Charaben Bento Box: Happy Worm

Almost too cute to eat!

I love making bento lunches for my daughter, but haven't tried out the character bento, also known as a charaben bento, until today. I wanted to start out with something simple, and quick, so I went with this cute little worm! He is happy, and why wouldn't he be, with those yummy carrots and that juicy strawberry to tempt his tastebuds?

First off, I made a simple wrap using leftover chicken, mayo, and slices of cheese. I had to tuck in the sides before I rolled it so that it would fit nicely in the box. I just rolled it from the short end to short end of the long rectangle...or top to bottom if you are looking at the picture below.

After I folded it like this I rolled it from top to bottom.

After it was rolled, I cut it into three sections. To make sure the sections would fit the box, I placed the whole roll in, took my knife and made a mark of how tall the bento came on the side of the wrap. I cut that section and then cut the remainder in half as well. If a section is slightly too big, try to put the lid on. If it won't close, then you can cut off however much is necessary to make it fit. Easy as pie! Once I had my wrap spirals, I carefully added them to one side of the box, and cut out my sliced cheese shapes using a little kitchen knife. The black stuff is nori, or seaweed, that was cut with kitchen shears. Nori sticks to the cheese easily. After I put his head on, it looked odd, so I made a wavy cut from the side of the cheese, and put it on the bottom of Mr.Worm. That did the trick! Then I cut up a little carrot into sticks and placed them in the bento box along with a strawberry. This took me about 10 minutes to make. I love easy lunch days!
*Nori can be found in grocery stores in the ethnic food sections. They are used to make sushi as well as other things.

Sandwich Wrap Bento Lunch

I wanted to share the lunch I made for my daughter. I made a of sandwich wraps using leftover chicken, jazzed up sour cream, lettuce, and shredded cheddar. Once they were finished being filled, I rolled it up on both ends to look like a burrito, and cut it in half. The bento box pictured has a heart-shaped silicone cup, so I cut the wrap diagonally, then flipped the top half over the bottom so that the points of the wrap looked like the bottom of a heart. I place the heart cup (just a silicone cupcake cup) in the far end of the bento box, and then slipped in the wrap. There was a little room left inside, so I put in a cherry tomato. The lunches were really yummy, and fit inside the box beautifully.

The silicone cup squished together a bit. Oh well.

Sour cream dressing (taste as you go method)
Sour cream-small container
Minced/crushed garlic in jar (about 1tsp)
Seasoning salt
Extra virgin olive oil (about 1 tsp)

PB&J Wrap Bento Lunch

These quick wraps are very convenient and add a great twist on the classic pb&j sandwich. I only eat wheat bread, so naturally, I use the wheat tortillas with these as well. The white tortillas work just as well, but it might take a trial period to train your taste for them. They taste just like bread, but more like when the bread has been squished flat.

Here's how I make the wraps:

1. Lay your tortilla on a plate. Spread one half with peanut butter, and the other half with jam. Try not to use too much jam or it will ooze out when you roll them.
2. Fold over one side, and continue folding it until you have a little burrito shape without the folded bottom.
3. Cut the wrap in half and serve.

One half peanut butter, the other sugar free jam.

Fold it a little past where the peanut butter starts.

Fold again, leaving a small flap on the end.

Tuck the last bit over. The peanut butter will make it stick.

Once you cut it, you can easily lay them in a bento box, or on your plate.

My daughter ate every last bite of this!

I love using these in my bento lunches. They are pretty sturdy, so if they are jostled a bit, they won't be destroyed. I slip these in first, and add my other foods to the bento afterward.