Archive for December, 2008

Winner of the Laptop Lunchbox giveaway

The Laptop Lunchbox giveaway closed last night at midnight with 514 entries. Thanks to everyone for entering and sharing the ideal lunch that you’d like to pack! There were a lot of delicious-sounding meals in there.

Random number drawing for Laptop Lunchbox giveaway

According to the random.org drawing, the lucky winner is Robin of the My Pursuit Of blog (comment #305). Robin writes that she’d pack her four-year-old’s favorites in the LLB: mac and cheese, applesauce, hummus and carrots, and a couple of cookies. Congratulations! I’ll be e-mailing you shortly. Robin will receive the Laptop Lunchbox set including the box, insulated carrying bag, utensils, inner containers, drink container, and a copy of The Laptop Lunch User’s Guide. 

If you didn’t win the Laptop Lunchbox, there are always the bento prizes I’m offering for the Menu for Hope hunger charity raffle, with proceeds going to benefit the school lunch program in Lesotho, Africa. Good luck!

FURTHER READING:

Published by Biggie on December 16th, 2008 tagged Laptop Lunchbox, giveaway | 3 Comments »

Bento prizes on Menu for Hope 5

Menu for Hope 5December is a time for giving, and Lunch in a Box is happy to donate two prizes for the Menu For Hope food blog charity event, now in its 5th year. Started by Pim of Chez Pim, Menu for Hope raises money for the United Nations World Food Programme, the world’s largest food aid agency (last year it raised almost US$100,000 for the program!). Specifically, this year’s donations will benefit the school lunch program in Lesotho, Africa. A full list of prizes is here at Chez Pim, and the Western U.S. regional prizes are all shown here at Matt Bites. A mere US$10 gives you a shot at some pretty cool food-related prizes! Check them all out and see what appeals to you.

I’m offering two different bento prizes this year, with all products courtesy of Skater Company, Japan’s largest manufacturer of bento boxes. I’ll also give each of the winners a personal tour of San Francisco’s Japantown if you’re in town (details below).

Menu for Hope V bento prize (girl) Menu for Hope V bento prize (boy)

I’m offering:

  1. Hello Kitty & Berries Bento Box Kit with Personal Tour of San Francisco’s Japantown by Biggie. Get your cute on with a variety of unusual Hello Kitty food shaping tools, three feminine bento boxes, and a matching thermos. Valued at US$110, all products are from the Skater Company in Japan. Kawaii! (prize code UW11)
  2. Pokemon & Berries Bento Box Kit with Personal Tour of San Francisco’s Japantown by Biggie. Pack stylish “his and hers” lunches with a complete set of Pokemon bento boxes, rare Pokemon drink bottle, Pokemon lunch utensils, two feminine bento boxes, and a matching thermos. Valued at US$140, all products are from the Skater Company in Japan. Pikachu! (prize code UW12)

(Read on for full prize details and instructions on how to enter.) Read the rest of this entry »

Published by Biggie on December 15th, 2008 tagged equipment, giveaway | 7 Comments »

Giveaway: Laptop Lunchbox Set

Laptop Lunch System

(Dec. 16 UPDATE: The Laptop Lunchbox giveaway is now closed; see the announcement of the winners here.)

Looking for a lunch-packing gift for a friend, or just want to spoil yourself? To celebrate the holiday season, the folks over at Laptop Lunches have offered a free Laptop Lunchbox kit to one lucky Lunch in a Box reader anywhere in the world (not just U.S.).

Bonus: If you don’t win the giveaway and want to order one on your own, they’re also running a Holiday Discount for 20% off items purchased from their website through December 16, 2008 (coupon code is holiday2008). The coupon code temporarily brings their website prices below those of Laptop Lunchboxes on Reusable Bags or Amazon, so thanks for the discount! (Read on for information on how to enter the giveaway.) Read the rest of this entry »

Published by Biggie on December 10th, 2008 tagged Laptop Lunchbox, giveaway, shopping | 516 Comments »

Pasta and pizza bento lunches

One thing I’m starting to adjust to is my four-year-old’s growing appetite. It’s easy to look at the bento box size guidelines and figure out what size is right for your child, but they don’t stay that age (and appetite) forever! When he was three, a 350ml box was just perfect. Now that Bug is four, though, I’m finding he needs more of a 400ml lunch. This doesn’t mean I need to throw away the smaller boxes, though! Supplement them with a small side dish container that holds a small portion of fresh fruit, for example.

Pizza bento lunch for preschooler

Contents of preschooler bento lunch: Pepperoni and mushroom pizza, roasted asparagus, blueberries and crispy Asian pear slices.

Morning prep time: 7 minutes, using leftover pizza and asparagus. In the morning I cut up the pizza, asparagus and pear. (Read on for full packing details and an additional pasta lunch with a raw heirloom tomato sauce.) Read the rest of this entry »

Published by Biggie on December 9th, 2008 tagged bento, for kids, meat, pasta or noodles, vegetarian | 15 Comments »

Interesting new bento blog by Anna the Red


Wall-E Bento by Anna the Red

I came across an interesting new bento blog that gives step-by-step directions for creating elaborate kyaraben food art lunches. Anna the Red’s Bento Factory website is the new creation of Flickr user Anna the Red, who makes fantastic lunches for her boyfriend kickintheheadcomic. She’s partial to Studio Ghibli and Disney Pixar (think Totoro and Wall-E, like the bentos shown here).

Keep in mind that these are far from speed bentos, and are more in line with time-consuming oekakiben decorative art bento lunches. Have a look for inspiration for that rare food art bento you might make for a special occasion!


Nekobus Bento #2 by Anna the Red

On Bento Factory, Anna mixes write-ups of complete bentos with detailed how-to posts such as How to make mini Totoro, How to make Thanksgiving turkey bentos,  How to make vegetable flowers, and How to make a sunflower with sausages and a thin egg sheet (see also my tutorial for making thin egg sheets in the microwave, or the master list of all Decorative Food recipes on Lunch in a Box).

(Read on for more info, an additional source for kyaraben inspiration, and information on a new Daiso store in Cupertino.) Read the rest of this entry »

Published by Biggie on December 7th, 2008 tagged decorative, shopping | 11 Comments »

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