December 2009

All the content on this site by month.

Bento box and equipment reviews and information

In this section, I've grouped all of my reviews and 'spotlight' features of bento boxes and related supplies. (Note, this section is a work in progress.)

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Bento contents:

Total calories (approx): 460 (how calories are calculated)

Time needed: 5-10 minutes in the morning (from leftovers of dinner the night before: see recipe for timing of kale dish)

One-pan braised kale with bacon and new potatoes

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I have been trying to incorporate more dark leafy green vegetables into our meals lately, not only for health reasons, but for the taste too. Spinach and Swiss chard are standards for me, but lately I've been playing around a lot with the kale family and cavolo nero, a type of dark leafed, loose cabbage. Kale is a bit tough, so I like to blanch it before stir frying it, adding to soups, and so on.

menuforhopevi.jpgOnce again, Just Bento is proud to offer a great raffle prize for the annual Menu For Hope fund raising event, which will benefit the United Nations World Food Programme.

This year it's really personal: A hand-selected (by me, of course) box of bento boxes and accessories directly from Japan, plus...a signed copy of my upcoming book, The Just Bento Cookbook!

Stewed winter vegetables with kouya dofu (freeze dried tofu)

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Salads and such are fine in the warm months, but now that it's cold outside here in the northern hemisphere, I tend to prefer cooked vegetables. This homey stewed vegetable dish is rather typical of Japanese 'mom's cooking' - seasonal vegetables all cooked together in a dashi based broth. (I know that green beans are not exactly seasonal, but they are added just for the color; use any green vegetable instead.) It does take a while to assemble and cook, but once you have a big potful it lasts for a few days, so it's a great refrigerator stock dish.

I've tried to use 'ordinary', non-exotic vegetables as much as possible, but I did add a little lotus root since it adds visual flair as well as a nice crunchy texture. This is a one-pot meal due to the addition of potatoes for carbs, and meaty-textured kouya dofu or freeze dried tofu (for which you can substitute extra-firm tofu or even chicken pieces) for protein. You can just pack this into a bento box on its own, or accompany it with rice and pickles.

The winner of a copy of The Manga Cookbook is...

..Keanna! Congratulations! I've emailed you, but if you didn't get the email let me know.