This Week in Bento: August 31 - September 3

Hi everyone!  Wow, what a week I've had.  I messed up my back pretty badly at work the other day, and I'm out for at least a week.  But really, that means I have no excuse not to blog!  I still got some good bentos in this week, full of more CSA goodies, homemade "take out" food, and more!

August 31

I picked up some amazing Michigan corn from the farmers market last weekend, so Steve grilled it up along with  some spicy BBQ chicken.  It was so good that of course I had to include it in my lunch the next day!  Next to the chicken are Cajun-spiced cheese curds, also a CSA find.  They weren't as spicy as I'd expected/hoped, but they were still soooo very good.  Chili-spiced green beans are with the corn, and in the back is the last of that honeydew melon that I dubbed "the best honeydew I'd ever had!"

September 1

What? How is it September already? That doesn't seem right... Anyway, remember a few weeks ago I had a lunch featuring some seafood chow mein from my favorite Chinese restaurant?  Well, this week I decided to make it myself!  I crisped up some chow mein noodles in a wok, then sauteed some shrimp, scallops, squid and crab stick with some soybean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, and Chinese chives.  Add a savory sauce, and it's done!  It turned out great (and as much as I like that restaurant, I sure saved a lot of money by doing it myself).  I'll put the recipe up here soon.  I also made some pork lumpia and a homemade sweet & sour sauce to dip 'em in.  I stir-fried some long beans with garlic and chili sauce for a veggie.  There's some prunes tucked in the back there for dessert.

September 2

It's funny, Italian food is not really high on my list of favorite cuisines, but it sure seems to show up in my bentos a lot.  Here we have spaghetti with Steve's homemade puttanesca sauce. Fresh Italian parsley from the garden is there to brighten it up a bit.  There's a nice green salad featuring CSA heirloom tomatoes, some garlic bread, prunes, and Korean chocolate-filled cookies.

September 3

Well, by this time in the week I was definitely not allowed to work for a few days, so I made Steve a bento.  It's a mish-mash of all the leftovers from the week, but still good ones, I promise!  He really liked that chow mein, and there was actually more of it left than I realized, but luckily I could jam it all in there!  With it are more long beans, more corn, and a couple of cherry tomatoes from a friend's garden.

Well, hopefully I'll be feeling better soon, but in the meantime I'll be cooking when I can (I've been finding ways to do things sitting down.. hehe), and if I'm not working, I can always make bentos for Steve!  Also, I don't have the kind of job where you have a long weekend for holidays like Labor Day, but I guess I have an extra long weekend this time around (although I'm in pain and won't be making it to any holiday gatherings..). But all of you out there, enjoy your weekend!  It's lovely here in Chicago, and I hope it is where you are too!