I think I'm a little infatuated with bento boxes. Bento boxes are phenomenon pioneered by the Japanese, like little lunchboxes: an ancient and elegant way to pack the maximum amount of food, all in a graceful, compact space.
It is popular in Japan for homemakers to spend time creating a carefully planned bento box, and it's growing in popularity within the western world too. Many mothers make bento boxes for their children - they make food more appealing to eat and making and presenting food with care is an act of love, whether it means a judicious balance of food ingredients (for taste, color, texture), or making the contents fun for a child, using imaginative cut-out shapes.
Furthermore, they're ideal for dieters - aesthetically pleasing, cheap to make, nutritionally balanced and portion controlled.
I like them myself because they allow you to have a creative outlet in something that was once mundane. I don't often have the time to make them, but when I do I find that making them is often very cathartic. Theraputic, almost.
{photos via Bentomom}
Ouuuuuu goody! I know we are going to be friends! I love bento lunches too. THE cutest thing to happen to lunch since tin lunch boxes!
ReplyDelete