Eclectic Lamb

Cupcake Bento

Posted on February 25, 2013 by eclecticlamb

These silicone flower cups were also in the package from veggie bento love. I was inspired by the cute cups to create this cupcake themed bento. If you want your macaroni and cheese heated, you can remove the cupcake from this bento container and heat in the microwave.

Container: Take-out container I picked up somewhere

Pink Flower Cup: Apple rings and raspberries (I put some orange juice on the apple rings to prevent browning)

Purple Flower Cup: Macaroni and Cheese Cupcake (I followed this recipe except I did not use chives)

Green Flower Cup: Cucumber and cherry tomatoes (tomatoes are held together with a flower pick)

Also in Container: Mini cupcake and sugar snap peas

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, vegetarian | 23 Comments

Onigiri Lunch in Black Bento Box

Posted on February 20, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Awhile ago I won this bento box and fish sauce container as part of an awesome giveaway from veggie bento love. I enjoyed using the little fish to put soy sauce on my sauteed spinach.

Top Tier: Orange segments and green grapes

Bottom Tier: Onigiri (one with roasted white sesame seeds, one with black sesame seeds), spinach sauteed in a little bit of olive oil, carrot stars, soy sauce in fish shaped sauce holder, green lentils cooked in water with a Knorr Vegetable Bouillon and served with tomato

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged japanese bento, vegetarian | 25 Comments

Shark Bento

Posted on February 18, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Awhile ago a friend gave me the idea of making a shark themed lunch. My 8 year old nephew is visiting today so it seemed like a perfect time to make a shark bento. It was very easy to make. The only thing that took some time was cooking rice. If I had frozen rice in my freezer this would have been very fast to make. I experimented with using frozen fruit (blueberries and blackberries) to dye the rice. The winner for this bento was the blueberry rice. Yes it is purple but I liked using a natural dye for the rice.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Ocean: Blueberry rice

Shells: Walnuts

Shark: Wheat peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich, eye (dried blueberry)

Sharks and Fish: Sharkies Organic Fruit Chews and Pepperidge Farm Goldfish baby

Fruit: Green grapes

Linking to: The Creative HomeAcre Hop!

Posted in Bento / Cute Food, Food | Tagged shark lunch, vegetarian | 32 Comments

Buchanan Log Cabin Bento

Posted on February 16, 2013 by eclecticlamb

The theme this week at the Bento Blog Network is Politicians. I decided to do a bento for United States President James Buchanan. He was one of seven presidents thought to be born in a log cabin (Andrew Jackson, Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, and James Abram Garfield).

Some other facts about Buchanan:

15th President
In office between Franklin Pierce and Abraham Lincoln
Consistent ranking by historians as one of the worst Presidents

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Background: Romaine lettuce

Sandwich: Wheat Peanut Butter sandwich, chimney and door (wheat thin), doorknob (dried blueberry), windows (mini Triscuits), roof outline (Wegmans Strawberry fruit flat), log ends (crust), number 15 (carrot)

Vegetable: Baby carrots

Fruit: Green grapes

Cheese: Buchanan portrait on cheddar cheese

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food, Food | Tagged log cabin sandwich, president, vegetarian | 27 Comments

Stitched Valentine’s Day Cards

Posted on February 13, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I stitched these simple cards for Valentine’s Day this year. There is something very satisfying about stitching on paper. I prefer fabric but I can see myself making more paper stitched cards in the future.

Basically I followed this tutorial for stitching on paper but I did not tape my template on the card (I carefully held it on while punching with a pushpin).

For my first card (not pictured) I drew hearts freehand. I thought that I would like the slightly off, homemade look. I did not like it. For the two cards pictured above I used cookie cutters. I have a huge supply of Valentine’s Day cookie cutters. My lips cutter did not make the photo. I have a broken cupid (see photo below).

My Heart / Valentine’s Day Cookie Cutters

Posted in Crafts | Tagged hand stitched, Valentine's Day Card | 20 Comments

Pretzel Heart Bento

Posted on February 11, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This lunch has a lot of orange and did not turn out like I imagined but it tasted great. It was my first time filling homemade pretzels with cheese. I tried goat cheese and cheddar. I preferred the cheddar pretzels. The pretzel in this lunch is the only one that had some of the cheese escape. I liked the way it looked.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Background: Romaine lettuce

Fruit: Orange segments

Vegetable: Baby carrots

Pretzels: Homemade soft pretzels stuffed with cheddar cheese, Mini Dippers containing tomato sauce for dipping, granola bar

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, stuffed pretzel, vegetarian | 17 Comments

X O Bagel Bento

Posted on February 8, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Many years ago (pre-blog) I made X and O shaped bagels for a Valentine’s Day brunch I attended. I decided to make them again for a bento lunch. It was fun and delicious.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Background: Romaine lettuce

Bagels: Homemade poppy seed bagels with almond butter

Vegetable: Red bell pepper

Fruit: Apple slices (cut into heart shapes) with orange juice and cinnamon

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bagel lunch, bento, valentine's day, vegetarian | 17 Comments

Heart Salad Bento

Posted on February 6, 2013 by eclecticlamb

My husband ate this as part of his dinner (he also had vegetable soup and additional french bread).

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Salad: Romaine, spinach, toasted pecans, cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper (cut into hearts), cheddar cheese (cut into hearts), and sugar snap peas

Fruit: Red grapes

Cheese and Bread: Homemade french bread, cheddar cheese (cut into hearts), and heart candies

Dressing: Ranch (not pictured)

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, heart salad, valentine lunch, vegetarian | 19 Comments

Pasta with Heart Beets Bento

Posted on February 4, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This was a quick lunch to make and it could easily be made from dinner leftovers. If you want to heat the pasta in a microwave, you could use different sides or take them out. Usually I cook my own beets but this time I bought Melissa’s Peeled Baby Red Beets. There were no additives but they were very sweet!

Note: Usually when I make this dish I serve the beets separate because I don’t like my pasta to turn pink. I put the beets on top for a Valentine’s themed garnish.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Pasta: Mezze Penne with blue cheese, a little bit of butter, and beets cut into heart shapes

Dessert: Red grapes and Heart Shaped York Peppermint Patty

Vegetable: Cherry tomatoes

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, valentine lunch, vegetarian | 20 Comments

Groundhog Day Bento

Posted on January 31, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Will the groundhog see it’s shadow or will spring come early?

This was a quick, easy, and fun bento to make.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Background: Terra Blues potato chips

Groundhog Sandwich: Peanut butter on wheat with dried blueberry details

Fruit: Blueberries

Nuts: Walnuts

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, february 2, food, groundhog day, vegetarian | 20 Comments

Seahorse Pasta Bento

Posted on January 29, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This was a fun lunch to make for myself. I don’t mind cold pasta.

Container: ECO Lunchboxes

Pasta: Shell pasta with fresh pasta sauce (I cooked minced garlic, tomato, and some vegetable bullion) tossed with pasta and some Parmesan cheese

Seahorse: Cheddar cheese (used a cookie cutter)

Fruit: Grapefruit

Linking to: A Boy and His Lunch: Grown-Ups Gotta Eat

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, pasta lunch, seahorse lunch, vegetarian | 13 Comments

Homemade English Muffins

Posted on January 28, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I have wanted to make my own English Muffins for a long time. Great Breads by Martha Rose Shulman has a recipe but the issue of rings prevented me from making them. I do not eat tuna fish and it would take a long time to save enough water chestnut cans. Recently I found an English Muffin recipe by Alton Brown posted by Dishing the Divine. Alton suggested the use of an electric griddle. Dishing the Divine suggested the use of canning jar rings. I had the canning jar rings but not the electric griddle. My Mom has an electric griddle. I borrowed the griddle from my Mom.

These are delicious! Although I thought that I would prefer the English Muffins fresh, I rather have them toasted. These are perfect toasted with butter and jam. I used homemade strawberry jam.

Posted in Food | Tagged homemade, vegetarian | 17 Comments

Frog Bento

Posted on January 24, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This is my second lunch using the CuteZcute cutter. Awhile ago I made a Panda lunch. Sometime in the future I will make the cat and pig.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Grapefruit

Waterlily: Cheddar cheese with yellow bell pepper

Frog: I used the CuteZcute cutter to cut the frog out of a green bell pepper and cucumber. The CuteZcute cutter is available at Bento USA by All Things For Sale and on Amazon.

Pasta: Barilla Veggie Rotini with carrots

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged CuteZCute, frog bento, vegetarian | 24 Comments

Bear Bento

Posted on January 22, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This lunch was quick and easy to put together.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Main: Pita Bites, celery, cheddar cheese cut into bear shapes (sprinkle eyes and dried blueberry nose), Lindt milk chocolate bears

Dairy: Wegmans Strawberry Greek Yogurt with bear sprinkles

Fruit: Grapes

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, vegetarian | 14 Comments

Lego Pirate Bento

Posted on January 21, 2013 by eclecticlamb

My 8 year old nephew and I made this today. He built the pirate raft to use in the photo shoot.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Cannon Balls: Black olives

Lego Bricks: Hummus with carrots

Sky/Water: Blueberries

Pirate Ship: Cheese quesadilla, chocolate lego man, fruit flat pirate hat with sprinkles details

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged lego, lego lunch, vegetarian bento | 29 Comments

Benjamin Franklin Birthday Bento

Posted on January 17, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I had fun creating this bento in honor of Benjamin Franklin’s birthday. He was born on January 17, 1706.

Please take a look at this awesome Benjamin Franklin bento from my friend Sarah of Zoe’s Lunchbox.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

100 Dollar Bill: Cheese quesadilla with Wegmans Spinach-Garlic & Pesto Tortilla, Cheddar cheese details, drew Franklin with Wilton Food Writer

Vegetable: Carrots

Nuts/Seeds: Almond slivers with pumpkin seeds

Bifocals: Apple

Dairy: Wegmans Blueberry yogurt

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged benjamin franklin, bento, vegetarian | 28 Comments

Small Plates Appetizer Dinner

Posted on January 15, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I am finally getting around to posting this amazing meal. For Christmas Eve dinner my family enjoyed a small plates appetizer dinner. My Mom and I decided on the recipes and coordinated the plates/shooters/bowls we wanted to use.

Yes we used a lot of plates but it was fun for a special occasion.

My family does a great job at pitching in and creating meals together. I cherish the time we spend together cooking and feasting.

Caprese Salad and Stuffed Baquette

For the miniature Caprese salads we were inspired by this recipe (scroll down) but did not really use it as we have made Caprese salad many times. My husband made the salads for this meal.

We used this recipe for the stuffed baguette but did two versions, one with olives and one without (my husband does not like olives). My Mom made this recipe.

Dad’s Stuffed Mushrooms

My Dad made his famous stuffed mushrooms. They are always a hit at parties. Too bad that I don’t like mushrooms.

Baked Spinach Dip in Bread Bowl

We used this recipe for these delicious morsels. My Mom made these.

Pesto Poppers

I made these Pesto Poppers. They were very easy to assemble.

Pumpkin Soup Shooters

I made these Pumpkin soup shooters. I used vegetable stock.

Mango, Carrot, and Cucumber Sticks

We knew that we wanted to use Asian spoons to add more interest to the table. I found this recipe. It was easy and tasted great!

Peanut Butter Pie Shooters and Swan Cream Puffs

My Mom and husband made the Peanut Butter Pie Shooters.

Close-up of Swan Cream Puff

My Mom and brother made the Cream Puff Swans. I supplied them the recipes/directions from this and this.

Posted in Food, Party Planning | Tagged appetizer dinner, hors d'oeuvres, tasting dinner, tasting party, vegetarian | 33 Comments

Potato and Fruit Breakfast Bento

Posted on January 14, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I continue to be interested in the idea of breakfast for lunch. I made this breakfast bento for my husband to take for lunch. He enjoyed this meal!

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Grapefruit with mint sugar (I put some fresh mint and sugar in a food processor)

Yogurt: Wegmans Vanilla Maple yogurt (maple leaf sprinkle)

Bread: Fruit-Nut Breakfast Bread (I substituted dried blueberries and cherries for the dates and did not use the glaze) It was a quick and easy recipe. My husband liked it, I thought that there was too much fruit in it.

Potatoes: Diced potatoes with salt and pepper – roasted in butter. I added fresh Parmesan cheese on top after they were done.

Related post

Pancake Breakfast Bento

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, breakfast for lunch, vegetarian | 16 Comments

Salad Star Bento

Posted on January 13, 2013 by eclecticlamb

For this lunch I had fun with my assortment of star cookie cutters.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Star Sandwich: Baguette with cheddar cheese stars

Fruit: Apple stars with cinnamon

Salad: Boston lettuce, apple stars, bell pepper stars, toasted almonds (served with ranch dressing)

Ranch dressing in Mini Dipper

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, salad lunch, vegetarian | 17 Comments

Snowman Bento

Posted on January 10, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Container: ECO Lunchboxes

Vegetable: Broccoli

Snowman: Onigiri filled with vegetable filling, pumpernickel bread (hat), dried blueberries (eyes and mouth), carrot (nose and scarf)

Snowflakes: Cheddar cheese (used star pastry tip)

Fruit: Apples cut using snowman cutter (arranged in snowflake shape)

Linking up at:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, snowman lunch, vegetarian, winter lunch | 23 Comments

Pancake Breakfast Bento

Posted on January 8, 2013 by eclecticlamb

My 14 year old niece was over for the day. We decided to make breakfast for lunch and pack it into a cute bento. It was fun and delicious.

Container: Bento box from Japan

Fruit: Orange slices and dried cherries

Nuts: Almonds

Muffins: Mini blueberry muffins

Pancakes: Homemade pancakes with corn, local NY maple syrup in container

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, breakfast for lunch, vegetarian | 21 Comments

Farm Themed Quiet Book

Posted on January 7, 2013 by eclecticlamb

My 14 year old niece, my husband and I made quiet books as Christmas gifts for our 2 youngest cousins/nephews (in different families). We designed and created two identical books. One book has a blue cover, the other red. We mostly followed directions from Serving Pink Lemonade. The books are put together sightly different (tied ribbon on the outside).

The pages are made from thick non-fusible Pellon. We used stiff felt for all pieces. My niece used fabric paint for the details. We printed the text on printable fabric sheets and ironed them onto the pages.

The recipients Grandparents and Uncle manage a dairy farm. We designed six pages, two pages to represent each relative.

The making of these books was really a family affair. I am very organized and seldom lose anything but I lost my sewing machine cords. The day before the gift exchange I still could not find them. I went to my Grandma-in-law’s house to use her sewing machine. It was so helpful and fun to get her assistance to sew up the pages and covers.

My niece designed this page. The blue bag of sugar and three other different colored rectangles are in the cupboards. They are attached by Velcro and can be moved.

My husband and I designed this page.

My niece designed this page. The Grandpa loves ice cream.

My niece designed this page. The pail and bottle can be used to feed the calves. My nephews loved this!

My husband and I modified this page from Imagine Our Life. We did not use the templates provided but looked at the image and made our own. We customized the dump truck for the farm and added bales of hay. This was another popular page with the nephews.

Creating these quiet books was a fun project but a TON of work! Designing the pages and templates, gathering supplies, and cutting out the pieces took the most time. Sewing the pages and cover and then assembling the pages took less time.

Now I can check off another item from my craft bucket list.

Posted in Crafts | Tagged DIY, farm themed quiet book, homemade, quiet book | 21 Comments

Un-Fried Rice Bento

Posted on January 5, 2013 by eclecticlamb

This is the second lunch I made from the Cooking with Trader Joe’s Cookbook: Easy Lunch Boxes by Kelly Lester. The book features recipes from many contributors. The Un-Fried Rice recipe (page 166 ) is from Lisa of 100 Days of Real Food. It was delicious!

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Pineapple

Nuts: Cashews

Main: Brown rice with edamame and avocado

Related Post

Waffle Pizza Bento

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged vegetarian | 9 Comments

Stitched Lamb Valentine Card

Posted on January 4, 2013 by eclecticlamb

It has been awhile since I shared some embroidery. TAST 2012 is done. This is a simple piece that I stitched many years ago. I made it into a paper Valentine’s Day card and mailed it to friends and relatives.

I enjoy drawing and stitching very simple lambs/sheep. Here are some other examples:

Valentine embroidery pattern

Felt bunny with sheep on belly

Sheep ornament in red

Sheep favor bags

Posted in Embroidery | Tagged DIY, homemade, lamb, sheep, Valentine embroidery | 6 Comments

Winter Bento

Posted on January 3, 2013 by eclecticlamb

I made this lunch for my 23 month old nephew. He enjoyed it, especially the apple snowmen.

Container: Easylunchboxes

Snowflake and Snowman: Peanut butter sandwiches on wheat bread (I used this cutter set)

Fruit: Clementine and apples

Cheese and Crackers: Ritz Snowflake crackers and cheddar cheese

Linking up at:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged bento, snowman lunch, vegetarian | 11 Comments

Dumplings Around the World

Posted on January 2, 2013 by eclecticlamb

Dumplings Around World Collage

On Christmas day my family feasted on dumplings from around the world. I came up with this idea because I wanted something fun and unusual for 5 adults celebrating Christmas day together. Each course was served 1 to 2 hours apart. I made menu cards for each person (pictured above). My husband came up with the idea of clinking glasses and wishing Merry Christmas in the language from each country. It was a lot of fun especially when he said, “Once more with feeling!”. For all of the people who wonder what vegetarians eat, take a look at this feast.

Note: If I do this again, I will plan beverages for each course. It could be fun to pair drinks from each country with each dumpling.

I created this fun menu card to help guide the attendees for what would come next.

Gyoza

I made ahead and froze my own version of vegetarian gyoza. It was easy to pan fry them before serving. I used this dipping sauce but did not use the chili and reduced the amount of green onion.

Pierogi

We made Martha Stewart’s cabbage pierogi recipe (not the full recipe). We prepared them the day before and fried in butter before serving. We typically make them around Christmas each year. This year we served them with sour cream, apple sauce, and mustard.

Samosa

We used this recipe from Willams-Sonoma. We made mango chutney (1/2 the recipe) and raita to serve with the samosas.

Calzone

I made mini calzones with goat cheese and herb filling. We served with store bought fresh marinara sauce.

Apple Dumpling

We used this recipe for the apples and caramel sauce. We used leftover puffed pastry instead of the dumpling dough to make it easier at the end of a day of cooking and feasting.

Posted in Food, Party Planning | Tagged dinner, vegetarian, vegetarian dinner party | 25 Comments

2012 Top 10 Favorite Lunches

Posted on December 30, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I thought it would be fun to identify 10 of my favorite bentos from 2012. It was a challenge because I have many favorites. I placed bentos on this list for many reasons. Some made the list for exceptional taste. Some are on this list because I was pleased with the appearance. Some hold special memories of the niece or nephew who enjoyed it. Here are my top 10 lunches from 2012 (not in any particular order).

Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree

Legos

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged top 10 lunches, vegetarian | 17 Comments

12 Drummers Drumming Bento

Posted on December 25, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 12 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Vegetable: Spinach

Fruit: Pomegranate seeds

Background: Lettuce

Drummer Drumming: Hand pie filled with tomatoes, herbs, and cheese, Wilton candy eyes and spaghetti

Drum and Drum Sticks: Pie crust, pretzel sticks with chocolate

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas lunch, bento, Drummer Drumming Food, vegetarian | 16 Comments

11 Pipers Piping Bento

Posted on December 24, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 11 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Main: Vegetarian Shepherds Pie

Piper Piping: Sweet potatoes piped using this picture as a guide.

Fruit: Clementine

Dairy: Wegman’s Greek Maple Yogurt with sanding sugar

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas food, 12 days of Christmas lunch, pipers piping food, vegetarian | 7 Comments

10 Lords a Leaping Bento

Posted on December 23, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 10 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Main: Trader Joe’s Veggie & Flaxseed Tortilla Chips with Wegman’s salsa

Lord Leaping: Cheese hat with carrot accent, brussel sprout head, cheese eye and mouth, cucumber body, carrot arms and legs

Fruit: Oranges with mint

Salsa served in Mini Dipper

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas lunch, Chips and Salsa bento, vegetarian | 7 Comments

9 Ladies Dancing Bento

Posted on December 22, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 9 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Main: Baked risotto

Lady Dancing: Paprika

Fruit: Blackberries

Vegetable: Mukimame (shelled soybeans)

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas food, 12 days of Christmas lunch, dancing bento, vegetarian | 9 Comments

8 Maids a Milking Bento

Posted on December 21, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 8 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos… My 14 year old niece helped me with this one.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Cow: Almond butter sandwich on wheat bread, fruit roll up details, sprinkle eye, cheddar cheese udder

Milk Maid: Almond butter sandwich on wheat bread, sprinkle eyes, spaghetti braids with fruit roll up hair ribbons, cheese details on dress

Milk Bucket: Mozzarella cheese stick with Nutella handle

Fruit: Melon

Vegetable: Cherry tomatoes

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas food, cow lunch, cow themed food, vegetarian | 9 Comments

7 Swans a Swimming Bento

Posted on December 20, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 7 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Blueberries

Swan: Rice (pumpernickel and carrot details)

Vegetable: Sugar snap peas

Protein: Wegmans Cashew Blend – Cashews, Almonds & Pecans

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 days of Christmas food, 12 days of Christmas lunch, Swan bento, swan themed food, vegan, vegetarian | 13 Comments

6 Geese a Laying Bento

Posted on December 19, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 6 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Background: Lettuce

Goose: Potato wafers (pages 26 and 246 Martha Stewart’s Hors D’oeuvres Handbook)

Nest: Spinach linguini served with marinara sauce

Eggs: Almonds dipped in white chocolate

Vegetable: Carrot sticks

Fruit: Apple (with Kashi GoLean Crunch!)

Marinara Sauce served in Mini Dipper

Goose Potato Wafers (before baking)

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas food, 12 days of Christmas lunch, vegetarian | 15 Comments

5 Golden Rings Bento

Posted on December 18, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 5 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos… a golden theme.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Golden Ring: Bagel sandwich with horseradish cheddar and lettuce

Vegetable: Yellow pepper

Fruit: Dried pineapple

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Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas lunch, vegetarian | 10 Comments

4 Calling Birds Bento

Posted on December 17, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 4 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Calling Bird: Peanut butter sandwich on pumpernickel bread, dried blueberry eye, red pepper wing, pretzel sticks legs, finger potato branch

Background: Lettuce

Vegetable: Cauliflower served with ranch dip

Fruit: Kiwi

Ranch Dip Served in Mini Dipper

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas lunch, vegetarian | 13 Comments

3 French Hens Bento

Posted on December 16, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Day 3 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos…

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

French Hen: Croissant

Cheese: Trader Joe’s Mini Brie Bites

Lettering: Carrots

Vegetable: Green beans

Fruit: Grapefruit

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas lunch, vegetarian | 20 Comments

2 Turtle Doves Bento

Posted on December 15, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Here is day 2 of my 12 days of Christmas bentos. I decided that I will only feature one of each item. So my turtle dove is alone but I have some vegetable hearts.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Turtle Dove: Cheese quesadilla

Background: Cheese quesadilla with Wegmans Spinach-Garlic & Pesto Tortilla

Fruit: Raspberries (some with white chocolate chips)

Vegetable: Green pepper hearts

Related Posts

Partridge in a Pear Tree

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas lunch, vegetarian | 9 Comments

1 Partridge in a Pear Tree Bento

Posted on December 14, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I decided to make 12 bentos to represent each of the gifts from the 12 Days of Christmas song. Today is the first day because I want to end on Christmas day. This one turned out sparse and modern looking but I promise that some of them will be cute.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Vegetable: Broccoli

Fruit: Seckel pear

Snack: Pretzel sticks

Partridge: French bread with almond slivers, served with homemade cranberry cream cheese

Cranberry Cream Cheese in Mini Dipper

I enjoy seeing different interpretations of the same theme. My friend Kristie from beneficial bento is also posting 12 days of Christmas bentos this year.

Related Posts

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged 12 Days of Christmas, 12 days of Christmas lunch, shaped bread, vegetarian | 8 Comments

Christmas Appetizer Party

Posted on December 12, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I helped my parents host a Christmas themed party for their neighbors. We served hot and cold appetizers. Our guests brought desserts. It was a fun party to host.

Special Touches:

Candy Cane vase with flowers (My Mom was inspired by this)
Candy Cane place card holders (I used a Martha Stewart holly paper punch)
Homemade ice bowl with flowers and dill

Candy Cane holder

Candy Cane Vase

Drinks:

Holiday Fruit Punch – we used this recipe but did not use sugar and substituted ruby red grapefruit juice for the grapefruit juice.
Hot Wassil – apple cider, cranberry juice, cinnamon sticks, allspice, orange studded with cloves
Iced water with lemon slices

Drink Table

Appetizers:

Cheese and Olive Christmas Tree
Cheese and Corn Beggar’s Purses
Cheese pastry shells with roasted vegetable caviar
Cheese stuffed rigatoni – p. 77 BH&G Holiday Appetizers 1998
Deviled Eggs
Fruit Kabobs
Mini Pizza’s
Spinach Pinwheels
Stuffed Mushrooms
Vegetable wreath with ranch dip

Cheese and Olive Tree

Cheese Pastry with Roasted Vegetables

Cheese stuffed rigatoni

Fruit Kabobs

Miniature Pizzas

Spinach Pinwheels

Vegetable Wreath with Ranch Dip

Desserts:

Chocolate Pound Cake
Assorted Cookie Tray
Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Pecan Pie Bars
Carrot Cake

Note: The party was not vegetarian but the meat was on a separate table. Meat/fish dishes served: shrimp in a homemade ice bowl with red sauce, chicken fingers with ranch, honey, or ketchup, miniature hotdogs in dough with mustard, and beef cubes.

Meat/Fish table before party started

Posted in Food, Party Planning | Tagged appetizer dinner, dinner party, holiday themed meal | 15 Comments

Gingerbread Men Bento

Posted on December 10, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Seckel pear

Vegetable: Red pepper cut into gingerbread men shapes

Sandwiches: Wheat bread gingerbread men with Sunbutter (I received a free sample). I decorated the men with Wilton candy eyes and cinnamon decorations.

Dessert: Pepperidge Farm Ginger Family Cookies

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 32 Comments

Holiday Bento Blog Hop

Posted on December 6, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I am thrilled to join my Bento Bloggers and Friends on a Holiday themed blog hop. Please follow the button at the end of this post to continue on to the next blog and follow the hop until you return back to my lunch.

“Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree at the Christmas party hop”

Cooked broccoli with Swanson’s Flavor Boost Vegetable broth
Red pepper decorations
Carrot star
Music themed picks around tree
White rice

“Mistletoe hung where you can see”

Spinach
White cheddar cheese

“Later we’ll have some pumpkin pie”

I followed this great idea from Project Denneler. (I used a Kashi cracker to replace the chicken cracker and trimmed to fit)

Triscuit Thin Crisps
Kashi Original 7 Grain Snack Crackers
Wavy sticks from Chex Mix
Cheddar cheese
Cream cheese (I did not flavor mine)

“Let’s be jolly; Deck the halls with boughs of holly”

Carrot lettering
Kiwi holly with red pepper berries

Please click on the hop button to see the awesome bento created by Nina of Mamabelly’s Lunches With Love.

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged christmas tree lunch, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree | 78 Comments

Week 48 Arrowhead Stitch

Posted on December 5, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 48 of TAST was the Arrowhead stitch. This was a fun and easy stitch to learn.

Posted in Embroidery | 9 Comments

Panda Bento

Posted on December 3, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The theme this week (starting Friday Dec. 7) at the Bento Blog Network is copycat. I was inspired by bentoriffic’s – CuteZcute panda lunch and decided to copy her sandwich and clementine. I was also inspired to put a grain behind the sandwich (I placed a piece of foil in between the bread and couscous). Thank you Sarah! I enjoyed copying your lunch.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Snack: Veggie Stix

Fruit: Mandarin oranges and clementine

Panda Sandwich: Wheat bread peanut butter sandwich with Wegmans Fruit Flats (details). The CuteZcute cutter is available at Bento USA by All Things For Sale and on Amazon.

Grain: Near East Basil and Herb Pearled Couscous

Vegetable: Celery sticks with spinach leaves (to look like bamboo)

This was my first time using the CuteZcute cutters. They are quick and easy to use and the results are so cute!

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged CuteZCute, panda themed food, vegetarian | 21 Comments

Week 47 Portuguese Border Stitch

Posted on December 2, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 47 of TAST was the Portuguese Border stitch. The sample here is my third try and it still does not look like the example. My tension is off. But at least I completed a sample of this stitch.

I am glad that I am participating in TAST 2012. It is fun to learn a new stitch every week but I am looking forward to the end of TAST 2012. It will be great to spend time using stitches instead of learning new ones every week.

Posted in Embroidery | 11 Comments

Bagel and Granola Bar Bento

Posted on November 29, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This was a very quick bento to make. I was inspired by breakfast leftovers. My 8 year old nephew came up with the idea to add the animal picks.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Vegetable: Sugar snap peas

Fruit: Red grapes

Cheese: Cheddar cheese stick (cut in half) and jalapeno jack cheese (sliced)

Main: Mini blueberry bagels and small chewy granola bar (cut in half)

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 10 Comments

Waffle Pizza Bento

Posted on November 27, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This was the first bento I made from the Cooking with Trader Joe’s Cookbook: Easy Lunch Boxes by Kelly Lester. The book features recipes from many contributors. The Waffle Pizzaaaah! recipe (page 152) is from Corey of Family Fresh Meals. She blogged about her contribution to the cookbook here.

My 14 year old niece and I prepared this lunch together. We made the vegetarian version of the recipe and used different sides. It was a quick and easy lunch to make. I added a little lamb pick for fun. This is an amazing recipe and while we ate, we kept saying how satisfying the lunch was.

Container: EasyLunchBoxes

Fruit: Red grapes

Vegetable: Crinkle cut carrots

Main: Waffle Pizzaaaah! recipe with tomato sauce in Mini Dippers.

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged EasyLunchboxes, waffles | 14 Comments

Pumpkin and Corn Centerpiece

Posted on November 21, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My garden club has a tradition of making 36 arrangements for the Thanksgiving meal at our County Skilled Nursing Facility.

The design and assembly of the arrangements was a group effort. A garden club member came up with the concept of dried corn and jack-be-little pumpkins stacked in a dish. Another member provided small metal dishes and the homespun fabric for the ribbon. I purchased the miniature pumpkins and Indian corn. My husband cut the corn. My 8 year old nephew watched the process wearing safety glasses. Sometimes corn kernels flew through the air. He loved it!

Completed centerpieces

During our garden club meeting, members prepared the ribbon, tied ribbon to the corn pieces, hot glued the corn to the metal dishes, and hot glued the pumpkins on top of the corn.

If you use this arrangement for a family meal, you could put candy or nuts in the dish.

Note: Make sure that your corn pieces are thick enough for the miniature pumpkin to balance on the corn.

Pumpkins packed for delivery

Posted in Crafts | Tagged corn and pumpkin arrangement, easy fall craft, thanksgiving centerpiece, thanksgiving craft | 7 Comments

Sports Bento

Posted on November 20, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My 8 year old nephew and I planned and made this bento. It was his idea to do a sports themed lunch. We had a great time making this and he enjoyed eating this lunch.

Note: It was his first time trying fresh mozzarella balls. He left them to last but decided that he liked them.

Container: ECO Lunchboxes

Tennis: Pineapple with carrot

Soccer: Wheat bread sandwich with strawberry jam and cheddar cheese details

Basketball: Clementine

Baseball: Carrot baseball with small fresh mozzarella balls

Football: Pumpernickel bread with peanut butter. Cheddar cheese details. I was inspired by this. I don’t normally buy pumpernickel bread so I keep some in the freezer for bento use.

Background: Sugar snap peas

Linking to:

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 18 Comments

Week 46 Checkered Chain Stitch

Posted on November 19, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 46 of TAST was the Checkered Chain stitch. It was a quick and fun stitch to learn!

Posted in Embroidery | 13 Comments

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