A Rainbow of Good Nutrition

This Week's Bento Lunch

This week we've packed a rainbow in our bento! Eating a variety of different colored veggies is super nutritious and makes for a beautiful meal presentation. Happy chomping! 

Click here to view this week's full menu.

Laptop Lunches on Amazon UK {plus MENU}

As many of you may know Laptop Lunches Bento-ware is now available on Amazon UK! In celebration we have created a festive menu, seen in the image above. Many of you have asked for the recipes and packing instructions for this lunch and we are more than happy to oblige! This menu is an American twist on some British classics. Hope you all enjoy! 

Smoked Salmon and Cucumber Sandwich- 
Gluten-Free Chia and Millet Bread
Whipped Cream Cheese
Smoked Wild Alaskan Salmon
Fresh Cucumber

Spread a thin layer of cream cheese on both slices of your bread.
Lay a few slices of smoked salmon over one slice of your bread.
Cut your cucumber into thin coins and lay them over your smoked salmon.
Stack your sandwich together and cut it at an angle into two triangles.
Place the sandwich in your large unlidded container.

Roasted Finglering Potatoes-
Fingerling "Russian Banana" Potatoes
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (204 degree Celsius).
Arrange your potatoes in a small iron skillet or baking pan. Drizzle olive oil over the potatoes and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Place in the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through. Allow the potatoes to cool before placing them in the large lidded container.
Include your favorite dip in the small container to place alongside your roasted fingerling potatoes.

Cheddar Hearts and Snap Peas- 

Sharp Irish Cheddar
Fresh Snap Peas

Cut your cheese into 1/4 inch thick slices and cut into bit sized heart-shapes with our fruit and veggie cutters.
Include the snap peas and the cheddar hearts in your medium unlidded container.

Cinnamon Raisin Chia Pudding-
1/4 cup Chia Seeds
2 cups Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk
Cinnamon
1 tbsp Light Agave Syrup (optional)
1/4 cup Raisins

Combine in a large jar the almond milk, agave and chia seeds with a dash of cinnamon. Allow these to soak for a few hours or over night so that the chia seeds plump up. The texture is a lot like tapioca pudding. Stir in the raisins and scoop a serving into your medium lidded container. Use one of our ice packs along with an insulated bento bag to keep your lunch at a safe, cool temperature.

We are so excited to finally be more immediately accessible to all of our fans in the UK! Thank you for all of your enthusiasm and support! You can find our products on Amazon UK here. Our US fans can still find us on laptoplunches.com

California Brown Rice Salad ~ submitted by Lauren Pierini

This Easy Gourmet Recipe submission is perfect for a summer picnic or barbeque.

Ingredients:

1 Shallot, chopped
2 cups Cooked Brown Rice
1 Tomato, diced
1/2 Cucumber, diced
2 tbsp Arugula, finely chopped
1 Avocado, cubed
1/3 cup Crumbled Feta Cheese
Juice of Half a Lemon
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Prepare your Brown Rice according to the package details and set aside.

Dice your Tomato and half a Cucumber into small pieces and finely chop your arugula and shallot. Set these aside. 

Sauté the chopped shallot in a skillet with a swirl of olive oil. Add two cups of the cooked brown rice, the diced tomato and cucumber, along with your arugula. Cube your avocado and scoop into the mix, discarding the black shell. Add your Crumbled Feta Cheese and squeeze one half of a Lemon over the salad, then Salt and Pepper to taste.  Mix until just incorporated and lightly warmed.

Serve as a side to salmon or as an addition to a green salad. 

Bowl of Cherries

This Week's Photo



Menu

* Fresh Cherries
* Cucumber Slices
* Dill Dipping Sauce
* Raw Almonds
* Cherry Tomatoes


Preparation Notes

Cherries are in season! All winter we look forward to this time of year--when more and more fresh fruit becomes available locally and the colors in our lunchboxes really come to life.

Drop a handful of cherries into a large container.

Peel and slice the cucumbers.

Pour some dill dipping sauce into the dip container.

Scoop some almonds into a medium container.

Add a handful of cherry tomatoes to a medium container.