fix.

Extreme Stage 23, CLEAR AND GOLD!

~~~ * ~~~

EDIT: It took me all night to write this walkthrough. Well, I ended up playing the new levels and finished them. I was also playing on the little boy's iPad. I'm OC with my games like that. LOL! 

Okayyyyy... so what shall I do 'til July (According to this, Ice World won't come out 'til then!)?  And you, are you done with the new levels?

In case you missed it, Carrot Fantasy updated Extreme with new levels (20 May 2013)! Play up to Stage 35! Woohoo!

Growing Alfalfa

...and no, I don't mean Alfalfa from The Little Rascals, but Alfalfa... er... Sprouts. (Hehe, Corny!)

My former boss and mentor, MC, would always bring Alfalfa to work. Then she would literally force everyone to try it with pâté and bread or crackers (I think I take after her when it comes to convincing co-workers to explore food. So far, I've forced people to eat Durian, Arugula, Champorado, Guacamole, etc.). So anyway, because of her, I've come to appreciate Alfalfa with just about anything -Salads, Sandwiches, Crackers and even just snacking on it with Cream Cheese by the spoonful.

The thing about store-bought Alfalfa is this - you don't know how long it has been sitting there. Sure, it sits in the chiller section, but many times in the past, I've purchased a pack that had wilting Alfalfa inside (you can't quite see the roots). After reading a few articles on the internet, I've learned that Alfalfa is pretty easy to grow. The hard part is finding seeds.

I work close to a bunch of garden shops, and often go to get compost, etc for my planter box garden. Once, when my dad had me go to get him something for his garden, I noticed they actually sold Alfalfa seeds!

Condor Seeds is distributed by Allied Botanical Corp.
http://www.alliedbotanical.com

So, last year, we started growing our own Alfalfa. It takes 5-6 days! Nothing to it!

WHAT YOU NEED:
Packet of Alfalfa Sprouts Seeds
500g Disposable Food Container w/ lid
Paper Towel
Hand-held Water Sprayer 
Water

Get a Disposable Food Container and line it with a folded paper towel.

I didn't have plain ones that day. Oops.

Sprinkle some seeds onto the towel (about a teaspoon or two would do). Fill the water sprayer with water, and spray your seeds until they are completely wet.

The paper towel will hold moisture and keep your seed damp.

Cover the food container overnight. Keep your little sprouter container in a dark place. I just kept it sitting on the kitchen counter, under the shelves.

This will encourage seed germination.

Because it is currently hot and humid, spray your seeds with water twice a day.

RL took charge in spritzing the seeds everyday. 

Some tutorials call for you to thoroughly rinse your seeds every 12 hours. You can do this, too, to make sure you wet your sprouts. Use the lid to filter the water and prevent the seeds from spilling out of your container.

I prefer to just spray with water for the first 3 days.

On the fifth day, you can move your container to a windowsill for it get a little sun. This will encourage your sprouts to turn green.

Ready to eat!

Rinse your sprouts with filtered water a few times to get most of the husks out. Keep in the refrigerator until use. These can keep in the refrigerator for about a week at most. We usually eat within a couple of days. Remember to rinse thoroughly before serving!

Use them on hamburgers, sandwiches, salads, and many more!

Cream Cheese and Mango with Alfalfa sandwich. NOM!

Cream Cheese and Alfalfa on a cracker. Perfect snack! NOM!

I've actually tried growing Alfalfa in a mason jar (as most tutorials online show you how to grow them that way), but it didn't work for me. The sprouts don't grow as fast, and when mine were still less than half an inch long after a week, I decided to just throw them out.

I have watched a few videos on it lately, and I shall try again soon (although I followed instructions to the T that first attempt). Anyway, this way works for me.

Have you tried growing Alfalfa? Have you tried EATING Alfalfa?

Alfalfa contains a concentrated amount of vitamins and minerals - these include calcium, vitamin K and vitamin C. The best part? Alfalfa contains just 8 calories and 0 grams of fat per cup.