Nurture your little ones with art, Bento Boxes

Bento Box 弁当 is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine (a simple lunch box). Traditionally, bento boxes were wrapped with a square piece of fabric called furoshiki that was knotted and used as a carrying bag; it also doubles as a placemat. Learn the art of wrapping furoshiki with the video bellow.

For the kids there is also the Japanese version of the Happy Meal. They are like little works of art, very detailed indeed and maybe too time consuming for a not stay at home mom... but could definitely order one to go. So let the kids finally play with the food!!

See more at http://cupcakes.today.com/2009/03/23/hello-kitty-bentos/


See more at http://ideabutter.com/creative-bento-box/

See more at http://www.toxel.com/inspiration/2009/05/08/17-amazing-bento-food-art-creations/

There is a great blog written by Sahn, a mom that started doing bentos for her kids not only as a cultural tradition but also as a healthy and fun alternative. Visit her blog at http://happylittlebento.blogspot.com/ and flirck photo stream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/35552506@N08/

Read an special by the NY Times about the new wave of "bento-moms" at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/09/dining/09bento.html?_r=1 and an interesting slideshow of their bento creations at http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/09/08/dining/20090909-bento-slideshow_index.html

There is no need to overdo to get your children to appreciate healthy food. I believe that colorful healthy choices served in a practical but fun manner is a great way to encourage kids to eat more natural food. There is a very good and affordable book about nutrition for kids, specially for moms that run out of ideas in what to put in those lunch boxes! It is called "Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children" by Ann Cooper. I wish I had one of these a couple of years ago...