Easter is around the corner. Everyone seems to enjoy making the bunny theme bento. Join the crowd! I made a bunny theme bento for this morning. Kids will have their Easter holiday from Thursday and will be back to school on Monday, April 5th. I will fly to Singapore on Thursday with Audrey. Have to do something there and just stay for 1 night only. We will back to Jakarta on Friday afternoon. This will be mom and daughter trip only. Andrew will stay in Jakarta with my husband ;) Today's bunny was made of rice molded by hand and decorated with part of egg white from boiled egg (colored), nori, and crab stick. Inside the box : bunny shapes rice, beef frikadelle, carrot, cucumber, two colors corn, tamagoyaki, cherry tomato, and brussel sprouts with smoked ham.

Don't forget to join Debra's BOMB Challenge at Hapa Bento. Debra is great in making her healthy beautiful bento. And she is kind to arrange the BOMB Challenge every month. So I really encourage every bento maker to participate and have fun together.

I've received an email from Christy Jones last Saturday regarding the Virtual Bento Box Battle at the Japan Society. I have seen some of my bento friends like Megan, Susan Yuen, and Amy entered this event. I on the contrary have never thought to join this event until this morning when I prepared kids' bento. I have been very busy over the weekend, reviewed our interior designs for the new house. That is why I hesitated to join because I didn't have much time to plan anything. Today's bento was boy and girl with kimono from the colored egg sheets. This was the quickest one that I could prepare on Monday morning. Hope this can be included for this event. I've got the yellow wrinkle egg sheet by accident. I just didn't realize that I put the pan too long on the stove and instead of the smooth egg sheet, I got the wrinkle egg sheet. Oh well ... it was great for creating some textures on the kimono :)

For all bento friends, you can still join this event. The entry will be closed on Wednesday, 31 March 2010. So quick ... submit your entry via e-mail. Read carefully on how to enter at Japan Society's website.

Inside the box : flat pork meat balls with carrots, chikuwa stuffed with lady fingers, broccoli, raspberries, and small orange.

For the last 2 days, the kids just took cheese cakes for their break during mid-test. Today, I just made two quick and easy, small portion bento for the kids. Not very brilliant, I was just too lazy and unmotivated to make bento during the mid-test week. The bunnies were cut using various cutters to get a shape of bunny. The new B.O.M.B Challenge is bunny themed bento. Don't forget to participate, just read the rules and how to submit your bunny bento at Hapa Bento. Have fun this weekend to all of you!!

Audrey's Bento (Top) : rice, bunny ham, minced pork meat mixed with corn and spring onion in teriyaki sauce, steamed broccoli, edamame, sweet potatoes, green bean, strawberry, baby corns, and flower shapes carrots.

Andrew's Bento (Bottom) : rice, bunny ham, cheese rolled with egg, tofu fish cakes, carrots, and character shapes kamaboko.

Simple and small portion bento for the kids this morning. Two little boys were made of 2 layers potato with crab stick in the middle. The hair was made of skin of fried fish cake and nori for they eyes. I've got different type of purple potatoes this time. Usually when I steamed them, I got the deep purple color. For this one, no matter how long I steamed them, I got the light purple color. Today I was experimenting to put a little bit of turmeric water and salt when mixed the egg, so I can get that nice yellow color for the the egg roll. Inside the box : rice, pork fillet (marinated with salt and ginger), egg rolls, mushroom + preserved daikon stir fry, sweet purple potatoes, strawberry, green tomato, and carrot as a baran.

Kids' mid-test is starting today until Friday with 2 subjects everyday. I wish all the best for both of them, hope they can answer all the questions correctly. Today, I put small portion of rice in this bento because the kids would have their lunch at home during this week. School will be dismissed 12pm during mid-test week. I made bear from half of boiled egg decorated with nori and crab stick for the face. I soaked the boiled egg in the light soy sauce mixed with water for 10 minutes. Inside this box : rice burger (put BBQ burger meat between 2 layers rice), pork sausages, corns, green beans, edamame, carrots, fried tofu, and strawberries.

This giraffe bento was copied from kid's coloring book that I about to throw away when I was cleaning up the kids' bookshelf. I made the lettuce 'green' baran for this bento, hope this counted for B.O.M.B challenge. Just pretend that the box didn't have any separator and the only separator is the lettuce ;) I was cleaning up the last veggies and meats from the refrigerator. Not many foods left so this bento didn't get so much colors. Inside the box : Steamed kabocha with honey, baby carrots, sweetened red cherry, slices of chicken sausage, and thin slices beef & asparagus cooked with Korean BBQ sauce. You can read how to cook Kabocha at Debra's blog - Hapa Bento. Happy Friday!!

Today's posting is a non-bento posting. After lunch time, I was cooking this steamed pork with sweet mui choy (sweet preserved Chinese cabbage) for tonight's dinner and just took a picture after the dish was cooked. And the following are the simple steps to prepare it.

> 500 gram pork tenderloin, sliced <
> 200 gram sweet mui choy, soaked-washed-diced <
(soaked mui choy in cold water, in between keep washing and don't forget changing the water until mui choy is clean from soil )
> 1 tbsp minced garlic <
> 1 tbsp minced shallots <
> 1 tsp sesame oil <
> 1/2 tsp pepper <
> 1 tsp salt or more to taste <
> 2 tbsp sugar <
> 4 tbsp sweet soy sauce <
> 1 tbsp cooking oil <
> 1 cup of water <

| HOW TO COOK |
(1) Marinate the pork with sesame oil, pepper, salt, sugar, and sweet soy sauce.
(2) In large wok, heat 1 tbsp cooking oil and saute garlic and shallots until fragrant.
(3) Put the marinated pork inside the same wok, add 1 cup of water and stir until well mixed about 15 minutes.
(4) Arrange the sliced pork inside a steaming bowl, add sweet mui choy on the top and add some liquid into a steaming bowl.
(5) Steam it in high heat for about 1 hour.
(6) Serve it hot with rice.

Another award from my blogger friend, Marisa (All in Good Food). She is a great bento friend with her passion in cooking and bento making. I felt honored to receive this award from her.
The rule is that I have to pass this award to another 12 blogger. So I will pass this award to :
(1) Megan - Bento Zen
(2) Ann - Anncoo's Hobby
(3) Rachel Hei
(4) Izumi - Soul Soup Soap
(5) Jenn - Bento Bird
(6) Bento Fun
(7) Javapot - Tell It Right
(8) Jenn - Bento For Kidlet
(9) Tata - Bonito's Cooking Wonderland
(10) Rachel - Coconut Crumbs
(11) Ingrid - Bento Bliss
(12) Kids Dream Work

Andrew had his swimming mid-test at school this morning. To show some supports for him, I made this froggies bento. Hope he could swim fast with his frog style, breast stroke. The little froggies were made from cucumber and the faces were decorated from crab stick and carrot. Put the froggies on the top of the rice. I used the 2 tiers round box this time. The size of the top tier (green) is smaller than the bottom tier (blue). Inside the top tier : raspberries, tenderloin beef cooked with salted black bean and onion, and stir fry veggies (chayote, corn, baby corn).

This little angle idea was coming after my sister told me that Brandon (her baby son) stopped breathing for 2 minutes last week. Although she panicked but thanks God she managed to call the ambulance and Brandon is fine now. Hope his little angel will always protect him :)

Pretty simple bento for today. Inside the blue box : pan fried fish fillet with light soya sauce, steamed chayote, flower carrots, grape tomatoes, and corn. Inside the yellow box : rice decorated with little angel. I added wings from my new food picks and other parts of little angel were cutting from egg sheet, cheese, kamaboko, crab stick with various of cutters.

I was using my cutters to get the animal shapes for today's bento. There were 3 layers for the rabbit and bears. The layers from the top to bottom : chicken smoked ham, egg sheet, and steamed rice. In the other box : mandarin orange, strawberry, cucumber, flower carrots, pea pods, and fried mackerel with tomato sauce. I stamped the cucumber with my tiny flower cutter for the 'green' baran and love the result. Cutters saved me a lot of time to prepare this bento. I will post the picture of the animal cutters that I used on my Twitter later.

Today's bugs love was made from 2 rice balls. And for today's 'green' baran, I chose 2 colors corn. This bento will be my second entry for B.O.M.B Challenge this month. If you would like to join, please read more on Hapa Bento. It's fun to participate! Kids have been busy reviewing their lessons lately because they will have mid test at the end of March. I will not make any exercise papers for them this time. Hope they can read and study their lessons without my help.

Inside today's bento ... (green box) : 2 rice balls stuffed with tuna curry, pea pods, and carrot flowers ... (yellow box) : noddle, brussel sprouts, beef, chikuwa, 2 colors corn, baby kiwi, grape tomatoes, and kumquats.

Today's bento was pretty simple, it didn't take too long to prepare. I mentioned before about B.O.M.B's Green Baran Challenge for this month organized by Debra from Hapa Bento. So, my 'green' baran for today was steamed broccoli with carrot flowers on the top. The little twins princes were made of rice and decorated with the egg sheet, red part of crab stick and nori. Inside was stuffed with pork mince. On the top section are fruits (strawberries, kumquat, grapes) and cucumber & pork sausages in pink silicone food cup. I've got the new food picks last week and posted the picture on my Twitter. As a 'bento addict' I don't know when I will able to stop collecting all bento stuffs. No regret though because I'm really enjoying it.

I made a same bento for yesterday and today because the kids were asking for the same Lap Chong Fried Rice. Still in pain on my back leave me no choice except to prepare this quick and easy lunch for the kids. I only managed to make Kiiroitori because was easy to make. I think this time I should be forgiven for not being able to complete the main character which is Rilakkuma. But wait! Can that lid of the Rilakkuma bento box count? Today will be the last day for San-X characters theme. For next week, I will have to figure out some ideas for Debra's B.O.M.B challenge on Hapa Bento. Everyone can participate, just read her blog regarding this.

RILAKKUMA is a brown bear that usually accompanied by white bear called Korilakkuma and the yellow chick called Kiiroitori.

Inside the box : lap chong (chinese pork sausage) fried rice, quail egg, edamame, slices of cucumber & roma tomato, and egg for decorations.

I was happy when I made these 2 characters of Mamegoma. Finally, I can showed the lid of the Mamegoma's lunch box hehehe ... how childish! We got a lot of Mamegoma's stationery. We here, mean my kids and I. I even got the Mamegoma's folder for my documents. We just love cute things ;) And before I forgot to explain, the blue nose was from fish ball that I soaked for a few minutes in the water with blue food coloring. I just wish we have the blue kamaboko here.

MAMEGOMA is a series of world's smallest seal characters so it can put on your hand. The white one is called Shiro Goma and the pink one is called Sakura Goma. The seals are very playful, they love swimming in the water and waddle on land too. Besides Shiro Goma and Sakura Goma, they are still plenty of others like Beni Goma, Sora Goma, Kuro Goma, Shima Goma, etc.

Inside the box : boiled brussel sprouts, chicken with oyster sauce, egg rolls & nori egg rolls, and beef sausages.

Today's simple snack box was made with cute characters Sabo Kappa and one little Marimosabo from San-X. Actually I was thinking to use pandan bread (color green) to make the characters but unfortunately I can't find one at the bakery last night. So, I was mixing edamame and rice again since I had to finish half pack of edamame before they turned ugly. Plus I need the green rice color for this bento.

SABO KAPPA is a green cactus water spirit who lives at the flower shop with many other cactus. Sabo Kappa's favorite are cucumbers & water and doesn't like the heat.

MARIMOSABO are the triplets cactus who love Sabo Kappa very much and love to go out together.

Inside the box : water crest & ham rolls, baby roma tomato, peeled corns, fried fish cakes, and shredded carrot. Sabo Kappa and Marimosabo were made of edamame rice balls. Mayonnaise was inside the small green bird container.

Back to bento after a long weekend. This week, I am still making the San-X characters. So 4 more characters from San-X that will be presented in my kids' bento until Friday. For simple Monday's bento, I chose Monokuro Boo and Baby Boo. I didn't make all 7 Baby Boo but only 4 of them. Perhaps because I felt hesitated to color the rice red, blue and purple. Yellow rice was mixed with egg, orange rice with tomato sauce, green rice with edamame, and pink rice with sakura denbu. The faces were decorated with colored egg sheets. The black one was the hardest one to make. I was mixing it with sweet soy sauce but it was too much soy sauce so it became a little bit watery and stained on the white rice.

MONOKURO BOO are black and white piggies that love a simple life. They often say 'simple is the best' and they have square shaped bodies.

BABY BOO are pastel or candy colored pigs. There are 7 Baby Boo which are Berry (pastel red), Peach (pastel pink), Orange (pastel orange), Lemon (pastel yellow), Mint (pastel green), Soda (pastel blue), Grape (pastel purple).

Inside the box : beef patties, broccoli, flower shapes sweet purple potatoes & potatoes, baby roma tomatoes, and peeled orange.