The Other Bobinsky Bento (Coraline Bento) w/Popcorn Flour

I'll be honest - the mouse is much better for this bento since I didn't use so much nori. But I also feel that the last of the seasoned nori that I used gave a nice "tattered" and faded look to the otherwise pristine Other Bobinsky. I added strawberries sprinkled with stevia instead of sugar because it represents a substitute or something that's not quite "right" when you really look at it. I also had placed some Indian potato burgers in this bento with homemade popcorn flour. I felt that it gave a great circus-type feel here and I was so glad that I did.

For this - all you need to do is air-pop some popcorn (to make it fat-free) and place it in a coffee grinder if you want super-fine granules. I used a blender to make it fluffier, and you can use this in just about any recipe!

Other Bobinsky Bento Ingredients:

Strawberries

Stevia

Corn Tortillas

Seasoned Nori

Popcorn

Indian Potato Burgers

Collard Greens

Crinkle-Cut Carrots

Enjoy!



Hungry? Why Not Zoidberg? Bento

Yes, this is "that" meme, I like doing bentos and foods on memes sometimes - they're fun for me. This was a really simple bento with gorgeous yellow pepper slices, crinkle-cut carrots and a strawberry and peanut butter sandwich surrounded by sushi grass. On top I have a nice tortilla which I colored and cut out for a simplified Zoidberg yesterday morning.

Do you mind memes? Or do you think they've just all become washed out once they've become common?

Zoidberg Bento Ingredients:

Corn Tortilla

Crinkle-Cut Carrots

Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jam

Whole Wheat Bread

Yellow Bell Pepper

Seasoned Nori

Enjoy!

Dexter's Laboratory Bento

This bento was a super easy "throw into the container" bentothat I made. I decided to make it simple and it was so delicious! I made some more cheesy chickpea sauce over the weekend and poured it over some homemade farfalle noodles, then cut up some seitan sausages I made, used some masa sheets and decorated it with vegetables.

Dexter's Laboratory Bento Ingredients:
Broccoli
Radishes
Carrots
Tomatoes
Chickpea Mac
Masa Sheets
Mini Peppers
Seitan Sausage
Nori

Enjoy - and have a happy Sunday!

Amazing, Self-Icing Mini-Cinnamon Rolls (Yeast-Free, Low-Fat, Low-Sugar, Simple)

One morning I had a hankering for some fierce baking, and I had made some "marshmallow fluff" that was really more of a nice fat-free buttercream since I purposefully thickened it. I decided to make some cinnamon rolls but I've had an aversion to yeast lately so that was out of the question. No, I needed something quick that I could have within the hour - and so I just used a little bit of baking powder, elbow grease and a dash of sugar and spice (literally) until I was done!

(Cinnamon Roll Dough Ingredients)

• 2 cups of Whole White Wheat
• 1 tsp of Raw Sugar
• 1/2 tsp of Baking Powder
• A Pinch of Salt
• Vanilla Non-Dairy Milk to mix
• 1 tbl of Veggie Fat or Applesauce

(Cinnamon Roll Dough Directions)

• Combine your dry, then slowly add in your milk until it only slightly forms into a dough, then knead into a soft but elastic dough.
• Roll into a ball then cut in half. Roll each half thinly.
• allow to rest and then place on a liberal sprinkling of cinnamon-sugar with some vegan margarine.
• Afterwards, place some cold(preferably homemade) vanilla frosting on top and spread liberally.
• Let it chill in the fridge for 15 minutes then bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until it is finally well-baked.
• Let cool until only slightly warm then serve.(I like to add a little extra frosting, too!).
• Enjoy!

Chorizo Hot Pockets for Mum (Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free)

Its obvious that only one came out well but I made these for my mother and she loved them! These are seriously great for any holiday and they are gluten-free so that also means the dough is easier to mix up. If you want them to be more like an Easter or Christmas-pocket/bun you could easily color the dough white with others or steam them. And these are a great, hand-held substitute for musubi for those that don't like rice. These are fried - but feel free to wrap them in banana leaves or something similar to steam or freeze them.

(Chorizo Pockets Dough Ingredients)

• 2 cups of Masa<
• 1/2 tsp of Salt
• 1/4 tsp of Cumin
• Water to mix

For this I just stuffed each one full of roasted (and chopped) garlic and some homemade soyrizo. If you've ever seen a pupusa being made, its exactly like that.

(Chorizo Pockets Dough Directions)

• Just take a handful of dough and slowly slap it back and forth in your hands until flat, fill long-ways, then fold the sides over, pinch and shape into oblong shapes.
• Let it dry for about 5 minutes then write your favorite short message on it. Then steam, bake or lightly fry. I fried mine for about 20 seconds on each side (the side with the message only got about 10 seconds or until everything was browned nicely).
• Bake them for a few minutes in the oven at 450 degrees. I simply served with some minced onions and some nice lettuce.
• Enjoy!

Other Pocket Filling Ideas:

• Peanut Butter and Jelly
• Streusal
• Berry Filling
• Roasted and Pulled Seitan
• A Full Sandwich
• Small Children (...just kidding!)

Ed, Edd and Eddy Bento

Its a Plan sandwich! I guess that's what happens when Jonny isn't around, but hey - what can you do? This is a simple peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole-wheat bread with celery sticks, spinach, a mini yellow pepper and a plum. Its been a while since I've made something non-Coraline, but it is equally as wonderful.

Plank Sandwich Bento Ingredients:
Peanut Butter and Jelly
Whole Wheat Bread
Spinach
Celery
Purple Plum
Mini Yellow Pepper

Enjoy!

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake (Low-Fat, Low-Sugar)

This is a really simple raw vegan carrot cupcake. I just used the leftover pulp from the juicer and added a few more ingredients, popped it in a silicone cupcake cup and dehydrated for about five hours or so. Its really tasty and nutritious, plus it doesn't require much sugar or work. I would say that this would be a great breakfast treat for Mother's Day.

(Raw Vegan Carrot Cupcakes Ingredients)

• 1/2 cup of Mixed Carrot and Sweet Potato Pulp
• 1 cup of Raw Oat Flour
• 1 tsp Virgin Coconut Oil
• 1/4 cup of Minced Walnuts
• A few tsp of Chopped Golden Raisins(optional)
• A mix of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cardamom and Allspice
• Raw Stevia or Sugar to taste

(Directions)

• Mix the ingredients as you like and pile into your cupcake molds.
• Then, dehydrate at 150 for about five to eight hours or until it has dried to your liking but still contains moisture.
• Top with a nice Cashew Cream Cheese or enjoy plain.
• Enjoy!

The Other Father Bento (Coraline Bento)

When I was making this bento I felt very devilish, and since I had been hinting at making some raw vegan carrot cake this was the result. He looked so sad and I even felt a little bit like the Other Mother what with constructing him from the garden veggies. In this bento I also went ahead and made some zucchini presents that are shaped like boxes, filled with tomato and garlic and stuck together with broccoli sprigs with a carrot slice tag. In it are plenty of other green veggies, golden raisins, blueberries and lots of other veggies.

I somehow felt complete when I stuck the raisins and his frown on. The nose was pretty fun too!

Do you like to bake in the kitchen? Or are you more of a "get it ready-made and go" type of person? Personally I prefer to bake and know what's going into my food...plus its fun to play with it before!



The Other Father Bento Ingredients:

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

Zucchini

Tomatoes

Carrots

Sweet Potato

Broccoli

Celery

Spinach

Gold Raisins

Raw Nori

Blueberries

Orange Mini-Bell Pepper 

Enjoy!



Product Review: Rival 1.5-Cup Mini Chopper MC-67BL

Photo courtesy of http://www.walmart.com/

Sleek, cute and most definitely mini - this would be perfect for a small kitchen or a household that has small children. The entire mini-chopper has only five parts; the mechanical base, the container, the blade, and the top. Like most food choppers, it has a clear top with opposite ridges and an easy to control base that makes it simple to process or chop your food. It also holds only a small quantity of food, so after you snap your base on (it won't start otherwise) - it is very unlikely for anything the spill if it should fall. I mostly use this for egg sheets and hummus, but it never gets a proper blend  unless it is almost to the brim and you hold the button for long enough. If you're looking to make some mushroom balls or something similar this is great for you because it can easily leave a chunky texture if you only pulse a few times - its very easy to control because of its one button.

Price I Paid: $2.00

Suggested Price from Sellers : $2.84

The Cons:
There are a few problems with this mini chopper. The hardest part for me being the top - which has the amazing ability to lock and will only start once you hear a nice "click!" after sliding its sleek ridge underneath the machine's black nook. It is a bit hard to master at times, as sometimes the ridge will get past the nook and slide into place, but the click won't happen. At other times, it may be that the larger and shorter ridge won't be in the correct position or the top won't grip onto its container correctly. The last time I made guacamole - it took me about five minutes for each component to be married into the dish because the top would keep snapping the wrong way. You really have to make sure that your two little edges (seen in the front and back of the photo) facing the correct way or else it will take you forever to get  have solid food already in there it is very easy for it to get stuck underneath and jam the food processor. Its a really gross process to get it out so that you can face the blade the correct way and not allow it to get stuck with food. You may want to initiate the processing with a few dry practice runs so that everything is okay, then add your food in small batches.

The second issue is quantity - although it says that it should be able to contain about 1.5 cups of food, it is safer to place only about 3/4-1 cups of food within the dish. If you do not want a paste, you do still have to turn the food around a bit more, even if you are using a small quantity. This is normally shared with other brands of cheaper food processors - as well as the fact that water can easily mess with the function of the chopper. Although it is a coated base with a long spool in the middle to place itself on top of the machine, it still has a tendency to leak fluid that has not touched anywhere near the whole, so you need to be more careful or add less liquid. You may find that you have to scrub a ring (no matter how clean it is) from the middle where the blade goes, this may be due to constant wear and tear or overheating due to the quantities I first used. It is still fine at this time.

The Pros:
The size of this food chopper is about the size of one of my fists, making it a very small chopper. This means that it can be easily stored and the pieces are also similar to most other basic choppers - blade, top, container and electronic base. I've also (accidentally) dropped this a few times and it is very sturdy, I have had no cracks in the past five months that I have had this and it is very easy to clean. It is also see-through so you can see most of your mistakes easily despite the size and its easy to carry from room to room. "Meaty" products such as spongey vegetables, mushrooms and nuts go perfectly with the size of this processor and are beautifully turned into powders, sauces and much more - it goes wherever your imagination takes you.

It has only one blade and one button so using it and cleaning up afterwards are a breeze. Soaking in a bleach or vinegar solution afterwards will keep it extra clean and beautiful.


Product Summary: Overall, with the given price this is an okay processor - but don't expect to be making fantastic egg sheets or giant quiches anytime. This is a great processor for single-serving to double-serving foods but it leaks with too much liquid from time to time while the ring inside is very hard to scrub away. This is very simple and pretty since you can look through it, but its size makes it a bit hard to get to every little bit of food when you're processing so this is not good with especially big hands or it most definitely isn't safe for children as it is a food processor where things often get stuck. If I was given the choice to buy this again or given this knowledge beforehand, I probably would save my money and buy a slightly bigger food processor - but that isn't to say that I don't enjoy its usefulness when I want to make a few veggie burgers and can't be bothered to pull something big and heavy out that takes up a lot of space.

I would not recommend this product for a full-time job and I would barely recommend it for any other kitchen activities.

I was not contacted by the Rival Company to do this post - this is of my own, free and unpaid time.

What else would you like me to review? Did you enjoy this one?

Ice King Bento (Adventure Time)

Its been a while since I've done a bento (especially a non-Coraline one), eh? I feel that this bento is 100% Adventure Time - the colors just scream it even if there wasn't a penguin and the Ice King in it. For this I made a large masa sheet underneath the Ice King onigiri and used a bit of lightly fried mashed potatoes for the penguin wings. Underneath all of that is some delicious Japanese seitan stew with lots of mirin.

Do you like to watch Adventure Time?

Ice King Bento Ingredients:

Nori

Potatoes

Seitan Stew

Broccoli

Masa Sheets

Blue Onigiri

Red, Orange and Yellow Bell Peppers

Lettuce Wraps

Zucchini Fries

Radishes

Vegan Nachos Deluxe for Cinco De Mayo (Carne Asada Chiccarones, Dandelion Guacamole, Cheesy Chickpea Nacho Cheese, Refried Beans - Low-Fat, Low-Sodium)

These nachos are so amazingly good - the seitan that I used is slow-cooked for about an hour in a fiery Seitan Asada broth then allowed to marinate in it for about 10 hours before finally being chopped up, lightly fried then lightly covered in the broth. Pair it with some freshly chopped dandelion greens straight from my mini-garden, chunky guacamole and lacto-fermented chickpeas with salsa, this is a sure winner. Underneath are even slower cooked refried beans, caramelized onions and some blue-corn chips.

My randomly chopped up and lightly fried seitan - so good.

(Seitan Asada Ingredients)

• 1 cup of Vital Wheat Gluten (Bob's Red Mill)
• 1/2 tsp of Salt
• A sprinkle of Mrs. Dash Seasoning and Cumin
• 3 tbl of Stewed Chickpea Broth
• Garlic Powder and Cumin to taste

(Cooking Broth Ingredients)

• 6-8 cups of Water
• 3 tbl of Mrs. Dash Fiesta Seasoning
• 1 Large Sliced Onion
• A handful of Dry Red Chillies
• 1 tsp of White Vinegar
• 1 tsp of Raw Sugar
• Salt to Taste

(Seitan Asada Directions)

• Boil your broth ingredients.
• Mix seitan ingredients, then knead for about 50 times.
• Boil seitan in the broth for about an hour.Place a pot top on and cook until it floats to the top. Turn off the heat with the top on and let it marinate for a few hours.
• Then, cut into pieces (the smaller the crispier) and fry lightly for about ten minutes, flipping ever so often.
• Afterwards put about 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of the broth over it and cook on low until everything has cooked through.
• Coat in your preferred amount of garlic powder and cumin, then set aside.

The above mentioned components with my Fry Bread (ignore the picture if you love me).

(Guacamole Recipe-just combine everything)

• 1/6 cup of Tender Dandelion Greens (Chiffonade)
• 3 large Minced Garlic Cloves
• 1/4 large Chopped Red Onion
• Juice of 1/2 Lime
• 2 Large Diced Avocadoes
• 1 Large Diced Tomato

(Refried Beans Ingredients)

• About 1-2 cups of Beans
• 1 cup of Sliced White Onion
• 1 Large Sliced Onion
• 1 tsp of Cumin
• Enough Water to cover the beans

(Refried Beans Directions)

• I didn't add salt to mine, but cook your beans until they are creamy (about 8 to 12 hours)and then mash into the crockpot that you've cooked them in.
• Let them cook a bit more in their own liquid and get started on your nacho cheese.

(Chickpea Nacho Cheese Ingredients)

• About 2 cups of Stewed Chickpeas with Broth (put it in fridge to congeal)
• 2 Vegan Probiotic Capsules (or a bit of Nutritional Yeast)
• 1 Large Sliced Onion
• 3 tsp of Garlic Powder
• 1/2 jar of Favorite Salsa

(Nacho Cheese Directions)

• Mix your chickpeas and broth with the powder in the capsules and then let ferment for about 2 hours in the window light.
• Add your garlic powder and salsa, then blend until smooth and creamy, let that sit for about another hour.
• Make any last adjustments, then serve with the enjoy!

Star Wars Peanut Butter Balls (May The 4th Be With You!)

I made these yesterday and everyone loved them - these are really simple, quick to make and great for kids to handle for a number of reasons. For one thing, they don't melt easily and don't need heat, they are easy to simply roll and mix by hand and you can just eat them one at a time! You can sub any type of nut butter or even some vegan modeling chocolate for this, but anything moldable is what you want. A little more information on May the 4th can be found here.

Peanut Butter Balls Recipe:

1/2 cup of Peanut Butter

About 1/4+ cup of Confectioner's Sugar

1/4 tsp of Vanilla Extract

Pandan Extract for Yoda

Simply mix your sugar and nut butter together and roll into even sized balls - about one tablespoon each. Once you feel that you have enough, add some pandan extract if you want to make some yoda balls/buckeyes.  Mix until you feel that its homogenized enough or until you get tired (little hands are great for when this happens!) and then shape into balls but leave a little bit of the mixture in the bowl.

Roll your main ball with a tablespoon of the peanut butter mixture, then make two smaller, even-sized balls next to each one. Pinch into leaf shapes then take a toothpick and make the ear slots, place underneath the ball and then take care of your other two characters.

Chewbacca is most definitely the easiest - take a toothpick or fork and scrape against the outside for his hair as much as you want, then make a few strokes around his head. For Princess Leia you can use some vegan royal icing, peanut butter cups or maybe even some mini cinnamon rolls.

Want them to be a bit more exciting? Try out my vegan white chocolate recipe for the eyes and May the 4th be with you!  

Vegan Sherbet, Ice Cream Floats and Silk Fruit & Protein (Low-fat, raw-vegan option, simple)

So cool, frothy and delicious - only lightly sweet but bursting with mango and ginger flavor. The ginger ale just slightly foams over the top and then slides slowly down the glass. This is so simple and really only takes about a day to make, which is pretty good considering that this doesn't require an ice cream machine. The main recipe also has a lot less fat but is more like a slushy/boba tea type of thing, but if you want it to be creamier or raw vegan then feel free to use some coconut milk. The best part of this is that it makes use of the yummy Silk Fruit & Protein drink (Mango and Peach)

(Soy-Based, Low-Fat Recipe)

• 1/2 cup of Mango Juice & Silk Fruit & Protein
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• 1/4 cup of Sugar (add more if you wish)
• 1 tsp of Coconut Oil

(Raw Vegan Recipe)

• 2 cups of Whole Coconut Milk
• 1 cup of Mango Juice
• 1/4 cup of Raw Sugar or Agave Nectar

(Directions)

• Simply mix your ingredients together then place in the freezer or ice cream machine.
• Let it stay in the freezer for about two and a half hours or until the outside has started to freeze, then break apart with a silicone spatula and keep bringing the pieces into the middle. Do this every couple of hours for about three to five times or until you are satisfied.
• Let freeze until scoopable then serve in a nice ginger-ale fruit with lime or all by itself!
• Enjoy!