Roll up Jell-O and Smoked Salmon Fritatas

I saw an interesting Jell-O recipe at facebook by Cooking Panda and tried to make it. It only consists of two ingredients which are Jell-O and marshmallow. And it is pretty easy to make as well. The kids love it, so it is a win-win situation for us :)

Here are what I prepared for my eldest son :
1. Half of chicken wraps 
2. Chicken ragout rissoles
3. Smoked salmon, chive and caper frittatas
4. Roll up Jell-O
5. Pear cuts for recess

My youngest son had the same lunches as his brother, but he had banana instead for recess.

A Little Bit of Everything Bento

My boys love their wraps. But even mini wraps already make them full. Because I want them to have variety of foods everyday, I prepare half of wraps and the rissoles, so they can have "a little bit of everything" during the day.

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Half of chicken wraps (roast chicken, ham, cheese, BBQ sauce, cucumber, and shredded lettuce)
2. Half of chicken ragout rissoles
3. Pork siomay (recipe here)
4. Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Kiwi fruit cuts for recess

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Half of chicken wraps (roast chicken, ham, cheese, BBQ sauce, cucumber, and shredded lettuce)
2. Half of chicken ragout rissoles
3. Pork siomay (recipe here)
4. Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Rockmelon cuts for recess

Colorful Bento Lunches

I'm so excited with these lunches. They look so colorful and pretty. The boys just can't wait to get to the lunch time and gobble up their lunches!

Details are below :

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Pork siomay (recipe here)
2. Chicken ragout rissoles
3. Milk jelly with nata de coco
4. Corn on the cob
5. Rockmelon cuts for recess

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Pork siomay (recipe here)
2. Chicken ragout rissoles
3. Milk jelly with nata de coco
4. Corn on the cob
5. Kiwi fruit cuts for recess

Back to School Term 2

First day of term 2 in 2016. The boys already missed their bento and so did I. So I've been cooking up a storm this weekend, and making bacon and cheese scrolls, siomay, and milk jelly in batch. It will last for a week, I supposed.

Here are the details :

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Pork siomay
2. Bacon and cheese scroll
3. Corn on the cob
4. Doraemon shaped Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Orange wedges for recess

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Pork siomay
2. Bacon and cheese scroll
3. Corn on the cob
4. Car shaped Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Orange wedges for recess


Bento tools I used for this post :

     

Sushi and Chicken Ragout Rissoles

Last night we had sushi time where I and my boys were making sushi together. Basically I prepared some ingredients for the sushi fillings, and the boys may choose which ingredients will go in their sushi. 

The ingredients that I prepared were roast chicken, carrot, cucumber, smoked salmon, avocado, ham, soy sauce, Kewpie mayonese, and Japanese pickled ginger.

The boys were having so much fun creating their sushi. And after dinner, there were some leftover for their lunch box next day.

The first sushi fillings option was chicken roast, carrot, cucumber, soy sauce and pickled ginger. The second one was smoked salmon, cucumber, carrot, avocado, with soy sauce and pickled ginger. And last but not least was roast chicken, ham, avocado, Kewpie mayo, pickled ginger and cucumber.

For my younger son, I prepared :
1.Three types of sushi
2. Chicken ragout rissoles 
3. Corn on the cob
4. Fruit salad (pineapple, rockmelon, and grapes)

It is a similar lunch from his little brother. And the boys came back with empty lunch boxes. Mission accomplished!

Cute Egg Mold for Jelly

Recently my friend gave me this cute Doraemon egg mold from her trip to Japan. Instead of molding egg, I used it for molding jelly. And I really love how it turns out. 

You may find similar egg-mold bento tool here :

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Ham and cheese croissant
2. Pork wonton
3. Pork siomay
4. Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Carrot sticks
6. Banana for recess

His little brother had the same menu, but he prefers kiwi fruit for recess instead.

Moist Raspberry Muffins

These raspberry muffins are so moist dan delicious. The original recipe has white chocolate in it, but I omit it and it still tastes divine. Here I share the recipe:

Moist Raspberry Muffins
adapted from Taste.com

Ingredients :
 1 3/4 cups self-raising flour
 2/3 cup caster sugar
 1 egg, beaten
 1/2 sour cream
 1/3 milk
 100g butter, melted
 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Method :
1. Preheat oven to 200C. 
2. Line a 8-cup muffin pan with large paper muffin cases.
3. Sift flour into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar. 
4. Whisk together egg, sour cream, milk and melted butter, add to flour mixture and stir until just combined (don't over-mix). Cently fold in the rapberries.
5. Spoon the mixture evenly into the muffin cases and bake for 25 -30 minutes, until golden and just firm in the centre.

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Raspberry muffin
2. Corn fritter
3. Milk jelly with nata de coco
4. Carrot sticks
5. Kiwi fruit for recess

My eldest son had similar lunch as his little brother, but he had watermelon cuts for recess instead.

Sushi Sandwich Bento

Sushi or pinwheel sandwich is so pretty and easy to make. This time I put ham and cheese filling. But you can use any ingredients that you want, for example : combination of smoked salmon, cream cheese, and dill or else. 
To make it, all you need to do is flatten the sandwich with rolling pin, put cheese sliced and ham on top, roll it and then cut into three.

Inside the box :
1. Ham and cheese sushi sandwich
2. Octopus and flower sausages (with cheese and black sesame seeds)
3. Corn on the cob
4. Milk jelly with nata de coco
5. Carrot flowers

Beside that, I also provided banana and yogurt for recess.

Sambos and Apple Pies Bento

Pretty simple lunches for the boys. I prepared ham and cheese sandwiches (sambos) with tomato ketchup and lettuce, and I cut them with corrugated knife.
I also prepared homemade apple pies that are very easy to make. You may find the recipe here.

Details as below :

What I prepared for my eldest son :
1. Ham and cheese sambos
2. Homemade apple pie
3. Melon jelly
4. Segmented orange for recess

My little one had the similar lunch as his big brother, but he had banana instead for recess.

Macaroni, Broccoli, and Bacon Loaf

Another yummy recipe for the boys, perfect for school lunch or snack after school. Here I share you the recipe :

Macaroni, Broccoli, and Bacon Loaf

Ingredients :
- 1 layer of store-bought puff pastry, thawed
- 225 gr Macaroni, boiled until al dente 
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small brown onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 200g middle bacon rashers, trimmed, chopped
- 1 bunch of broccoli, boiled and chopped
- 1/2 cup reduced-fat grated tasty cheese
- 1/3 cup self-raising flour
- 5 eggs, lightly beaten
- salt and pepper to taste

Method :
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. 
2. Grease a 6cm-deep, 10cm x 21cm (base) loaf pan. 
3. Line base and sides with puff pastry. Prick it with fork randomly. 
4. Boil macaroni in salty water until al dente. Set aside.
5. Heat oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. 
6. Add onion, garlic and bacon. Cook, stir often, for 4 to 5 minutes until bacon is starting to brown. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool.
7. Add bacon mixture, chopped broccoli, cheese, flour and egg to macaroni. 
8. Season, and mix until well combined. 
9. Pour into prepared pan. 
10. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until golden and firm. 
11. Cool in pan for 15 minutes.
12. Transfer loaf to a chopping board and  slice.
13. Serve it with tomato ketchup or sweet chili sauce.

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Macaroni, broccoli, and bacon loaf with sweet chili sauce
2. Homemade apple pie
3. Honey dew jelly
4. Rockmelon cuts for recess

A similar lunch for my youngest son, but he preferred tomato ketcup for the loaf instead.

Non Sandwich Bento

Kids need variety. I often try some new recipes and this time I made Kue Pukis (Indonesian coconut milk cake) and Chicken Ragout Pastry. 

Here I share the Chicken Ragout Pastry recipe :

Ingredients:

2 pcs store bought puff pastry, thawed

For filling

1 onion, chopped

125 g chicken, cubed

150 g carrots, boiled and cubed

150 g potatoes, boiled and cubed

50 g peas

125 ml milk

75 g flour

200 ml chicken stock

1 1/2 tbsp nutmeg

1 1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

30 g Chinese celery

1/2 cup oil

Directions:

For filling

1. Heat oil over medium heat. 

2. Stir-fry onion until translucent, about 3 minutes.

3. Add chicken pieces, cook for about 3 more minutes.

4. Combine carrot, potatoes and peas into the wok. 

5. Continue cooking until all ingredients are well distributed, about 2 minutes.

6. Season with nutmeg, pepper and salt.

7. Add chopped celery and mix well.

8. Add flour and stir continuously for 5 minutes.

9. Pour milk and chicken stock into the wok. 

10. Let simmer for 5 minutes, till the mixture thickens, stirring a couple of times to ensure even cooking.

11. Turn off heat and let cool.

For wrapper

1. Cut 1 piece of puff pastry into 4 square. 

2. Take one square, then put a heap spoon of filling in the corner.

3. Then fold the square into triangular shaped

4. Crimp the edges or press the edges with fork until sealed.

5. Repeat for all the puff pastry

Bake it 180C for about 30 minutes until it turns brown.

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Chicken ragout pastry
2. Kue Pukis
3. Grapes jelly
4. Carrot sticks
5. Pineapple cuts for recess

My youngest son had similar lunch with his brother, but he had segmented orange instead for recess.

I use Easy Lunchbox, you may find it here :

Healthy Wraps Bento

I saw chia wraps at the Supermarket and thought it would be perfect for the boys' lunches. They love their wraps. I prepared shredded chicken, shredded carrots, lettuce, ham, cheese, BBQ sauce and mayo filling.

Details are below :

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Chicken chia wraps
2. Corn on the cob
3. Tamagoyaki (egg rolled)
4. Cheese sticks
5. Yogurt for recess

My eldest son had similar lunch to his little brother, but he had rockmelon cuts for recess instead.

Monkeys Bento

Celebrating the year of Monkey in 2016, I prepared these cute monkeys bento for my boys. To make the monkey, I used pepperoni, cheese, breadcrust, nori, and red apple skin.

Details as below :

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Ham and cheese sandwich with "monkey" on top
2. Fried pork wontons and lettuce leaf for baran/divider
3. Corn on the cob
4. Grape jelly
5. Apple checker for recess

My eldest son had a similar menu with his little brother, but he had orange cuts for recess instead.

"Happy Chinese New Year to you!! 

Wishing you and your family a good health, lots of happiness and success throughout the year".

Back to School 2016

The boys are so excited for their first day of school in 2016. My eldest son goes to year 5 and my youngest son goes to year 2. They can't wait to see their friends again!
To make this day even special, I prepared these bento for them.

For my eldest son, I prepared :

1. Ham and cheese mini sandwich

2. Hard boiled egg with salt & pepper (decorated with cheese, carrot, and nori)

3. Cheese pillow puff with cheese and "Year 5" writing (made of carrot) on it

4. Corn on the cob

5. Lettuce leaves

6. Rockmelon cuts for recess

My youngest son had similar lunches, with "year 2" writing on the cheese pillow puff.

Bento tools I used for this post :

                

Chicken Karaage Bento

Another holiday activity with my boys, this time we assembled a meal in the bento box to share together. I've shared the Okonomiyaki recipe in my last post. I made few extras at that time then I froze them (without the topping) and took them out whenever I needed.

So this time, I share another yummy recipe :

Chicken Karaage 

Ingredients:
450 gr boneless and skinless chicken breasts/chicken thighs (cut into small pieces)
3 cm fresh ginger (peeled and pounded with a mortar and pestle to extract 1 tablespoons of ginger juice)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons sake
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)
Corn starch to coat the chicken
Oil for deep frying

Method:
1. Use paper towels to pat dry the chicken pieces and transfer to a bowl.
2. Add in sake, ginger juice, soy sauce, sesame oil (optional) and marinate for 30 minutes. 
3. Transfer the chicken pieces out of the marinate and coat them evenly with corn starch. Shake off excess.
4. Deep-fry in oil for two times. 
5. Heat up a wok/pot of cooking oil until it is hot enough for frying. 
6. Drop the chicken pieces into the oil and quickly deep fry them until they float. 7. Transfer them out onto a plate and wait for a couple of minutes. 
8. Put the chicken back into the oil and deep-fry until golden brown and crunchy. 
9. Dish out to a plate or bowl lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil. 10. Ready to serve

This bento box consists of :
1. White steamed rice with sprinkles of black sesame seed
2. Chicken karaage
3. Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake) with katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) and Japanese mayonaise (Kewpie) on top.
4. Pickled red ginger
5. Watermelon cuts

I used these foodpicks in this post :