Bento Lunch

Trying to get back in the swing of things here. 
I was hit with a horrible cold and I'm finally starting to feel back to normal.

Today's lunch:

Peanut Butter Sandwich with Fruit Leather center

Carrots

Wheat Crackers

Smores Mix

My Green Monster Smoothie

There are lots of recipes out there for "Green Monster Smoothies."

Essentially you can add whatever you like. This is my version. 

I drink this for breakfast when I don't feel like cooking :) It's so refreshing!

By the way, this is a great way to sneak veggies into your kids. My toddler LOVES this smoothie. 

What you need:

1 Frozen Banana

1 cup Frozen Peaches

1 cup Fresh Spinach

1/4 cup Non-fat Plain Greek Yogurt

1 cup Vanilla Almond Milk

Blend until smooth. Enjoy! 

Tissue Paper Hearts

I can remember doing all sorts of shapes as a child, with a little glue and some crinkled tissue paper.

Now, as much as I wanted to be a perfectionist and make these perfect, I left them a little unfinished just as my girls made them.

What you need:

- Tissue Paper 

(We used Red & Pink from Walmart. 97 cents for 8 sheets)

- Glue Sticks

- Paper or cardstock for your heart

- Pencil

Cut small squares of tissue paper. 

On your paper, draw a heart shape with pencil.

Use a glue stick and spread glue in an area of the heart.

Slightly Crinkle up tissue paper square and press on where you placed your glue.

"Sammy" The Owl

Get it? Owl Sammy.. Sammy = Sandwich. Haha. Clever, right?

Sammy is made out of a turkey sandwich, cucumber & olive eyes, cheese beak & feet, fruit leather wings and he is resting apon a Pocky branch with broccoli and almond leaves.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Something about these muffins remind me of Summer. 
Lemon.. blueberries.. a light breakfast on a warm morning with a cup of coffee.. 

I needed a little something to get me out of the Winter funk. These are great!
My toddler gobbled these up. She prefers them sliced in 1/2 with some cold butter on them. 
mmm mmm good!

Serves 12. (Would also make a great bread!)
Weight Watchers: 5P+ per serving


What you need: 
3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/2 Cup Organic Raw Sugar (or regular granulated sugar)
2 eggs
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon 
1/2 Cup Fat Free Milk
1 Cup Blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin tin or line with cupcake liners. In a bowl, whisk together flour, salt & baking powder. 
2. With electric mixer, beat flour until fluffy. Slowly add in sugar. Add eggs one at a time, mixing in between. Beat in vanilla extract and lemon zest. Be sure to scrape down sides of bowl as needed. 
3. Slowly add flour to butter mixture, beating in between. Then add milk slowly. Mix until combined and gently fold in blueberries.
4.  Scoop mixture (about 1/4 cup for each muffin) into muffin tin. Bake 12-15 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Glaze:

3/4 Cup Powdered Sugar

Juice of 1 Lemon

In a small saucepan, add sugar and lemon juice and whisk until combined. 
Allow muffins to cool and pour glaze over muffins.  

Bento Lunch

Kielbasa with chicken pick

Baby carrots

Wheat crackers

Babybel cheese - I used food safe markers on her (please excuse my lack of artistic skills on this :)

Shortbread Jam Cookies

I love Valentines Day because it's just another excuse to create cute & girly tools in the kitchen. 
Like these easy and delicious heart shortbreads. 
This recipe has been around forever. Shortbread dough is pretty simple to make and the possibilities are endless for fillings. 

- 1 cup (2 sticks) of softened unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 4 cups flour (I use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose)
- 2 tsp baking powder 
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 cup fat free milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Raspberry Jam or other filling
- Powdered Sugar (optional)


1. Beat butter with electric mixer 
2. Slowly add in sugars and mix well. Add eggs one at a time, mixing in between
3. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, & salt. Add to butter mixture, a little at a time, alternating with milk. Add vanilla extract and mix
4. Divide dough into 2 separate disks. Refrigerate for 1 hour


5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with silpat or parchment paper. Roll out dough on floured surface until about 1/8 inch thick. 
Use a heart shaped cookie cutter and cut out shapes from dough. 
Use a smaller heart cookie cutter and cut out centers from half of the larger hearts. (I also baked the tiny hearts that we cut out of the centers and my girls enjoyed those for snacks)
6. Bake 10 minutes or until just before golden brown. Serving size and baking time depends on how large or small your cutters are. 
7. Allow to cool. Sprinkle tops of cookies with powdered sugar if desired and spread 1 tsp of jam or other filling on bottom of cookie and place other half on top.


Other fillings that would be good:
- Fruit Preserves
- Any kind of jam/jelly
- Nutella
- Fluff (or strawberry fluff for Valentines Day)