Mexican Scrambled Eggs and Blueberry-Oatmeal Bento

I know I've given a great start to my husband's day when I send him to work with a breakfast like this. I feel very grateful that we are able to have access to a variety of healthy foods. I hope my posts help to inspire others to create nourishing food for themselves and those they love, because it's a great joy to do so! What foods are you grateful for today?

Top tier of bento: Green salad (romaine, micro-greens, cucumber) with apple parsley dressing in a small container, roasted almonds, cheese puto, oatmeal with protein powder and blueberries in an apple cup.

Bottom tier of bento: Roasted asparagus (chard stem hearts,) pickled daikon, Mexican scrambled eggs (chard leaf.)

I had half an apple leftover from when I made my apple parsley dressing, so I hollowed it out with a spoon and filled it with cooled oatmeal! As you can see, the apple cup is the perfect size for a bento!

My Bento Recipes

Roasted asparagus (2 servings as shown)

The hearts are made from red chard stems that I trimmed. I'm happy to have been given the inspiration for yet another use for what would otherwise be compost! A touch of oil will keep them from drying out before lunch.  

Ingredients:

7 stalks asparagus

1 teaspoon EVOO

1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

* Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

* Cut asparagus into 2 1/2" pieces and toss with the EVOO and salt.

* Bake for 15 minutes.

Mexican scrambled eggs (1 portion as shown)

Fluffy eggs with melt in your mouth cubes of ripe avocado and salsa, mmmm. Topped with cheddar cheese flowers. I used a toothpick to add hot sauce for the flower centers. The eggs are contained in a red chard leaf.

Ingredients:

2 egg

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 tablespoon coconut oil

1/4 ripe avocado, diced

1 tablespoon hot salsa

(cheddar cheese and hot sauce for garnish)

Directions:

* Beat the eggs very well with the salt.

* Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.

* Add the eggs and scramble (I like to use a silicon spatula for this.)

* When the eggs are still half runny, add the salsa and avocado, gently folding them into the eggs.

* Pull from the heat when the eggs are still a little wet. They will continue to cook from residual heat and this prevents them from over cooking.

* Let cool and top with cheese.

Rolled Omelete with Bacon and Nori Bento

This is a example of what I hope to make more of in the future: Paleo Bentos. What does that mean? It means this lunch has no grains, beans/legumes, sugar or dairy. I look forward to creating more bentos without rice (wonderful bento staple that it is,) even though it means I'll probably never master character bentos! If you've made a grain-free bento I'd love to see it, or challenge you to try creating one!

Top tier of bento: Lemon pickled persian cucumbers (lemon zest twists,) baked spaghetti squash with tomatoes, fried garlic, and herb olive oil (chard leaf, parsley leaf, plum blossom.)

Bottom tier of bento: Celery and chard stem kinpira, rolled omelette with bacon and nori (carrot flowers with nori,) broth simmered spinach.

My Bento Recipes

Baked Spaghetti Squash with Tomatoes, Fried Garlic, and Herb Olive Oil (1 serving as shown)

Fried garlic is wonderful. Not only is it very tasty, but slowly frying it infuses your cooking oil. These crispy little flavor chips also add to the presentation of any dish you'd add garlic to!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon herb infused olive oil (or regular, use what you've got)

1/4 cup diced tomatoes (I freeze some in a large ice cube tray as you can tell from the picture)

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped parsley, or other herbs

1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1 cup baked spaghetti squash

Directions:

* Heat the olive oil over medium low heat and add the garlic slices.

* When the garlic is beginning to look golden remove from the oil. It's easy to over crisp these!

* Add the tomato, parsley and salt and cook until heated through (or defrosted) and saucy.

* Mix the sauce into the spaghetti squash and top with the fried garlic.

* Cool before packing or make ahead of time and put in the fridge until needed.

Lemon Pickled Persian Cucumbers (2 servings as shown)

A little bit of lemon juice and some knife work transforms leftover salted persian cucumbers into a new side dish. I find that just a little change is enough to keep meals exciting when it comes to using leftovers.

Ingredients:

half recipe salted persian cucumbers, sliced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Lemon Zest Twists

 Celery and Chard Stem Kinpira (1 serving as shown)

This recipe works really well with a variety of vegetables. If you eat chard you're likely to have leftover  stems and this is a great way to prepare them.

Ingredients:

1 stalk celery, cut into 3" pieces and then into "matchsticks"

2 chard stems, ditto

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon coconut aminos (or tamari)

1/2 teaspoon maple syrup

1/8 teaspoon Japanese 7-spice (shichimi)

Directions:

* Heat the oil over medium high heat.

* Add the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes or until softened and a bit caramelized

* Add the tamari and maple syrup and cook another minute

* Sprinkle with the Japanese 7-spice

Rolled Omelette with Bacon and Nori (about 2 servings as shown)

I don't own a tamago-yaki pan, which is what is used to make Japanese style thin, rolled omelettes. So I got creative and made this using a square baking dish on the burner. I am absolutely amazed that I was able to pull off making this. Also, the end result looked a mess before I packed it into the bento!

Ingredients:

3 strips bacon
3 strips nori
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

* Cook the bacon and remove from the pan while it's still a little soft.
* Beat the eggs with the salt.
* Use the bacon fat in the pan to cook the omelette, layering in the bacon and nori (check out this Youtube video so see how a Japanese omelette is made here.)

Pork Belly with Enoki and Ginger Bento

It's been a very long time since my last post. Disclosure: I have autoimmune disease (which is part of the reason why our home is gluten-free.) Recently I had a bad flare up. So healing and self-care became my number one priority and it's been a long recovery process. 

What's exciting is that I've dived into the autoimmune protocol diet, which is a modified Paleo diet. Not only is it gluten-free but also free of all grains, dairy, nightshades, nuts/seeds, and eggs. What a list huh? But it's working and I'm happy to say I'm starting to feel better. I made and photoed this bento before my flare up. It feels good to finally get to posting again! 

For more information on the autoimmune protocol please check out these amazing blogs:

thepaleomom.com and autoimmune-paleo.com. 

Top Tier: Pork belly with enoki mushrooms and ginger, pickled eggplant, roasted asparagus (pickled daikon stars,) chocolate drizzled sesame seed crisps. 

Bottom tier: Salt pickled persian cucumbers with nori, spaghetti squash with herbed kalamata olive oil and aged parmesan (red chard stems, parsley leaves.)

I'm experimenting with using baked spaghetti squash as a pasta replacement, which is common in Paleo circles. Because I didn't have marinara on hand, I worked with what I did have to make a a savory blended kalamata olive and herbs olive oil for my sauce. Sprinkled with a little aged parm, you've got a grain-free pasta! (Or omit the cheese to keep this recipe Paleo-friendly.)

The garnish here is made from red chard stems that I trimmed to have a heart shape. For me, finding creative ways to use foods is part of the fun of making bentos. I love seeing what other people come up with too!

My Bento Recipes

Pork Belly with Enoki Mushrooms and Ginger (1 serving as shown)

The mellow earthiness of enoki mushrooms pairs well with the richness of thinly sliced pork belly (or bacon.) A touch of heat from ginger goes wonderful with the pork. Topped with fresh black pepper, and and small bunch of fresh mushrooms. I used red chard as a divider cup.

Ingredient:

1/2 pack enoki mushrooms, bottoms removed, cut into 1/3

1/8 onion, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 small clove garlic, grated

2 oz thinly sliced pork belly (or nitrate free bacon), cut into 2 inch pieces

1/2 tablespoon avocado oil

1/4 cup stock (I always use super gut healthy home-made bone stock!)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Fresh pepper

Directions:

* Heat a small pan over lowish-medium heat and add the avocado oil.

* Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes or until soft and translucent.

* Add the enoki mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes.

* Add the pork belly and saute for 5 minutes or until it's no longer pink.

* Turn the heat up to high and add the stock, salt, ginger, and garlic.

* Cook another 1-2 minutes while stirring or until the liquid has cooked up.

* Let cool completely before packing.


Salt Pickled Persian cucumbers with Nori (3 servings as shown)

These persian cucumbers are wonderful salted because they are a bit sweeter than standard cucumbers. To fancy things up I partially peeled them and wrapped each piece with a strip toasted nori.

Ingredients:

2 persian cucumbers (I find these at Trader Joe's)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Strips of nori

Directions:

* Use a peeler to remove half of the skin of the cucumbers to create a striped effect.

* Cut the cucumbers in half and then into 1 inch pieces and place in a bowl.

* Sprinkled the cucumbers with the salt and use your hands to mix the salt in evenly.

* Let sit for at 15-30 minutes (depending on your preference for softness versus crunchiness.)

* Toast some nori and cut into thin strips.

* Rinse the cucumbers (if desired, if you like salty skip this)

* Wrap each cucumber piece with a strip of nori. (I find that the moisture from the cucumbers is enough to secure the nori in place. But if you're having trouble a dab of mayo will help.)