Bentos for Vegans

Switching to different blog site and changing names!

2008-04-09T21:19:00.005-04:00

Change is good...

and so after a few weeks without posting (due to my indecision to continue this blog or to go with another) I have finally decided to end Bentos for Vegans and continue on wordpress.com with PracticallyVegan.wordpress.com. Don't worry there will still be Vegan Bentos!!!! But there have been many posts that I have wanted to update that are not related to bentos. Yes yes people have told me, "its your blog do what you want" but since the title is "Bentos for Vegans" it gives the impression of being mostly about Bentos. So the new blog will be about how to become vegan Practically! Not to be confused with being almost vegan. It will highlight realistic ways to go vegan, and give tips on those who are pondering making the switch.

Of course the love of bento's does not go away! As I'm sure those of you bento obsessed understand. I will still have my flicker gallery, and am still doing bento swaps online. In fact I am thinking of new ways to revamp the blog with more consistent information.

I am also switching to wordpress.com because of its great ability to future date entries which helps keep me on track. (I tend to do a few entries in one day when I have time but just can't keep up with entries every day)

So I hope you come on by and check out the new site!

See you there!

A Vegan Treat!

2008-03-31T21:00:00.004-04:00

Me and my husband had dinner with some friends on Sat. The woman that was cooking had a big challenge on her hands as I'm vegan, my husband isn't big on veggies, and her boyfriend is gluten intolerant! But she did an amazing job. It was such a treat to have a vegan meal cooked for me. WOW! And she even let us bring home leftovers. So this a bento from her great cooking. So hence not much effort on my part except for arranging it in the box.

This is one of my favorite bento boxes as the white really displays color so well and it even has a clear lid so you food always looks nice.

The meat like substance is seitan cooked in a lovely sauce along with some potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and peppers. I added a banana, raisins, and a sesame candy for dessert.

HOT FRESH NOW - no more

2008-03-30T10:38:00.002-04:00

Well yesterday at about 2am I had some Krispy Kream Doughnuts. Im not sure why I assumed they were vegan. Probably because I have no idea how doughnuts are made and becasue I thought since they are so artificial that there just couldn't be any real ingredients in them. But alas today I looked them up and boo. I love how they say "the ONLY animal byproducts" and then list 7 animal ingredients. Its not like I ate them that often. (we do happen to live super close to one but its quite infrequent that we go) Bye bye hot fresh now. But now I am on the search for a vegan doughnut. Again I'm not a big doughnut fan but I love finding the vegan substitutes.

INGREDIENT INFORMATION
The only animal byproducts used in our doughnut are eggs (whites and yolks) and dairy products (including milk, butter, yogurt, whey, nonfat milk and nonfat whey). Our doughnuts are cooked in 100% vegetable oil shortening (partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil). All monoglycerides, diglycerides and enzymes are vegetable based. The lecithin we use is soy based. We also use wheat in our doughnuts, including bran, germ, gluten, starch and flour. Our products may contain allergens. To get further information about our products call us at 1800 4KRISPY.

Busy but in the mean time Organizing for the future

2008-03-20T22:37:00.002-04:00

Its been a crazy hetic few weeks hence no posts. I've barely been getting sleep and that has precedence over blog wiring. But don't worry the blog will return. I have been working on a better system to organize the stash of goodies (aka bento madness) and I'm happy to report that its almost done. I'm also trying to figure out how to post phone photos to flicker with no luck so far. I've still been packing bentos but they have been mostly leftovers and nothing worth posting about. Here's a mini preview of the new storage system. An explination of what and where will come later.

Strictly Leftover Bento

2008-03-10T22:56:00.004-04:00

Again it seems the fridge has become a mess and sadly this bento is blurry =(

I may order a light to help with the photos. As its frustrating to spend time on a bento and then have it look fuzzy.

Anywhoo the above was seriously what was left in my fridge. The back bento was full of fun Korean pickled items that I got at a great restaurant called Tofu 88. They ironically only had 2 vegetarian options but they were yummie. I ended up getting a mushroom tofu soup that was quite spicy. They packed in rice and a mini tray full of Korean veggie items. They were cutely wrapped up in tinfoil cups. I filled up on the soup so here they are. I believe its kimchi, some type of sweetened potato, a really yummie bean sprout concoction, and then a spicier kimchi sort of thing. (I really need a Korean cookbook)

In the front bento is leftover turnip cake. And some frozen rice with asparagus. I heat up the rice so it isn't thawing when I go to eat it.

Its good to be back on track and eating healthy and it honestly took me less then 10 min to make this bento. Its usually the mulling around of the idea of making lunch that takes longer.

Green Tea Latte

2008-03-10T19:35:00.015-04:00

OK even if your not a huge green tea fan this drink is amazing!! Well I think so.

And it even got me off of Coffee (iced coffee die hard fan) and is much healthier for you.

Super simple Green Tea Latte Recipe

Get yourself some Green Tea Powder (Machata)

There are so many kinds ranging in price. Green tea can be super cheep, or very expensive depending on the grade. I just get plain ole powder tea. The farmers market by me has it for about 6 dollars and that lasts me a good bit.

Add about a teaspoon of the powder to a large glass (or thermos if its microwavable, but if I'm taking this to work with me I make it in the glass first and then transfer to my thermal mug)

Then add about an inch of water (you can add more if you don't like your latte's so milky. I like mine very milky (soy milk of course so I only add a little water) The key is to dissolve the green tea completely so you don't have any lumps of powder (eww).

Now microwave your glass for 30 seconds. This should be enough for it to dissolve and mix completely.
Add your favorite sweetener (or don't if your watching sweets, its still good with no sugar). I use Agave Nectar and about a teaspoon of it.

Now is the time to stir up your mini mixture as its warm and the sweetener will dissolve nicely.

Then add about half of your cup with ice. I prefer crushed ice as I hate it when I'm down to the bottom and an ice cube falls on my face. But big chunky ice does just fine.

Now add your soy milk (you can substitute any no dairy milk such as nut milks, rice milks.) I prefer the Silk unsweetened kind so I'm not adding yet more sugar.

Now stir and enjoy.

A straw makes it nice to sip (but don't waste it one time and just throw it away, rinse and use over and over!! As long as you rinse them out good they last a long time.)

yummmmmm.

Benefits

-Some caffeine but not as much as coffee.

-Green tea has great antioxidants

-Not high in calories especially if you use only a tiny bit of sweetener or no sweetener.

-If you use Agave nectar it doesn't cause the spike in your sugar levels (which is a bad thing)

-Super cheep (just the initial investment in the tea at about 6 dollars and some soy milk)

-Save money on that coffee fix you get every morning!!

This also makes a killer bubble/boba tea when you have the time to make the tapioca pearls (I'll show you another recipe for that down the road)

Hope you enjoy!!

Where I think this blog is going. Where do you want it to go?

2008-03-10T18:07:00.003-04:00

Its been a long couple weeks hence no bentos. I've really been eating bad too. And yes vegan's can eat bad. Believe me there's tons of junkfood that has no animal products in it. But in that time I haven't forgot the blog. I've really been thinking of what I want this to be and my conclusion is more of a jumping off point for those trying to go vegan. Not that more senior vegans can't get anything out of it but last months poll really clued me in to things.

I may not have tons of readers but those of you who voted were either

A: allready vegans

B: Had considered veganism but though it was too complicated.

So I'd like to gear this blog toward showing others how its really simple!

So the jist is that its not only going to be bentos. I don't know if it would be better to change the name of the blog or not. Maybe I should not worry about that. I still want to show lots of fun bentos but know that if your not into bentos you still will find lots of good info in here to get you on your way to becoming vegan. If there are things that you are curious about please feel free to drop me a comment and maybe I can feature something to help you out.

So since time is tight I will show you an easy (yet ultra yummie) recipe that I can't live without these days in my next post.

Happy monday everyone!

Phat Bento Contest Entry

2008-02-26T20:53:00.008-05:00

Ok here is my entry for the Phat Bento Contest set up by YVO of NYC!

Glad to see some of the New Yorkers out there!!! Man I miss it.

If you want to enter the contest look here!

Sad to say I didn't have the energy to make a new one but this one

is only a few weeks old. It's not the most amazing but it is kinda funny =)

On the Left side is mushroom sautee (recipe below)

with two rice balls wrapped in nori with some cute picks.

On the Right is a healthy fruit collection.

The angry banana is trying to eat the clementines who are quite scared.

There are also figs, cranberries, and pecans for a nice rounded vegan lunch.

The faces were made out of a Wilton Dye gel that was applied with a small paintbrush. This can be found at most craft stores (Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Jo Annes, etc)

I had a lot of fun making it and just looking at it inspires me to make more fun bentos.

MUSHROOM SAUTE
from: Easy Japanese Pickling in Five Minutes to one day
by: Seiko Ogawa

1pack eringi mushrooms
6 large fresh shiitake
2 packs enoki mushrooms
1 dried chile
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp sake
4 Tbsp cooking oil

1. Chop mushrooms, seed chili, mix soy sauce and vinegar in large bowl
2. Hear oil and chile in pan. When hot, saute the eringi and shitake, then stir in the enoki.
3. Add sake. Pour mushroom mixture into soy sauce mixture. Let cool.

I made up a big batch of this and then froze it into small tupperware portions for my bento. I have to restrain myself from eating it every day as its so tasty.

This book is amazing and so simple.
You can get it at Amazon

Enjoy!!

Cast is off!!!

2008-02-23T17:28:00.001-05:00

Today I woke up to a blizzard in Philadelphia and made my way to NYC to get the cast off. It only took 3 hours (usually takes 2) and we got there with time to spare. The doctor saw me early and we made our way home.

Sad to say no bento shopping in NYC which I was looking forward to. (Weather was just too bad to be walking around with a bad ankle) But then when we got back to philly I went to a great chinese restaurant that I hadn't been to since I was a kid. Then off to some asian markets (the snow had melted by then) and found a few treasures.

@ chinese grocery store
-dried arucula mushrooms

@ redding terminal's market
-chinese five spices powder
-lime peel spice
-licorice root
-beau monde spice (don't even know what this is lol but it looked and smelled interesting)

Tomorrow will just be a rest day as I try to walk slowly without crutches. Im gonna try to go down to the italian market to see what I can find kitchen wise.

Still looking for a
-stovetop grill (japanese style to make pan fried onigiri)
-ginger grater (in cute shape)
-chopstick rests (cute shapes and colors)
-natural material drawer organizer (for bento supplies)

But im definately open to any other goodies that may cross my path!!

It's so nice to be up on my feet even if its slow. I may get a cane when I get home but I can't wait to get in my kitchen again and start experimenting!!

Flicker Photos finally!!!

2008-02-18T23:02:00.004-05:00

I figured out a little bit of flicker tonight. So you can see some past bentos before the blog. They don't have any descriptions and that's mainly because I have no idea what I even put in them!!! So next week fresh new bentos with descriptions of what yummie vegan recipies are in them.

2008-02-18T20:15:00.002-05:00

Well only a few more days till the cast is off and I get rid of the crutches. My flight is Thur and I get back Sun. So I'm hoping to have a bento for Monday's lunch!!! Meanwhile I've been working on ways to take better photos. It took a little work but I think I found a way to get my digital camera (not a bad one, but not a nice one either) take some good shots. I may ask for a mini fold up photo studio from the hubby for my upcoming birthday. hehe.!!!

Also did a little bento organizing as well so I think I'm all good to go. Next week Im going to set up a bento inventory photo gallery on flicker so that after showing you the inside of the bento you can see the outside as well. I'll try to post one a day till they are all up. I counted them the other day and yes there are 50..One of my friends at work said, "You know you could use one a day for a month and still not use them all" Ya I know but what can I say, I am a container junkie and bentos just feed that obsession.

So stay tuned and I promise you some good vegan bentos!!

Bento Delay

2008-02-10T20:54:00.000-05:00

There's going to have to be a delay in bentos for now. I just had surgey on my ankle and its not really allowing me to move around so much. Thank goodness I cooked a lot before it. I'll just be eating some leftovers or whatever I can manage to put together in the am as I hobble along. I am working on a vegan pantry list that I should have up by end of week so at least that is something.

Till then. Happy bentoing.

Bento 2

2008-02-05T06:38:00.000-05:00

This bento was made in my new faux wood owl bento. It really has a lot of room! Most of the bento is from my kitchen efforts yesterday. On the bottom is the Kale with Walnuts, Sweet potatoes with hijiki and then star fruit. On top is the Chinese cucumbers, Turnips with Umeboshi, Dashi with Green tea and some Brown rice with furikake. The box is microwavable (not the lid) and that was a nice change from my metal two tier bento.

Cleaning out the fridge leads to goodies!

2008-02-03T09:33:00.000-05:00

I was a madwoman in the kitchen today. The fridge was getting that nasty smell (found out it was mushrooms going bad) and I just got frustrated about always trying to buy veggies and never getting around to making them. I start out with good intentions of making yummie vegan food when I'm at the grocery store but through a long work week it doesn't happen.

So getting rid of the smell lead to cleaning out the fridge. And cleaning out the fridge lead to finding a bunch of veggies that were only half bad (small patches of not good parts) and some that were just fine. I am also going in for ankle surgery on Thur so I will not be able to get up on my feet all that much so I decided to get chopping and use what I had. By the end of the day I had 6 dishes that would work well for dinners and bentos.

Here is what was made out of veggie scraps.

1. Daikon Radish and green tea

2. Carrots with dashi stock

3. Sweet potatoes with hijiki

4. Napa cabbage with kombu cha

5. Turnips with umeboshi

6. Shitake, Portabello, and Enoki Mushroom Saute

7. Sauteed Celery with Lemon

8. Chinese Style Cucumbers

All of these but the Carrots and sweet potatoes came out of an amazing and simple book called "Japanese Pickeling in 5 minutes to 1 day" The Carrots and Sweet Potatoes came out of an older book called "Vegetarian Japanese Cooking

Most of the recipies are super fast and require no special equipt. I plan on freezing the cooked veggies into smaller portions for easy lunches and I'm hoping the fresh veggies keep till I get back from surgery since they are slightly pickled. I'm also hoping that with pratice it will not take me a full day to make so much.

Today I will be cleaning up the freezer to make room for all the new goodies. Tomorrow's post will show a bento and hopefully a nice organized fridge. I read that the best way to store things is just zip lock bags as they lay flat. Yesterday I bought a 40 pack of the quart size and about 20 of the gallon size. Hopefully all goes well!!

The Beginning of Bento

2008-02-02T20:20:00.000-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Since this is my first post I will tell you a bit about myself. I just became a Vegan one year ago as my new years resolution. I was a vegetarian on and off for a few years (when I say on and off I mean I would cheat here and there and eat chicken) but then something in me finally changed and I have not looked back. It has been one of the best decisions I have made health wise and it truly makes me feel like I am living by my beliefs.

Some people may think that the switch is hard. Either to vegetarianism, or to veganism. It truly is not. Once you can find your substitutions you never feel like you are missing out on things. And Yes you can give up cheese!!!! I LOVED cheese but not I actually think its kinda gross. (it reminds me of mucus when you are sick ewwww) And I actually enjoy vegan cheese!

I am also not a person who loves cooking by any means. Spending time in the kitchen is not something I look forward to lol. (well that is actually changing too!) Last year I ate a lot of junk food or the few vegan items I could cook. (Oh did I tell you my husband is not vegan, and is not too fond of veggies lol so dinner is kinda complicated). So my resolution this year was to learn new recipies, find things that I could easily convert over into something my husband would like and not stress out so much in the kitchen.

I figured that everything gets easier with practice. And then my husband got me a tiffin box for Xmas. In the last month or so I've really gotten into bentos. They are so much fun to make and serve so many purposes for me.

1. Im forced to cook better meals as I want to put something in my bento for the next day's lunch.

2. I'm not eating convenience food at work because I have my healthy food packed in my bento.

3. I'm able to control portions easier

4. I'm actually starting to deveop smarter ways to shop for items at the grocery store (instead of just having rotting veggies in my fridge)

5. Im learning new recipies!

6. I'm getting some of my creative juices flowing as I try to think of new ways to make my bentos look cute.

So I hope this blog will show others that vegans eat good food, and that learning how to cook is not impossible if you just try.

Here is one of my first bentos.