Bento #104... Finally... some downtime.

My show is open.  Finally.  I've got about 120 comp hours to burn down now.  I was going to take the train to San Francisco.  (It sounds fun.)  But try as I might, I can't convince myself that I can afford it right now.  Maybe in the spring...  I'll probably end up going camping for a few days here and there.  And catching up on some projects.  Like my motorcycle.  And the '49 Dodge sitting in front of my apartment that needs tires.  Maybe I'll even deep clean my apartment.  Maybe.

Anywho.  This is a bento from a dress rehearsal.  I don't remember which one.  I was just happy to have it.

It has an onigiri from my freezer upon which I sprinkled some furikake, some of the chicken patty things, and I filled it in with frozen peas.  (I was in a massive hurry...)

The other container has two Italian prune plums, a handful of Thompson grapes, cucumber rounds from my planter, two tomatoes and a strawberry (also from my planters), and a babybel cheese.

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I think I've written about a giveaway in all of my last few posts... and there's another for you.

Not Exactly Bento is giving away an awesome Lock'n'Lock box, a sports bottle, and a collection of Tony Chachere's spice mixes to a lucky reader.  Check it out here.

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Just a reminder that I'll be hosting a giveaway of my own once the guest counter reaches 3000.  So keep reading and watching!

Bento #103... Better

3 Musketeers opens tomorrow.  You know what that means?  I'm averaging about 4 hours of sleep a night.  I'm still awake now because I'm needing to unwind from that rehearsal.  It went well.  It's a good show.  And I think it will make people happy.  But damn I'm tired.

I spent way more time on this bento than I should have.  But I really needed to focus on something just for me for a little while...

There's a bit of a leftover remake to this one.  I made the little chicken patty things with leftover chicken from Sunday dinner at my parents' house.  Recipe will follow, providing I can still see the screen when I get that far...  Along side the cute little chicken patties, I have broccoli and an onigiri from the freezer stash.  I'm getting the hang of using those things.  This one I was able to just pick and munch.  There's also a bottle of potsticker sauce for the chicken patties.  

The other layer has a nectarine, carrots, hummus, a few grapes, and a babybel cheese.  I love and adore babybels, but I won't buy them anywhere other than costco, because I refuse to pay a lot for them.  So this is the first one ever to make it to a bento.

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Chicken Bites

1/2 chicken breast, cooked.

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon Mrs Dash.  Whatever kind you feel.

2 heaping tablespoon flour (I used wheat)

Water until sufficiently moist.

You could also add shredded zucchini and carrots to this.  And I bet it would be amazing.  I'll have to try it once my new Salad Shooter gets here.

Anyway.  Shred the chicken.  Mix the ingredients.  The batter should be moist, but not runny.  Heat a frying pan over medium heat.  Put small dollops of the chicken mixture into the lightly greased pan.  Slightly flatten.  Cover.  Cook for 3 minutes or so.  Flip.  Cover, and wait until cooked through.  Maybe another 3 minutes.  Serve with yummy sauce that you love.  I love potsticker sauce.

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There's yet another bento giveaway happening!  This time over at Bento Monsters.  Do I need a new box?  Signs point to no.  But it's so cute!

Also, Casa Bento is giving away a bento box on facebook!  Just follow the instructions here to enter.

Bento #102...

I almost decided not to post this one.  I was in a hurry.  And it's not as balanced or as pretty as I usually try to make them.  And then I said to myself, "You know what, self?  Just take the picture and get over yourself!"  So I did.

The back box contains a turkey sausage cut into three sections.  I tried using a cutter to put a shape in the end, but this sausage doesn't behave the way a hotdog does when heated, so the effect was lost.  The sausage is surrounded by a garden fresh summer squash, and the other side has a freezer onigiri that I didn't even have time to microwave and get the plastic wrap off.  (As a side, after I microwaved this one, I put a little bit of pressure on it to reform.  It held together quite well!)

The other layer has a nectarine, green grapes, and an Italian prune plum.

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I'm planning another giveaway!  My little counter is at about 2500 visitors right now.  When we get to 3000, we'll have some fun!

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On a related note... while you're waiting for my giveaway, hop on over to Not Exactly Bento to check out a giveaway that's happening right now!  There's $50 LocknLock coupon up for grabs!