No.70 Halloween Monster Sandwich bento

It's Halloween! I had planned to keep some of my Halloween party food for Monday's bento but the little people gobbled it all up. Instead I have created a Halloween monster sandwich out of a triangular seeded wholemeal roll. The sandwich has cheese and vegemite, with a red pepper tongue and eyes salvaged from tonight's chilli. In the second layer there is the ubiquitous satsuma that appears in nearly all of my son's bento (yes, he REALLY likes them), with this one made into a mini pumpkin with some chocolate sauce features and a bit of lettuce for a stalk. I have also added one of the marzipan tombstones and a marzipan zombie hand from our Halloween party cake.

And, of course, a picture of our Halloween party cake!

No.69 Nine Simple School Bento Ideas

It has been cake season in my kitchen for the past two months! A time of year where most of the family and our friends have their birthdays and other small celebrations requiring cake. All the baking and associated cooking really made a dent in my bento creation time. That didn't stop the bento, but it did stop me from spending so much time getting decorative with them. The following are a selection of the simple but nutritious bento that I have made recently.

1. Falafel pita bento

Falafel and salad mini pita wedges with carrot and cheese. Satsuma slices and dried banana in the second layer.

2. Cottage cheese pita bento

Cottage cheese and salad pita wedges with mandarin orange segments and a cheese and onion roll in the second layer.

3. Spicy vegetable samosa bento

Sliced spicy vegetable samosa with carrot, satsuma segments, dried banana and a Frusli bar.

4. Jammy heart bento

Jam sandwich hearts on wholemeal bread, dried cranberries and banana, melon wedges and a satsuma.

5. Veggie sausage and cheese roll bento

A vegetarian sausage, cheese roll, strawberries, dried banana and a Humzinger fruit bar.

6. Tomato pasta bento

Pasta twirls in tomato and garlic sauce, cheese cubes, Quorn vegetarian nuggets and a second layer of dried banana chips.

7. Pesto pasta bento

Basil pesto pasta with satsuma, dried cranberries and mini Oreo cookies in the second layer.

8. Mini samosa and pesto potato bento

Mini vegetable samosas with baby new potatoes in green pesto, melon wedges and satsuma.

9. Cheesy tomato pasta bento

Cheesy tomato pasta bento with green seedless grapes and satsuma.

The Giant Bounty Bar

Rather than make a cake for my husband's birthday I decided I'd make him a GIANT BOUNTY BAR! By all accounts it was a beast of a chocolate bar. Well loved and respected by all who beheld it and took part in the devouring of it's delicious form. Here it is in it's various stages of existence. BEHOLD!

No.68 Butterfly Sandwich bento

Hoo-boy am I worn out this week! Both of my childrens' birthdays fall in September so it has meant some preparation time and extra baking on top of my normal kitchen routine. My bentos have been fairly undecorative but just as wholesome as always. Tonight's bento is notable because my daughter's is packed in a non-bento box on her request. Apparently the contents are now fine for senior school lunch, but the clasps on her 'burger' bento box were a bit fiddly and she wanted a regular box. Aww, sadness! I love that burger bento box!

Here is my son's lunch, in his bento box:

The contents are Vegemite butterfly sandwiches topped with a cut out slice of mature cheddar, carrot sticks and humous dip, cucumber wedges and a pealed satsuma. There is also a cereal bar and small pot of yoghurt. I'm sending in a home made chocolate muffin too, since we have a glut of them this week.

My daughter's bento has the same contents, but with slightly bigger portions as usual (four sandwiches rather than two, more humous, more carrot).

Here are a couple of images I took of some of the other bentos this week.

Couscous, olives, cheese, crackers, kinder treat.

Leftover vegetable lasagne, green salad, olives, grapes, cheese biscuits, kinder treat.

No.67 Carrot Stars Bento

Last bento of the week! I have a busy weekend ahead of me, with two birthdays happening and all the associated baking and creating. Since I love baking and creating, that's not a bad thing! This bento has Quorn nuggets, wholemeal sub roll, spicy couscous and carrot stars. In the fruit layer are kiwi slices and green grapes. I'll send in yoghurt and a chocolate chip cereal bar for break and dessert. Since they have nuggets tomorrow I'll pack a little pot of ketchup.

No.66 Little Duckling bento

A little carrot duckling bobbing along in his couscous pond. Spicy couscous with vegetables, queen olives and a cheese and onion pastry. In the fruit layer, green grapes and watermelon.

Tonight was our karate night, and despite having eaten a good assortment of Korean food delicacies, home cooked and given to us by a good friend, the children came home hungry from our training! They had shortbread and milk before bed, but had their eyes on the little cheese rolls I had for their bentos. These will be the last of them, so I'll have to come up with something different for Friday.

No.65 Pac-Man Bento

It's Pac-Man! Under the watchful eyes of two ghosts. I seem to be using a lot of green lately, but perhaps that's not a bad thing. On a bed of lettuce I've packed a mini cheese and onion pastry, some Queen olives and cucumber slices. Pac-Man and the ghosts are hand cut from cheese slice and coloured. The fruit layer has some very juicy watermelon. My daughter's bento has two mini cheese pastries, since she needs to eat more.

Wind and rain greeted us on our school walk today, both walking there and back. It really feels like Autumn is in full swing. Everywhere we go we are wandering through drifts of the most gorgeously colourful fallen leaves, pine cones and conkers. That has to be one of the great, and sometimes unappreciated pleasures of living in a very green, small city.

For dinner this evening the children asked for some of the leftover vegetarian cottage pie from the big batch I made last night, with green beans and crusty bread. Yummy. I love how my 'hearty' cooking is appreciated so much on colder days.