Time had passed so quickly. It’s now been a week since the cat left us, a week since I started a bento competition…and now it’s time go leave for the land down under. I have definately been meaning to blog a lot more before leaving for Australia, but work is seriously snowing me under. It does sometimes seem pointless for me to make promises if my schedule keeps being rearranged. I do struggle – because I don’t think anyone has any idea the amount of crap I take at work and how much time it takes to get the stuff I seem to produce seamlessly. Just because I’m good at it doesn’t mean its easy you know!

aargh

Definately too much work aggro – and a well deserved break away from all this. Even my bento making adventures is going haywire, the FIRST time ever that I’m making a bento for someone other than me & bacon and what happens? I SCREW UP! It still looks pretty good though..

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Maybe its because I made two bentos instead of one – it’s me trying to do too much at one time. But I wanted to give the organisers something to munch on as she had to deliver the bento to the winner due to my bonkers work schedule:

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Alright, enough bento showing off (to see more, go here) – need to go off to sleep to prepare for another day of WAR at work before taking off! niteynites peeps, seeya in two weeks time!

*crossposted from notabrownbag - I have delayed posting this here due to having a sad week last week . It DOES close Monday, so if you’re interested, get clicking NOW!

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In conjunction with the fabulous girls from Culture Vultures ; THE local cultural & art website right here in Leeds, UK ; I am running a bento competition!!! Unfortunately it is only available for entry by denziens living and working in Leeds – but the gifts are definately fabulous as they’re handpicked by me!

The selected winner will be getting a specially made bento from my kitchen (yes, made from scratch!) in an adorable bento box that they get to keep and treasure. I have hand-picked a selection of envy-inducing ‘bento-gear’ for the winner to make their own bento lunches, as well as a how-to handbook on making superbly kawaii bento lunches and being the envy of all your colleagues!

It is my hope that this will start a lunch-volution, and the end of the sloppy sandwich on dry, stale bread that I see so many people stuff their mouths with during lunch time. To be able to go into a working lunch and not served a selection of sandwiches with unidentifiable fillings would be absolutely amazing. Having lived in blue-skies California, winters here in the north gets me depressed – but the thought of opening up a box of sunshine halfway through the work day brightens up my day to no end. Hey, maybe if everyone packs a bento, there will be no crime, peace on earth….and all that jazz…:D

…..my mock-interview, which was posted on their website:

What is a bento box?
“Portion control meets nutritionally complete work of art”.
Bento box is basically a box that you put your food in. If you’ve ever been to a Japanese restaurant, you would be familiar with the plastic mock-lacquer box with compartments that your dinner arrived in. In my opinion (and many others) the hinomaru is the classic bento, freshly cooked white short grained rice with an umeboshi (red pickled plum) in the centre – representing the Japanese flag.

In Japan, bentos are as widely available as Mcdonalds for the lunch-on-the-run, from vending machines to convenience stores (kombini) and railway stations. The credit-crunched version of assembling lunch at home and bringing it with you to eat at work/school has long been part and parcel of the Japanese culture – just as a brownbagged sandwich is to the Western culture.

However, the style of bento that is gaining somewhat of a cult status worldwide are the bentos made for children. This is instantly striking, from the rice molded into adorable shapes like rabbits and penguins. Go a step further and you’ll find great charaben/kyraben (character bento) practitioners recreating whole scenes of computer games into boxes of edible goodness – from a scene out of Mario to Professor Layton! There are competitions in Japan where accomplished charaben artists churn out their most adorably cute creations; from anime characters made out of ham to a whole zoo and Hello Kitty disguised as a penguin!

What do you put in it? Does it have to be Japanese food?
Two words; ANYTHING GOES! There are no hard and fast rules on this – I ensure I incorporate all food groups packed tightly in a box . Traditional bentos usually follow the rule of 4 parts starch, 1 parts fruit/veg and 2 part protein – but this is by no means a be all and end all. I generally try to lower my carbs intake whilst upping my fruit/veg intake, making it more 1:1:1. A bento for me has to tickle my tastebuds and fill me up enough so I do not succumb to a packet of crisps or a bar of chocolate. Fabulous bento practitioner-turned-author advises JUST NO JUNK, whilst another accomplished bento practitioner advises that nothing raw should be packed, and always ensure you use an icepack in summer….nobody wants a spoiled lunch!

Japanese food definitely helps, especially those that are designed to be eaten at room temperature, i.e. rice balls. Again, no hard and fast rules, I have previously packed hummus & crudites. Olives works well, so does cherry tomatoes and mini cheeses (think babybel) Some of the more refined bentoists have turned plain cheese and ham sandwiches into magnificent work of art. The key is to keep each individual item small, that way you are able to add a wider variety of foodstuff.

Is it for one greedy person or for two to share?
That’s the beauty with bentos – and the addiction that many bento makers face with purchasing as many bento boxes as they can possibly find! The variety of shapes and sizes of bento boxes available is astounding, from plain flat plastic containers (i.e. tupperware style) to elaborate cedarwoor crafted ovals and Hello Kitty shaped plastic boxes. Personally, my burger-shaped bento box gets the most laughter when I reveal it at lunchtime .There are boxes out there designed for all appetites, from tiny 350ml containers for toddlers or a snack to giant picnic boxes (kouraku) catering for a family picnic.

The rule of thumb is bento lunches are generally made for one – I keep my boxes tiny (below 600ml volume) to keep a strict tab on the portion size, but the husband gets a man-sized non-cute 1 litre box. Another note; bento boxes comes in all shape and sizes, but generally the cute ones are on the small side, catering to children and adolescent girls!

If you were making a bento box of beauty for your most beloved what key ingredients would you include and why?
Lots and lots of colours! There is nothing more stunning than opening up a box at lunchtime and having a riot of colours exploding from a deceptively simple box. Healthy bento euthusiasts live by the colour rule; Red, Green, Yellow and Orange. This means alot of fruit and vegetables…….but rest assured, I am a self-confessed carnivore, so you won’t be stuck with a vegan lunchbox – unless you want to!

To enter, please click here!

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It’s always extremely difficult finding a gift for bacon. Like seriously, what to you get a bloke on the mushiest day of the year, surrounded by all things pink and cuddly? Well, no such problem this year! Interflora, here I come!! No, not being silly, but bacon do really love flowers, and after all that’s happened this week, it was definately good time to get him some. We seem to have abit of a reverse relationship – he’s the one who loves getting flowers.

I went on to intrerflora’s website and had a quick click around. It was easy to navigate, you can filter out products by categories or price – and of course I did it by price . It was suprising to see interflora offering affordable flowers for Valentine’s day – you can get a gift bag of flowers from only £19.90! That’s amazing – I was totally under the impression that it would cost me at least £30 to get flowers delivered. I picked one that came with a vase and a helium ballon, the Sweetheart Perfect Gift Set. Delivery was super speedy, demonstrating the level of service that you can always be sure from Interflora.

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Isn’t it pretty? Awww….

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Have a closer look. There is one giant rose in the middle with a faux-diamond, bringing the look of the whole bouquet together. Nice.

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Seeing that this year we will be up in the air during Valentine’s day and having plane food (ugh) as we travel to sunny Melbourne, I thought bacon should have something to bring with him on the long plane trip as well. No, it’s not a book – neither is some ear plugs & eyemask. It’ll probably be best if he passes out the whole long 24 hour journey:)

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hur hur hur . Do you like my inscription? I ordered him a personalised local Sheffield Pewter hip flask from The Last Detail , who specialises in wedding decos, gifts and more. Now, wouldn’t you much prefer this to your regular mushy card and teddy bears? Fabulously functional yet thoughtful I thought getting him a personalised hip flask was such a fabulous idea, not only would he get use out of it, my inscription would remind him always of how fabulous I am….no praise like self praise .

I do like the Last Detail’s website. I love how you can shop by color, narrowing stuff down to the colour theme of your wedding and only getting cream colored accesories, for example. I also love the little bits and bobs that they have, like personalised chocolates and aprons. Personalisation just puts gift-receiving and giving in a completely different dimension ….so if you’re wondering what to get me for Christmas & birthdays …*nudge*nudge*

PS: If you’re thinking of getting the hip flask for valentine’s day, give them a ring, it might not be too late for Valentine’s Day delivery – I got mine within two days of placing an order – including personalisation, that’s absolutely amazing! And of course, Valentines flowers!

tetley – a man’s best friend (??- 3rd Feb 2010)

the cat passed away yesterday night. One moment he was there, the next moment he was gasping for air. And then he was no more…We think it was a heart attack, and am as upset as hell. He was the first cat I ever liked (not a cat person) but has hit bacon very hard as he’s been with him for 11 years and is the first pet he had that died on him like that. We both spent a day at work dazed, confused and of no use to anyone….I could hardly eat whilst bacon had just scoffed food down his throat nonstop. We’ve wrapped him up in his favourite fleece and put him in a box (he likes boxes) – and had just buried him next to the cherry tree that he helped planted. More like distract us by sitting in the hole we dug. And then we went out and got fish & chips….his favourite food. As usual, I left some fish for him…but this time he wasn’t there to scoff it up….and it had to go into the bin.

likes: drinking fish-infused water, picking a fight with other cats, sleeping on the bed with us, afternoon naps with me, sleeping in the laundry basket (with clothes in it)wearing my hairband, a good tickling, being cuddled, freedom to go in and out whenever he likes, meowing when you’re on the phone, sitting under umbrellas, going into the toilet with you, following you everywhere you go and his favourite thing ever; come running when he sees you approaching home after a day at work.

fave foods: melon, edamame (soybean pods), ham, tuna, smoked salmon, roast, milk, spicy curry, pepperoni off the pizza, KFC, catfood in jelly, barbequed food, kebab,

hates: travelling by car, confined spaces (he was rescued from a locked garage), collar, snow, loud noises, too much sunshine, not being able to sleep with us, no human company, us being away on holiday, other male cats, alcohol (suprisingly, seeing that he’s named tetley).

I’m so sorry for all the times when I refused to share my KFC with you. Hope you are in KFC heaven. The house is too quiet without you. We will always miss you xxxx

Leeds based readers,listen up and listen up good!! In conjunction with the fabulous culture vultures,I will be running a fantastic give away contest this thursday!!! If you’ve ever wanted me to cook for you,well,now’s the chance!

hints: its yummy,its tiny and its all about loving!!! Apologies to those not working/living in Leeds; Its restricted to Leeds only as its a)perishable and b)hand-delivered by ME!!