Crab and Asparagus Salad Bento

I looove to load up the veggies. This bento features 8 different vegetables. Best part? Pickled chard stems. Ain't nothing going to waste (sorry compost bin, no food for you!)

Top tier of bento: ginger rice, Crab and Asparagus Salad, radish flowers, sliced mushrooms with tamari-dipped nori.

Bottom tier of bento: Carrot and Hijiki Stir-fry, Cabbage and Red Onion in Garlic Butter, pickled chard stems, chard leaves, pickled carrot flower.

My Bento Recipes:

Crab and Asparagus Salad (1 portion)
This recipe makes canned (affordable) crab shine! Fancy stuff!

Ingredients:

3 asparagus stalks, sliced diagonally
1/3 cup canned crab 
1/4 cup stock
1/2 teaspoon tamari
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon butter

Directions:

* Boil the asparagus pieces in the stock for 2 minutes, or until tender.
* Drain well.
* Toss with the butter while still warm so it melts. 
* Add the remaining ingredients. 

Cabbage and Red Onion in Garlic Butter (1 portion)
A head of cabbage is a great, cheap vegetable so I like buying it. Then there's a lot of it though! I'm always picking my brain about new ways to cook it up. This recipe was a winner.

Ingredients:

1/8 red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup roughly chopped green cabbage
1 cup stock
1 clove garlic, sliced
1/2 tablespoon butter
pinch salt and pepper

Directions:

* Cook the cabbage and onion in boiling stock for 3 minutes with the lid on.
* While that's cooking heat the butter in a pan over medium low heat and add the garlic slices. 
* Cook them for 1-2 minutes or until golden and remove from the butter. 
* Now you've got tasty garlic butter and even tastier fried garlic: win-win.
* Remove the lid from the cabbage and cook another 3 minutes or until soft (my hubs likes it soft) and the stock has reduced. Stir as needed.
* Drain the cabbage and onion and toss into the butter. 
* Mix well. 
* Season with salt and pepper. 
* Top with the fried garlic slices.

Easy Pickled Anything (like chard stems)
I love the show "Portlandia." There's a sketch in one episode about a couple that pickles everything. Eggs, broken CD cases, everything. No matter what it is they smile cheerfully and say "We can pickle that!!"

Well so can I and so can you! I keep a container of unpasteurized pickle brine in the fridge and add whatever bits of veggies I have to it. After just a couple of hours I have pickles that are alive with healing probiotics. It's easy and it's just the thing for a happy tummy!