Halloween Muffin Tin Meal

Today is Muffin Tin Monday.  I have never participated, but thought I would start.  Today’s Muffin Tin Meal had a Halloween theme.  If you have never heard of Muffin Tin Meal (MTM), you should go check out the Muffin Tin Mom.  It is a fun way to serve your child a meal.  I do the same concept a lot with trays. 

I picked up a couple of vintage muffin tins at an estate sale.  I got both of them for 50 cents.  It isn’t the prettiest muffin tin, but I like that it has history. 

Ghost shaped jello, apples in the jack-o-lantern, cat shaped cheese, greek yogurt (Fage), pumkin shaped blueberry waffles, and raisins.

She is eating it as I type this. She has been eating a lot of the apples, but hasn’t even touched the cheese. She LOVES cheese, so I am surprised.

Muffin Mishap

So, I attempted to bake something else.  It didn’t turn out well.  I saw a recipe for berry muffins on another website.  I thought it sounded tasty and I got the ingredients, so Michael would make them for Sophie.  After I somewhat succeeded with the quiche, I felt quasi confident and decided that muffins would be a cinch. 

I began mixing the ingredients, triple checking every ingredient I dumped into the bowl.  After combining everything else, I started to add the frozen berries.  I began to realize just how many berries were in the batter.  I had followed the directions, but it was a lot. 

I started to put the batter into the silicone molds, which was no cinch due to the large amount of berries. Then I realized I had no clue how much these would rise.  Would they even rise?  Like I knew.  Only someone who had made muffins in the past would know that.  Sophie is no muffin makin' pro either, so that left me guessing.  I filled them ¾ of the way and hoped that would prevent them from turning into berry muffin lava and flowing all over the baking pan. 

I put them in for 15 minutes, even though it said 20-22.  They weren’t done in 15.  Shocking.  I kept resetting the timer for 2 minute increments.  I must have done this three times.  I decided they were done.  I let them cool for at least 10 minutes, even the though the recipe said 5. 

After the cooling period I excitedly got the muffin mold and tried to plop them out on a plate.  This is where disaster struck.  They weren’t cool.  Perhaps because they had been ‘cooling’ on the hot baking pan?  They fell apart.  I guess maybe the 5 minute rule applies to those who are using paper liners. 

The pumpkin on the bottom row looks like it has been smashed by an angsty teenager at halloween.

The report from my mom (who was watching her) was that Sophie wouldn’t eat the muffin.  She is becoming very picky, so no shock there.  Michael tried them and said something like, “This was supposed to be a good recipe? Are you sure you followed the instructions and didn’t leave something out?  They need butter.”  To which I replied, “Go butter them.”  I think they taste fine.  They aren’t amazing.  I will try another with butter and see if that is better. 

Bento #16: Muffin Mishap

Jello, kiwis, bananas, THE muffin and quiche

A bit about the jello.  I normally don’t feed Sophie jello.  I know she loves it, because her babysitters tell me so.  That being said, I really wanted to pour jello into her silicone pumpkin cup.  The cute factor won.  I had heard you could make your own jello by using unflavored gelatin and fruit juice.  I did just that.  I tried it and thought it was too jello-ie (made that up). It was too dense for my liking, but Sophie gobbled it up.  I used a mango/pineapple/orange juice.  The instructions said I could add honey or sugar if I preferred.  Umm, no.  Sophie has the energy of four children.  Sugar might make her plow me over as she runs around the house like the Tasmanian devil.

This is the brand of gelatin I used.

I now have a fridge full of jello that no one but the munchkin will eat.  You might be seeing it in a few more bento meals...

Bento #15: Fish and bunnies

I finally was able to use my new boiled egg molds.  I waited two weeks for these molds.  I ordered them on ebay and the person I bought them from didn’t ship them until a few days after I asked why I hadn’t received them.  They at least gave me a partial refund, but it still took two weeks.  It was only supposed to take a couple of days.  Oh well, I have them now!  I will do a separate blog post with pictures and instructions on how to use them.  For now I will just share Sophie’s bento from today.  I went with a bunny and fish theme.   I truly thought I ordered a bunny egg mold and was accumulating bunny themed foods in anticipation of this day.  I apparently I did not order a bunny, but a fish instead.  So…I went with a fish/bunny theme.

Annie's Natural Mac & Cheese (bunny shaped), fish shaped cheese, goldfish, strawberries, fish shaped boiled egg and a couple of bunny food picks!  Isn't the boiled egg so neat?

Leaves and pumpkins

Yesterday I did something I have never really done.  I tried to cook.  I mentioned in a previous post that I am slightly scared of cooking.  I never do it.  I really wanted Sophie to have some new foods in her bentos.  A couple of weeks ago I purchased this silicone mold.  I had dreams of using it to create beautiful muffins and quiches.  All of the dreams involved me convincing Michael to make these scrumptious items. 

I purchased the ingredients for two recipes last night and was really hoping Michael could make them for me.  As I was pondering the theme for Sophie’s bento, I felt stuck.  I didn’t want to do another fall theme until I could use my new mold.  All of a sudden I decided to just try and make the quiche.  My sister made the same recipe for a birthday brunch for my grandmother and myself.  She said it was easy and that I could do it.  I wasn’t so sure.  Michael was out running errands.  I took the plunge.  I kept texting him asking him silly questions like…

1.  I’m trying to make the quiche. I’ scared. When do you think you will be home?

2.  What does beat mean?  Can I use a whisk or do I have to get out the hand mixer?

3.  I need to put in butter.  Should I melt it first so it mixes well?

These are just the questions I texted him.  I called him with more.  He finally came home and helped me finish mixing and scooped the lumpy batter into the mold and other silicone baking cups.  I watched the oven just knowing they were going to overflow and burn.  I kept calling him into the kitchen to look at them.  They actually turned out pretty well.  I was happy to have something new to put into her lunch box. 

Peaches, kiwi, leaf shaped quiche, frozen peas, wheat thin sticks and grapes

The recipe is from allrecipes.com.  It is called, “Easy Quiche.”  Here is the recipe if you want to make it yourself.

Ingredients

• 2 cups milk
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 cup biscuit baking mix
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (10 ounce) package chopped frozen broccoli, thawed and drained
• 1 cup cubed cooked ham
• 8 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a 10 inch quiche dish.
2. In a large bowl, beat together milk, eggs, baking mix, butter and parmesan cheese. Batter will be lumpy. Stir in broccoli, ham and Cheddar cheese. Pour into prepared quiche dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes, until eggs are set and top is golden brown. (You will need to shorten the baking time if you are cooking them in silicone cups or a mold.)

Ladybugs, fall and teapots

My sister was at Old Navy and they had super cute bento boxes.  She got Sophie this darling ladybug box.  I had to go back and get more.  I picked up the frog and kitty boxes.  They are only $5!  They come with two layers and a spoon.  They have a monkey box too.  Here is the link.

Bento #11: Ladybug

Flower shaped strawberries on stem food picks.  PB & J sandwich with cheese and fruit leather wings.

Grapes, Healthy Vision steamer (carrots, sugar snap peas, black beans and edamame), bananas and stawberries.

Bento #12: First Day of Fall

I have really been looking forward to creating fall and halloween themed bentos.  I've been waiting and waiting.  Finally, the first day of fall arrived and I made one.  It turned out looking like a squirrel themed bento instead.  Oh well.  There will be many more fall themed bentos to come!

Asparagus, acorn shaped apple, raisins, acorn shaped PB & J, plums, apples cut into leaves and acorn shapes (you can't tell) and carrots.

Bento #13: Teapot

Grapes, Special K Fruit Crisp, flower shaped cheese, teapot shaped PB sandwich with fruit leather lid and hearts.

The Bento Effect

When I decided to start creating bentos, a little change happened within me.  I put down my work and all other distractions and thought out Sophie’s meal.  I didn’t just throw some food on her highchair tray, I took time putting a meal together for her.  It was comprised of things she has eaten in the past, but this time it was balanced.  Not only did I take the time to think it through, I also spent time creating something that was special for her. The bentos I have made have included flowers, butterflies, cats, stars, hearts, etc., all of which she is recognizing outside of her bento box.  Some of these shapes/animals she knew the word for before and others she did not.  The bento boxes not only introduce new foods, but they introduce new concepts and reinforce those she has already learned. 

So, why am I calling my blog, “The Bento Effect?” Here are a couple of reasons:

1.   Bentos can be very complex and quite a work of art.  I am just going for cute and fun!  I don’t see myself getting extremely artistic with it, I’m just going for “The Bento Effect!”

2.   As I mentioned above, creating bentos caused me to begin changing some of my habits.  Now, I am also thinking of ways I can carry out the theme of her bento throughout the day, to reinforce the concepts within the box.  I am also thinking of other areas of my life I can change and I desire to be more purposeful in our daily activities and with the things we do as a family.  The small act of creating a bento is affecting other aspects of our lives.  We are turning meals into memories.  To me this is “The Bento Effect.”

I started this blog, because I wanted to document my bento creations.  I wanted to have a place to post pictures and share my ideas.  When I posted my first few bentos on facebook, I received several comments with questions about what bentos were, where I had gotten my supplies, and so on.  I hope this blog will help answer those questions and encourage others to take the time to create a bento for their child.   I also hope we can all use this as a place to share our ideas and inspire each other.   

I also started this blog as a form of accountability.  We are a busy family (what family isn’t?) and I know it would be very easy for me to just get lazy again and not put any thoughts into her meals or let her babysitters feed herwhatever they can find in their homes.  I want to keep this up.  I don’t want to give up.  I have also created a facebook page for The Bento Effect.  I think this will be a great avenue for sharing ideas and connecting with others.  Please hold me accountable.  Follow this blog, ‘like’ the facebook page and follow me on twitter, if you like.  I can’t wait to begin connecting with others and seeing all of the bento creations you come up with!

Here are a few more of mine.  I have only done a total of ten, so they are still a work in progress.  I need to be better about planning out the theme in advance.  I think they would look better if I did.  I’m still learning!

Bento #5: Butterflies

Bento #6: Ice Cream Cones

Bento #7: Babar the Elephant

Bento #8: Cupcake

Bento #9: Animals

Bento #10: ABC 123

I have NO clue what I am going to do for Sophie's bento today....

Why Bento?

The following blog was orignally published on my other blog, but I wanted to share it here, as well.

There are always those memories that stick with you, some are good and others are not. For instance, I remember learning to tie my shoes. I was in kindergarten and on a trip to Colorado with my family. I practiced and practiced, finally getting it. I was so excited to come back and tell my teacher what I had learned. I knew she would be so excited, because she was used to doing it for me. I came back after Christmas break and told her my exciting news. She wasn’t excited. She didn’t seem to care. I was devastated. That memory has remained with me for the last 27 years. A little side note, as a teacher this memory haunts me a little. I wonder how many times I have been in a hurry and crushed a student’s spirit. I try to be patient with my students, but I know there are times I fail.

Another memory that is very clear in my mind is my mom creating fun things with our food. She would cut our sandwiches with cookie cutters and let us ‘paint’ our toast (I think it involved food coloring and milk). I am sure there are other things we did, but those are the two that stand out. Even though these aren’t big things, I will always remember them. I want to be able to create similar memories for my children.

My problem: I don’t cook. It’s true. I don’t do it at all. Michael likes to cook, thankfully. I am scared to. I don’t want to fail and I am too stubborn to give it a shot. I know I am not the only mom out there who doesn’t cook. I’m not naming names, but a friend of ours has double microwaves so she can use them to prepare meals for her family. She doesn’t cook either. Maybe someday I’ll tackle my fear, maybe not.

I do want Sophie to have healthy meals and I decided I wanted to do something nice for her, since I don’t stand over the stove every day. I discovered Bento meals several years ago and they have always intrigued me. What is a Bento, you might be asking?

A bento is a way of packing a meal. It comes from the Japanese culture and is meant to be balanced and visually pleasing. It is supposed to include small portions of a variety of foods. There are many people who create art with their bentos, but you don’t have to. It can be simple or complex. I like the idea for several reasons:

1. Creating a bento forces me to take the time to prepare her meal and I have control over what she is eating when she isn’t with me. The babysitters won’t be left trying to come up with a meal for her.

2. I don’t have to use Ziploc bags or any other wrapping, which means less waste and money.

3. I enjoy being creative, but I am not crafty. This gives me an outlet to use my creativity and it is a new project for me. I LOVE projects.

4. I hope she will be exposed to a variety of foods and will always remember her Bento meals as something fun and nice her mommy did for her. I want to create memories for her.

5. I am preparing healthy, balanced meals for her without cooking!

I have created four Bentos this week.

This is the first one. I must admit that I saw the idea for the umbrella on another blog and used it.

This flower themed bento includes blueberries, Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies, rolled up ham, apples cut into flower shapes, cheese in flower shapes, sugar snap peas, wheat thin sticks and flower shaped toast with jam.

Strawberry Shortcake themed bento. The cheese cats represent Strawberry’s cat, Custard. The strawberries and tortillas are cut into heart shapes, like the cheddar cheese, but you can't tell from the picture.

I packed two yesterday, because she was going to be gone all day, due to auditions at the studio. I went with a Hello Kitty theme. The Hello Kitty is made from ham and cheese. Here is a close up picture of each box...

If any of these seem like a lot of food, remember that the box is pretty small and I was packing all of these with the idea that it would be a meal and a snack. The Hello Kitty theme was intended to be two meals. 

The pink box in all of the picture is from Babies R Us. I tried to find the link, but I can’t find it on their website. The Hello Kitty lunch bag and box are from Target. I have been purchasing a variety of cookie cutters and I am really excited to by more Bento supplies. I love creating these for my princess!

Do any of you create Bentos? I would love to swap ideas!