A lovely woman I chat with at my son's school sooooooooo needs help managing her eating - her major health problem is diabetes. She has a granddaughter who is eating poorly and getting chunky. I am trying to spread the bento joy but so many can't imagine it doing them any good even though they see daily what it does for me. SOOOOOOOOO I am on the look out for diabetics and preteen/teen making bentos (not mom doing it - I am also big on getting kids to do their own cooking - never too soon for life skills!). Thanks in advance!

I really really love eating plain boring old boiled tofu, and I'd like to incorporate it into my bentos. However, when I tried to, by lunch time it had gone all gross and sour and I ended up having to chuck it away T_T Does tofu just not keep that well, or was I doing something wrong? If I want to bring tofu to school in my bento I usually end up having to fry it, which I hate, because it just loses that nice texture >.< Does anyone have suggestions?

hey everyone, I've run into the problem when making apple bunnies or just plain sliced apples that I always have way too many slices left over from cutting the big apple up... any suggestions on how to keep them fresh for future use? I am guessing that freezing is not an option as I think the fruit would get pretty mushy upon defrosting. I've tried soaking them in lemon juice and then keeping them in the fridge, but it doesn't seem to help much. I've also tried letting them sit in the fridge in an juice-water bath, but then the apples become very soggy and unappetizing.

Hi y'all! Just a quick question with some background. My hubby works out in the field and doesnt have a way to keep his food warm or have a place to warm it up. He's getting a bit bored of just sandwiches so I'm planning on making him some bento-inspired lunches but am running low on ideas of foods that are good to eat even when they're cold. For my lunches its not a biggie as I'm in the office and can eat anything, but he's a bit more picky when it comes to his meals. Does any one have any ideas on some cold bento-inspired lunches? Thanks!!!

I spend long hours at Uni every day (as many of us do!), and have to bring extra food so that late-afternoon sugar-craving doesn't send me down the hall to the vending machine. Any suggestions for healthy snacks that people bring in to work in addition to their actual lunch? I tend to stick with the basics of fruit and granola bars, but they really aren't all that filling! :) -g.

If I can think of one single question whose answer would help me be a better bentoist, it's how long bento ingredients (carrots, rice balls, veggie stir fry - anything) can be expected to sit in the fridge and still come out not only nontoxic but tasty. For instance, I stir-fried a little bok choy for bentos later this week this evening - but will it still taste good on Monday? On Thursday? Does anyone have any good guidelines?

(or do you plan them at all?) I've just posted a new planning form: The Weekly Menu Planner with Bento Lunch Box. I've been working on the layout and testing it out for the past few weeks, and I've found it quite useful, though more complicated perhaps than the original Weekly Bento Planner. I'm curious though - do you plan your bentos? If so, what do you use? What do you take account of in your plans?