This Week in Bento: October 5 - October 9, 2010

Wow, another week has gone by!  You know what that means.. more bentos!  Check 'em out!

October 5

Last week I made a crazy CSI:Miami Bento to celebrate the 9th season premiere of this hilarious show.  So when we watched in on Sunday, I cooked up some Cuban food.  Then, of course, I sent Steve to work with a bento full of the tasty leftovers.  In the front: mojo-marinated flank steak and grilled onions, with Cuban-style black beans and rice.  I whipped up a little cabbage slaw (red cabbage, cilantro, sour cream, white wine vinegar, and red onion) which is in the back container with a cheese quesadilla, lime wedges, a little bottle of extra mojo sauce, and mango.

October 8

Look!  A new bento box!  Isn't it cool? One of my favorite bento blogs, Hapa Bento, sponsored a giveaway a few weeks ago, and I actually won!  I don't think I've ever won anything before, so I was more than excited when I heard the news.  The main prize was this "Magic 4-Squared Bento" as well as some additional bento goodies.  To enter the contest, you had to say what you would put in each of the four sections if you won this bento, and link to a photo.  The colors instantly reminded me of a bento I'd made months ago featuring adobo-glazed chicken wings and Okinawan sweet potato gnocchi.  When I won the box, I thought it was a perfect excuse to make this yummy meal again!  In the purple square: adobo-glazed wings and blue cheese dippin' sauce.  In the yellow square: Okinawan sweet potato gnocchi with sage butter.  Green: a juicy red plum and peanut butter cookie.  Red: stir-fry of pea pods, beech mushrooms, red pepper, scallions, and bok choy.  Not an exact copy, but pretty similar to the inspiration, which, by the way, was this bento:

I really love this new, unique bento box and can't wait to use it again (along with the accessories I got too)! Thanks again, Debra!

October 9

Steve wanted some more of those tasty gnocchi too (there were no wings left over.. just too addictive!) so I made a bento for him featuring the amazing purple dumplings.  Here they are with a sprig of sage.  In the back is some more of the stir-fry, kiwi, and a peanut butter cookie for dessert.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend!  Keep on bento-ing! ^_^