Grilled Chicken and Fresh Strawberries Salad Bento

For this lunch box, I used chicken breast leftover from last night's dinner, salad greens, and sliced fresh strawberries. I also packed some grapes, a small tomato, and some Kashi wheat crackers.




The little containers on top of the greens contain homemade salt-free red wine vinaigrette.

Meatloaf Sandwich Bento

I seriously love meatloaf sandwiches. I made the meatloaf for dinner and we got four extra lunches out of it. That's a deal. I use really lean meat so to keep it moist I shred zucchini and carrots right into the mix. I packed the meatloaf in a baggie under the bread so I could pop it in the microwave at work. The bread is covering it the picture, but you can pretty much imagine what a slice of meatloaf looks like, right. Along with my sandwich I packed a small salad with homemade red wine vinaigrette and fresh strawberries. I also packed some sliced celery with a little tub of peanut butter and a babybel cheese for a afternoon snack.

Black Bean Snack Box

Snack bento for my little one (who is not so little anymore but remains my baby for eternity). Black bean, onion, tomato, corn salsa with small round corn chips. A tiny tangelo, and a baby bell cheese wheel. I made the black beans in the crock pot overnight. It's so simple and a serious time saver.

I have been criticized for not making beans the "authentic way." By a man no less. A man who says he feels its important to hold on to tradition. Where to begin?

This guy cooks maybe once, twice a year and his opinion is supposed to mean something to me? Brother please. I don't even have the time to explain to him the degree of his wrongness (it's a word now folks).

I cook almost everyday. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a couple of snacks. I wish I cooked for a living, but I don't. So I look for reasonable shortcuts in the kitchen. I do it mostly out of necessity. I like to eat food without mysterious ingredients and I need to save money. Sadly my husband cannot cook. Or I should say he doesn't cook. To be honest, as much as I would like more help with cooking duties, I am really, really picky. So to maintain harmony in the home, it's probably best that I keep cooking. This is just part of figuring out how to live with another person. I do not, however, wash dishes. I like to joke that I worked this into our wedding vows, but in reality I think I sprung it on him during that first year when we were trying to figure each other out. I think it's a fair deal. I shop and cook. He cleans. We all eat.