Bento Crazy! Healthy and Easy School Snacks and Lunches

2 Tier Bento Box

Last year when Corinne was in Kindergarten I used this adroable Bento Sidecar for her daily snack.

Often people think you can't fit much in there , but I was able to pack most kinds of snacks with plenty of room. Some boxes are two tier, like this one. One is a little taller than the other, and they fit together or can be used seperately.

Using these containers saved us from a lot of 'disposable' waste. One day while visiting the class at snack time I saw the amount of garbage that was produced by the children's snacks. Juice boxes, returnable plastic bottles, lot's of individual chips packets, etc!

Inside I use silicone muffin cups. I cut the height down to fit the height of the bento. You can get silicone muffin cups at Michael's, Target, specialty cooking stores and I even got a few packs at the Target Dollar Spot last year! I fit three cups in each box. I filled the three cups with all kind of things for a healthy snack.

Some things that I serve are:


Grape Tomatoes
Black Olives
Green peppers cut up
Mayo Cup of Blue Cheese Dressing for dipping
Turkey Pepperoni
Roast Beef (cold cuts) Rolled up
Mini Hot Dogs w/ small party size potato rolls*
(Hillshire Farm or Nathan's Mini Little Smokies or Hot Dogs)
Balogna cut into small circles
Orange Slices
Kiwi Slices
Strawberries
Blueberries
Rasins
Any kind of small cookie or cracker,
(I like Paul Newman's Chocolate Chip cookies)
Chocolate Kisses


*Corinne's Snack time is late in the day and the snack bags were not refrigerated.
She likes her dairy products very cold, like yogurt or cheese, so I serve snacks like that as after school snacks. Also the school had a no peanut rule so I did not use any nut products.

But there are so many things you can pack in a Bento. It's a great way to encourage kids to have the coolest (aka healthiest and most 'green') snack in the class!


Here are some cute Bentos and some good Bento Food Idea sites/blogs to get you going!

Bento Crazy Shop & Bento Crazy Blog
http://bentocrazy.ecrater.com
http://bentocrazy.com

What's for Lunch at our House

http://bentolunch.blogspot.com

Crock Pot Spinach Lasagna

Crock Pot Spinach Lasagna

1 Box Lasagna Pasta 
2 C of your favorite Italian Sauce
8 0z bag Shredded Mozzarella {save 3 heaping spoons}
15 oz container of Ricotta or cottage cheese, use to taste
fresh spinach {save a few leaves}
Cooking spray 
½ cup water 

Spray crock pot with cooking spray for easy clean up 
Place few spoons of sauce to cover bottom of pan

• Assemble in layers as: 
  Place uncooked pasta on bottom of pan
  Spoon sauce a top the pasta 
  Spoon ricotta/cottage cheese a top the sauce
  Sprinkle with mozzarella
  Cover with a generous amount of fresh spinach
  Dot sparingly with sauce
  Top with uncooked pasta

Repeat the layering process 
Top off with saved cheese and the reserved leaves
Pour water around perimeter 
Cover and cook on low until past is tender, about 1  1/2 to 2  1/2 hours.

{Crock pot cooking times vary check periodically the first time you make it for your pot's time frame} 

This is a great recipe because it is so easy and can be varied just the way you like it. Use as much or as little of the ingredients that you like. I used low fat cheeses and made mine pretty saucy. I prefer only a little Ricotta cheese so I used less than half of a small container. I also pinch the stems of the spinach. I used Barilla no-cook Lasagna but you can use regular, just don't pre-cook it! You could add anything to this, mushrooms, sausage, olives, etc.  So customize yours just the way you like it. 

You'll also want to determine your cooking time too. I put mine on LOW and for about 3 hours later because we were out. But I would say about 90 minutes may be enough. Mine came out a little mushy but the taste was great!

A good go-to meal for and easy meal that doesn't have to slow cook all day!

Download this recipe card and blank on 4shared

or Box.net

These cards were made with 'Saxon's Holiday Kitchen'
and ' In My Kitchen' courtesy of Saxon Holt @ Scrapbook Graphics
Font used is 'Lithos Pro'

Papers from Holiday Kitchen

Pasta from In My Kitchen

The Easiest Crockpot BBQ Pulled Pork

The Easiest Barbequed Pulled Pork 

2 1/2 lbs pork roast
1 14-oz bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
1 medium onion, chopped, fresh or frozen

Place the pork roast in the slow cooker.
Cover; cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours or on High for 5 to 6 hours.
Remove the pork roast from the stoneware, and pull the meat into shredded pieces.
Pour out any liquid in the stoneware, and combine pork with (*almost) all the BBQ sauce in the slow cooker. Cook on High for 2 hours. Serve the barbecue pork in a pile or on hamburger buns or hard rolls.  *Serve a bit of extra BBQ sauce on the side if you like.

Cook Times:
10 - 12 hours on LOW
5 - 6 hours on HIGH

Slow Cookers:
4 - 4.5 Quarts
5 - 5.5 Quarts

*I added a dash of liquid smoke and some smokey paprika to mine in the last two hours.

Download this recipe card and blank on 4shared

or on Box.net

These cards were made with 'Little Jake'
courtesy of Kathryn Balint ~ KB & Friends
Font used is 'Onyx'

The Little Jake Collection by Kathryn Balint
is a mix of kits containing gorgeous artisan papers and elements for use in vintage, heritage or even modern-day layouts.  

Also at KB's CropMom, on-line digital scrapbooking.

Italian Spinach & Sausage Skillet

Hot Italian Turkey Sausage or
sausage-style soy-protein crumbles
Sliced fresh mushrooms
coarsely chopped onion (1 medium)
Bow-tie (farfalle) pasta
2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves
Shredded mozzarella or Parmesan cheese
1 can Progresso Light Italian-style vegetable soup

Cook sausage, mushrooms and onion over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
Stir in soup. Cover; heat to boiling. Stir in pasta; reduce heat to medium-low.
Cover; simmer 10 minutes. Add spinach; cook uncovered 3 to 5 minutes,
stirring occasionally, until spinach is hot and just begins to wilt. Sprinkle with cheese.

Download this recipe card and blank 4shared

or Box.net




These cards were made with 'Jacqueline's Old World Page Set'
courtesy of Jacqueline Carney-Scrapbook Elements

Light Cherry Cheesecake

Light Cherry Cheesecake
by Martha Stewart
www.marthastewart.com/recipe/light-cherry-cheesecake

* nonstick cooking spray
* 8 graham crackers (3-by-5 inch)
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, such as safflower
* 3 cups low-fat (1%) cottage cheese
* 8 ounces reduced-fat bar cream cheese, room temperature
* 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
* 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
* 4 large eggs
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 bags (12 ounces each) frozen cherries


1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with rack set in lower third. Assemble a 9-inch springform
pan with the rimmed side of the pan facing down. Coat pan with cooking spray; line side
with a long strip of waxed or parchment paper.

2. In a food processor, grind graham crackers until fine crumbs form. Add oil, and pulse
to moisten. Transfer crumbs to prepared pan, and press firmly into the bottom.
Place pan on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until crust is lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, wipe bowl and blade of food processor. Blend cottage cheese and cream
cheese until very smooth and glossy, scraping down bowl as necessary, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add 3/4 cup sugar, sour cream, eggs, flour, vanilla, and salt; blend just until filling is smooth.

4. Pour filling onto crust (crust can be hot or warm). Bake until barely set in center,
about 1 hour. Turn oven off; let cake cool in oven 1 hour. Transfer to a wire rack, and let
cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.

5. Make topping: In a large skillet, combine cherries and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.
Boil over high heat until liquid is thick and syrupy,
10 to 15 minutes. Cool, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.

6. To serve, unmold cheesecake (peel off and discard paper).
Transfer to a serving platter; top with cherry topping.

Download this recipe card and blank 4shared
If that link should expire, please try this, 4shared

or Box.net


These cards were made with 'Oh My! Cherry Pie'
courtesy of Kay Eflin available at e-scapeandscrap.net,
AND the digital kit comes with Kay's Cherry Pie printable recipe card!



Thanks Kay!

Slow Cooking and Vitamin Loss

After a discussion about slow cooking and the topic of vitamin loss form overcooking I thought I'd post about it.

I don't always make the whole meal in there. I make the entree in there and serve steamed veg, etc on the side, etc.

Boiling the veggies and draining that water down the sink causes lots of nutrients to be lost, but if you are making a soup or stew doing the same method you are getting those minerals/vitamins with every bite! Steaming is a better option than boiling and stir-frying with non-stick cooking spray or a little olive oil.

Some vegetables actually need to be cooked slightly for you to get the most benefit from them-like tomatoes. The lycopene in them that is so beneficial isn't absorbed much unless the tomato has been heated slightly. Some veggies are harder to digest when raw-like broccoli. If you are sensitive to gas/bloat, you may want to cook it.

When I slow cook, I generally add stuff as I go, if I am home. And some things like carrots, even fresh green beans take a long time to cook in the slow cooker, so they don't get mushy.

Tuscan Potatoes & Peppers

1 pound uncooked red potatoes, scrubbed and thinly sliced
1 medium yellow pepper, cut into thin strips
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp rosemary, fresh, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper


Heat oven or outdoor grill. Tear off four 12-inch long pieces of aluminum foil.
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients until mixed and coated.
Spread about 1 1/2 cups of vegetable mixture in a fairly even layer near 1 end of each piece of foil. Fold foil over to form packets; fold edges in to form a tight seal.
Grill packets, turning a few times, until potatoes are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Or, add chicken breasts and cover with foil.

Download this Recipe Card & a blank for your own 'Tuscan' recipe

on 4shared

or Box.net









These cards were made with digital graphics courtesy of Jacqueline Carney's Designs at Scrapbook Elements
 




HERE


*Yellow Pepper courtesy Saxon Holt
*Rosemary courtesy Becky Troxel