Valentine's Day Bento Box

I love making Bento Boxes for special occasions. This idea came to me the other day as a unique kid's lunch idea for Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Day Bento Box

1. Tint sushi rice (recipe follows) blue with food coloring. Fill Bento Box with rice.

2. Find a simple Cupid drawing online or sketch one and cut it out to use as a pattern. Place the pattern on bologna and cut out his body and face. I cut out the legs separately to give Cupid a bit more pizazz.

3. Cut Cupid's hair out of Cheddar cheese and his wings and diaper out of Provolone cheese.

4. Create Cupid's mouth using a red pepper. Use a straw to punch out tiny cheese circles for his eyes and use black sesame seeds for his pupils or seaweed, which is what I used for his nose.

5. Use a mini heart-shaped cookie cutter to create the hearts on the Gouda cheese and arrange them in the box.

6. Slice a sugar snap pea pod into strips and make the bow and use a red pepper and Cheddar cheese for his arrow.

7. A red pepper strip makes a great banner and Spaghettios are what I used to spell "VALENTINE."

Sushi Rice

2 cups short grain rice
2 cups cold water
1/2 rice wine vinegar

Soak rice in a bowl of cold water. With clean hands, gently stir rice until water becomes cloudy. Strain rice in a sieve and set aside in sieve for 30 minutes to drain excess water.

Place rice in a medium pot and add water. Cover and cook over medium-high heat until rice steams, about 5-8 minutes. Turn heat to high and cook for 2 minutes more. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes more, until you hear a crackling sound. Do not lift lid during cooking process. Turn off heat and allow rice to stand covered for 15 minutes.

Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a bamboo paddle or a wide wooden spoon. Cover and let stand another 15 minutes.

Spread rice along the bottom and up the sides of a large non-metallic bowl or platter. Sprinkle vinegar over rice, quickly tossing rice with wooden paddle to incorporate vinegar. Fan rice with a paper fan or piece of cardboard for about 2 minutes. Cover bowl with a clean damp towel until rice cools to room temperature. Prepare sushi as soon as rice cools for maximum results. Do not store rice in the refrigerator as chilled rice loses its stickiness.

Makes about 4 cups

Photo Credit: Jeanne Benedict

Snowman Mashed Potatoes

I made this little snowman today and snapped a shot with my new camera! Here's how to make him:

Snowman Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes (stiff)
Small and large olives
Roasted red pepper (from jar)
Chow mein noodles
Carrot

1. Form mashed potatoes into the balls for the snowman's body using your hands. Stack the snowman balls on the plate you are going to serve him on.

2. Slice a large olive round for the base of his hat and set it on the snowman's head. Slice off the ends of a small olive for his hat and set it on the base.

3. Cut some large olives in half lengthwise. Use a straw to punch out the eyes and buttons. (Tip: after you insert the straw into the olive, blow into it to get the olive circles out.) Apply the eyes and buttons to the snowman.

4. Cut a carrot into a traingle for his nose and stick it into his head.

5. Cut a long roasted red pepper strip into a scarf for the snowman. Pat the pepper dry so it has less chance of staining the mashed potatoes red. Wrap the scarf around the snowman's neck.

6. Insert chow mein noodles into the snowman for his arms and serve!

"Boo" Spaghetti

I made this fun "Boo" Spaghetti for dinner the other day while experimenting for Halloween!

• Cook spaghetti according to package directions, making sure to keep some long noodles intact, as opposed to breaking them to fit into the pot.
  
• Line a cookie sheet with foil. Pull a noodle out and form the word "boo" on the foil; make a few.


• Bake at 350 degrees for 3 to 5 minutes until firm and place your "boos" on top of red sauce on pasta!