New Box and Paper Punch

Good morning, today I have to leave super early around 5:45 am so I was up at 4 am once again to create my lunch. I am really excited today because I have some new items that I got to try out. The box was from Amazon for about $15.00 I love that this box is small and has two compartments, which makes it perfect for days like this when you really don't wan't to carry around enough food for 2 meals. Also noted in this picture you will find two Ionic paper punches that I used to cut my nori into 2 flower shapes. The blue whole puncher is a tad bit annoying to use however because the pieces are tiny and I sometimes loose the little dot in the center of the flower and am forced to punch a second one for spare parts.

For lunch today you will find the following...

The Main Compartment contains:

1. Pulled pork, that was roasted for around 4 hours.
2. 2 Rice shaped with my flower cookie cutter...sad fact its the only cutter I have right now besides the apple one, but I do have my eye on a set of star shaped ones the next time I go to Michaels Arts and Crafts. On top of the rice you will find the flower shaped Nori that I made with the Ionic paper punchers pictured above. They cost three dollars each at Ross.
3. Peas, to fill in the space and to meat my desired vegetable intake.

The Cold Compartment contains:

1. Strawberry and Blackberry fruit salad.
2. Flan shaped like a flower using the same cutter as the rice.

Well that is my lunch for today, I am still debating between adding some Korean BBQ sauce to serve with the pulled pork or if I should just keep it plain. Anyway until next post, have a great day.

Snack or Side Garden Bento

Good Morning, yesterday I was bored and decided that I wanted to practice my garnishing skills by creating a snack bento that I enjoyed as a side for my beef stew lunch (not shown). Having a light, fresh, and bright sides gave a nice balance to the otherwise heavy and hearty stew.






In my snack box you will find:

1. One large strawberry rose.
2. 1 snack sized mandarin orange drained.
3. 1/3 Blanched carrots in various shapes.
4. 2 small grape tomatoes. 

I was inspired to create a carrot rose when I was browsing the computer for various garnishes and saw multiple pictures and videos on the carrot rose. The carrot rose appeared to be an easy task to accomplish and I happened to have carrots in my fridge so I thought this would be a great starting point for my list, however I came across a slight complication when I realized that my carrots were too thin, and I cut the slices a tad too thick. This means that my rose had a hard time standing up on its own without falling apart, or without a support (toothpicks, and grape tomatoes). Above the Rose you will find a flower carrot cutout and two leaves, these were inspired by the memory of a flower symbol I saw as a kid, I don't remember what it means but I the visualization remains vivid in my mind. In the end my garnish looked more like a bunny then a flower garden but it was still pretty to look at, and is a great representation of spring.

Another garnish that I wanted to try was the Strawberry rose, this has been on my to do list for a long time but just like most the list I create this rose just became neglected. This was very easy to create, as it took only four slits on the bottom and then four more smaller slits near the the top in between the previous slits. Once the slits are all created I took the pairing knife and carefully pulled the petals so that they would flair a little to give the illusion of a flower in blossom.

Well this is my snack/ side box that I made yesterday, I hope you enjoyed this post.

Taco Bar

Good morning! I hope everyone is having a nice day, originally I had planned to make a bento style lunch today to enjoy inside since I haven't packed anything in almost a week, but when I got down stairs my lunch was already ready for me. So instead I will just show my lunch from Monday, which happened to be Earth Day but I forgot.

Monday's lunch was made from the leftover taco ingredients from Sundays taco dinner. I am not a huge fan of eating a taco the proper way where you stuff the shell instead I always turned my tacos into a nacho bar and used a spoon to scoop my ingredients onto the shell, I know its weird and I don't know anybody else who does that but I've been doing it since HS. I basically organized my tray the same way I do my plate but the tray separated the ingredients nicely but my proportion sizes did need a little adjusting. In my case I found that I had way more meat then I needed and not enough vegetables to finish off my little chips. If I were to do this again I probably would either top the meat with the cheese or melt the cheese on to the chips, this way I would have a whole block for both my lettuce and tomatoes, and the limes would be placed where ever there was room (probably with the tomatoes).

Here is what I included in my taco bar:

1.  Mexican Shredded Cheese... maybe 2 or 3 tablespoons?
2.  1/2 a lime sliced, I added the sliced lime because I used the other half to make guacamole.
3. 2 Crispy corn tortillas broken into chips... I know I am weird.
4. 4 small grape tomatoes small diced. I ended up using dicing 2 more to finish off the meat and chips.
5. Shredded lettuce... I think its about 3 tablespoons as well, I had it packed pretty tight, but I ran out quick and didn't cut extra.
6. Trio of Sauces: 2 tablespoons each of Homemade Guacamole, Salsa, and Sour Cream
7. 1/2-2/3 Taco Meat

To make the Guacamole You need:
1/2 Lime
2 Avocado
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 small garlic clove minced
1/2 minced Jalapeno (optional)
2 Tablespoons Cilantro minced.

1. In a medium bowl mash the Avocados with a fork, once all the chunks are gone.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and half the Cilantro.  Mix until well combined.
3. Check the seasonings, adjust if needed. (If more garlic is desired either chop another clove or use a pinch of garlic powder)
4. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with the remaining cilantro. 

Well that is my post for today! I've got some new items today that I can't wait to share with you tomorrow  but until then have a great day!

Why I did this at 3 am I do not know?

 Good afternoon everybody! Funny thing happened this morning at 3 am I was feeling hungry and thirsty so I go down stairs to grab some cold water and maybe a snack, when I get to the fridge I saw a bowl of Jasmine rice just calling my name. Now you probably think I decided to eat the rice at 3 am but instead I grabbed the nori and some scissors and created a little boy rice ball. This took me only 2 minuets and for being half asleep I think I did a good job especially because this is my first time. Anyway once he was made I wrapped him up and stuck him in the fridge completely forgetting I was hungry. Anyway since he was already made I decided to stick him in my lunch for today, I am not going anywhere so I brought out my little sectioned tray that most people buy cheaply for their kids. These can be purchased at any grocery store for about a dollar a piece. When I bring my tray out I am usually trying to proportion what I am eating in this case my veggies. I look forward to the day I am allowed to eat as much vegetables as I want, this day should come very soon but until then I have to be careful. Anyway here is my lunch for today!

For my lunch I have:

1. 1 Little boy Onigiri that I made at 3 am... Simple but proud of myself, I guess getting up at 4 am to get ready for culinary school has it's uses!
2. 1/3 cup Vegetable Stir fry. 
3. 1 thin long pork chop that I dredged in gluten free flour and adobe seasoning before frying. Once it was cooked I sprinkled it with salt and added some lemon juice to it. Although the flavor was good I felt as if the gluten free flour made the pork feel grainy, in fact you can kinda see it in the picture but at least it taste good so I can temporarily overlook the flaw in my brand of flour.
4. 1 egg that I cut in half and sprinkled with salt.
5. 1 slice Cassava dessert, it was the last slice in my fridge so I thought I would add it to my lunch.
6. 1 plum that I sliced and garnished with a lemon twist.
7. 1 Snow pea and carrot garnish that I used to fill in the space and add a pop of color to the lunch.

As you can tell pork is my favorite protein with shrimp being a close second, I guess its the Filipino in me and my love for bread and pasta comes from my dads European side, but until I am off gluten I will just embrace my Asian side 100% and stick to the rice.

About garnishes, according to the teachers I love the pretty things in a kitchen, and they are right I much prefer a pretty platter then one that looks commercially made.  To make this carrot and snow pea garnish I quickly microwaved 5 small snap peas in water for about 30 seconds until tender but still crisp. Then I made 6 carrot flowers that I cut out using a small cookie cutter. Once the peas are tender fan it out and place 2 of the flowers (the other 4 went in a side salad for later) under the snow peas for a simple and beautiful garnish.

Vegetable Stir Fry are one of the easiest things to make in small or large amounts, In my case I made enough for 3 sides or 2 entrees. Here is what you need:

• 2 Garlic cloves minced
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon each Soy Sauce, Mirin, and Saki
• 1 carrot Julianne
• 2 green onions cut on a bias
• 5 mushrooms thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup snow peas, mine were big so I cut it in half.

1. Heat a little bit of oil or butter in a medium skillet and add the garlic and ginger until it becomes fragrant and has a lightly toasted color.
2. Add the mushrooms and carrots until they become tender, once the mushrooms start to brown season the vegetables with salt and pepper.
3. Once the carrots become tender add the rest of the ingredients and cover until the snow peas are soft but still slightly crisp.
4. Check the seasoning, add more salt and pepper if needed if not remove from heat and sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired. 

Well that is my lunch, I hope you enjoyed it! 

Magnesium Rich

Good morning, yesterday I packed a magnesium rich meal for lunch but I was just too busy to post it until this morning.  I really need to get a smaller box because these boxes hold way too much food for me, instead I ended up having a lunch and 3 snacks but I had breakfast really early and dinner late so the constant snacking was important, it was just a pain to drag out and put back together. A less complex box would have been better. Anyway before I go into details about my lunch I wanted to talk about my little shaker I used as a sauce container. Originally I thought it would be a good sauce vessel because it held my ketchup really well, but as far as my soy sauce goes it did not hold up instead I found a puddle of soy sauce in my that my peas and rice were happy to soaked up.

In the main compartment of my lunch you will find:

1. Pork Tocino sprinkled with sesame seed. The pork itself isn't high in magnesium but the sesame seeds are with 1 oz providing you with 101 mg of magnesium. To make the meat higher in magnesium switch the pork for white meat chicken which will provide you with 7.6 mg magnesium for every 1 oz. To make the Tocino I used a seasoning mix I got at the Asian grocery store but I plan on making my own next time to avoid the citric acids.
2. 1/3 cup White Rice is also a good source of magnesium, for every 1/2 cup you receive 9.3 mg of magnesium. To go with the rice I added soy sauce in a container.
3. 1/4 cup of Peas contain 16.2 mg of magnesium, because the soy sauce is high in salt and the tocino is high in sugar I just left these peas unseasoned but you can add salt and butter if you wish.
4. Tomatoes: 1 medium tomato contains 13.5 mg of magnesium but these were grape tomatoes so I probably got about 5 or 6 mg instead. 

Inside the cold compartment you will find:

1. 1 slice Cassava Desert: This desert is very sweet so I probably should not have eaten it with the tocino and apricots but it taste good and will give me a lot of calories which at the moment I want so its fine, plus I didn't eat it until 3 hours after I finished the food in the main compartment. I am not sure the exact amount of magnesium in the cassava root but I read that it contains alot of copper, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin B. They are also high in calories so if you are on a diet avoid it.
2. 1 medium Banana contains 33 mg of magnesium as well as 422 mg of Potassium, although they are one of my least favorite fruits they are high in the nutrients I am constantly deficient in so I consume 1 or 2 a day on average. 
3. 2 tablespoons Sunflower Seeds: these are one of the highest sources of magnesium about 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds will contain 128 mg of Magnesium. All the moisture in my lunch made mine soggy :( so next time I will have to place it in a container to prevent that from happening, instead I blended it up with my banana, apricot, and an ensure to make a high calorie nutrient rich  snack when I got home.
4. 6 halves canned apricots gave me 16 mg of magnesium. Periodically throughout the day I just randomly munched on them as well as adding them to my shake. 
5. The Parsley and babybel cheese were in case I wanted them to go with my entree but in the end I didn't use them so the cheese went back in the fridge and I tossed the small amount of parsley.

Anyway that was my lunch yesterday, all I am missing here is an over easy egg to eat with my rice but I forgot to make it. I know my food for yesterday was a lot but barely anything was wasted with the long day I had. I hope you enjoyed the post, I have a new box coming in the mail soon and I can't wait to use it but until then it will just be my not so little green and orange boxes. Enjoy the rest of your day!

Shrimp Toast and Shrimp Patties

Good afternoon! Today I am having a great day, the weather outside is so beautiful and cooling that it brings happiness when you go for a walk. This says a lot for the weather especially because I hate to go for a walk with nowhere to go. Anyway for lunch today I finished off my shrimp paste and made a shrimp toast for breakfast along with two eggs and sausages, this was a perfect way to start my morning and very energizing. I have been meaning to post the picture of my lunch yesterday but with some computer problems I wasn't able to load the pictures until today but I must say it is very appetizing.

For lunch yesterday I had the following:
1/4 cup sauteed mushroom and eggplant.
1/4 cup green beans.
1 Jar sunflower seeds (I munched on all day)
2 Shrimp patties
1 Shrimp Toast cut into 2 triangles.
1/2 cup rice
1/4 lemon
Parsley for garnish.

My dad said that I should start writing out my recipe in a proper format instead of just listing ingredients, so next time I post something I will try to remember to write them out in proper recipe format. Truth is I don't follow recipes or measure ingredients so this will be new to me. Instead I like to go based on instincts and taste. Lately I learned no recipe is original instead you should always taste your food and make things your own.

In case you are wondering how I make the shrimp paste it has the following:
1/2 lb Shrimp that has been de-veined and peeled
1/4 minced Jalapeno (I made meatloaf the day before so I decided to keep just a tad for the paste.)
2 small garlic cloves
2 tablespoons parsley
1/2 tablespoon ginger
1 tablespoon onion
Salt and Pepper to taste
For extra flavor I added a dash of saki and rice wine vinegar.

Puree all the ingredients in a food processes until it forms a smooth paste, some people add a little cornstarch if it becomes too moist. Spread a thin layer of mixture on a piece of lightly toasted bread then sprinkle some sesame seed on top of it. For an even layer I placed the sesame seed in a small dish and pressed it on the bread. Then you can finish toasting it in the oven or you can shallow fry the toast shrimp side down until the shrimp is cooked and toast is crunchy. Serve with a sweet chili sauce or eat it plain like I did.

Well that was my lunch for yesterday, I didn't pack or cook anything interesting for lunch or dinner today instead I am enjoying all my wonderful leftovers. Have a wonderful and bright day!

Just another Thursday!

 Good afternoon everybody, today I had a big breakfast and late snack of Organic Sunflower seed's and Mediterranean lemon yogurt so I didn't get around to eating lunch till 2 in the afternoon, I know its late but I still wanted to eat so I optioned for a light lunch today instead of the double layers I usually consume. Although my lunch was simple and looks like a leftover lunch it wasn't. Originally I planned on making it for dinner yesterday but I still had leftover chicken I needed to finish first. This lunch was exciting to make for two reasons: 1) I always wanted to make a mini meatloaf. 2) I got to use my new mini shaker. I really don't know what it is suppose to be used for but it had a little plastic divider inside so I could add mustard and ketchup in the same container. Anyway back to lunch!

For lunch today I had:
1 banana
1 package Gluten free macaroni, this was my last package so I will have to pick more up on Monday.
1/4 cup of canned green beans.
1 of 8 mini meatloaf's
1 container of Ketchup.

For the meatloaf I lined 8 of the 12 slots in the cupcake tin with a plain paper liner, the foil ones probably would have given the edge a little bit more color but I wanted to save those for something else. After I lined the cupcake tin I preheated the oven to 375 degrees F and started making the mixture. Inside the mixture you will find 2 pieces of gluten free bread (I toasted them and crushed to make homemade bread crumbs.), Worcestershire sauce, 1.2 lbs of ground beef, mushroom, garlic, onion, 1/2 jalapeno  green onion, S&P, fresh Parsley, Paprika, garlic herb seasoning, tomato basil seasoning, pizza sauce (normally I use ketchup or tomato sauce but I need to finish my jar so in it went... I think it taste better anyway!), and one egg. Be careful not to over mix the meat, instead I mixed the egg, pizza sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seasonings together first, then I added my vegetables and bread crumbs together and mixed till they all well combined. I then added the meat into the mixture until it the mixture was evenly combined and let it sit while the oven finished reheating. Once the oven timer went off I added the mixture into the tins and baked it until the temperature reached at least 155 degrees F, but I took it out at 190 degrees which is a little over done but you can't be too careful with ground meat. If you don't have a thermometer you can just tell by the color and the the meat should be firm.

Once the meat cools I peeled off the paper liners and wrapped them in food service wrap before putting them in the fridge or freezer. Normally I like to add ketchup to the top of my meatloaf's but since I planned of freezing them I just decided to put the sauce on the side. By leaving it plain the individual meatloaf's are easy to wrap with little to no mess an allows you to have various sauces whenever you are ready to use them. My personal favorite is a Roasted Red Pepper sauce (Basil, garlic, onion, red pepper, tomatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper) that I make. Anyway that is my lunch I hope you enjoyed it! I do have plans to try a healthier version of a Chinese appetizer that I wan't to pack. What is it? I can't tell you but I hope it won't disappoint. Anyway Good Night!

Sure it looks pretty, but I still despise GF Pasta!

Good Afternoon everybody! Things have been and will continue to slow down for me this week but it will probably pick back up again next week, so while I have this time off I won't be really packing much food so instead I will probably talk about more gluten free items I am discovering, out of respect for individual products as well as my personal taste I don't like to really bash products that I find plain awful, but still think its important to express my struggles with adapting to a new lifestyle that is hopefully not permanent. So let me introduce to you what I ate the other day! It is a lobster and shrimp with a Lemon and Garlic Cream Sauce. I have made this dish about 100 times before I even went gluten free... just minus the lobster, it was on sale so who could refuse? ... but anyway I love this pasta dish but I absolutely HATE! Gluten Free pasta, I must have tried two types in the last month and about four others prior to that each one I found a major problem with them; either the taste was awful or the texture was way to unappealing to even bother. I hate to waste money but I don't even think I wan't to make any more noodle dishes with the ones that I have lying around. What else I noticed was the bigger the pasta the bigger my problem with them are. On my previous post I did mention that I tried Annie's Gluten Free Macaroni as well as Quinoa Macaroni Noodles and I seemed to tolerate those better then I did any other noodles, maybe the lack of size helps me forget the odd unappealing texture that makes you wan't to throw away all your hard work and grab the nearest gluten intoxicated product you can find, but they do give me some hope. As for Spaghetti and Linguine will be out of circulation until I buy my own pasta machine and give making good old fashion noodle making a shot, after all pasta isn't hard to make its just 2 egg yolks, 1 cup flour, and 1 tablespoon each of oil and water (you can add more if you find it a tad on the dry side).

What makes my meal really disappointing was that I even took the time to make my own seafood stock which takes a lot of time even if I only made a small amount. In case you are wondering what I put in the sock its just shrimp and lobster shells, garlic, black pepper, onion, bay leaf, parsley, and basil. Normally with a stock you would add onion, celery, and thyme but I did not have those so I just used what I had and the stock had an amazing color and flavor. For the actual sauce all I did was sweat the garlic and onion, add the roux (equal parts flour and fat in this case butter), deg laze with the stock, add milk, reduce, season, and finish off with lemon juice, more butter, Parmesan cheese, and basil. When the sauce was finished I divided the sauce into two pots (one for my gluten free pasta and one for my moms regular pasta) added the already cooked seafood, and tossed the pasta so that the seafood and pasta noodles had a chance to absorb the sauce. To finish I just tore my basil into large pieces (I like large bites of basil) and added more Parmesan before serving. My mom loved it, in fact this is one of her favorite pastas that I make and always request it  when she is visiting me! For me on the other hand did not, the flavor of the corn pasta was so unappealing and it over powered the delicate flavor of the lobster and sauce. I hated it so much I did not finish it, instead I just picked the seafood out...if had,'t tossed the sauce in with the noodles I would have just eaten it with rice... O well the meal for me is disappointing but it just means I am human and still need to find what gluten free product work for me and what doesn't. My frustration doesn't mean I should throw in the towel just yet, I am only 4 weeks into this gluten diet so I still have 2 more weeks until I reach the recommended 8 week trial and although I have seen little or no change it may still be too early to notice, and I still have a freezer full of products to try. Best Wishes on everyone's culinary adventures sometimes they are good and sometimes they are bad; I will be sure to keep you all up to date on what I like. Have an Amazing day!!

Time to Play Catch up.

 Good Evening! Sorry for the long post but things have been so busy for me lately that I haven't really had time to take pictures or pack things but today is my last day of scheduled craziness unless they decide to spring things on me for the weekend, in which case I would be ready, but I rather just relax and go home on Monday. Anyway catch up begins now with the Blue Diamond Almond Rice Crackers Original and Cheddar version. Taste wise they both are pretty decent and nutty, the cheddar version did actually  taste like cheese which I love and prefer over the original version at first I wanted to be able to top the crackers with various items like the Babybel cheese and honey from Tuesdays snacks, but I just ended up munching them separate  Texture wise I felt they were a cross between a chip and a cracker it has that crispness for sure that Americans look for in good chips and crackers but to me it didn't satisfy the soft crispness I look for in a cracker but it was to thick feeling to be like the chips I love. Instead I do plan on buying these crackers to eat as a separate snack item on their own because the positive flavors do come through a lot that will match various dips and I think it would easily scoop without breaking... NOTE TO SELF: try these crackers with a homemade Humus, great product but I think I will look for another cracker to top things with.

Wednesdays  Snack in a Chinese takeout box, contained some white cheddar popcorn, flan, and a 1/2 a popcorn for some reason I completely forgot to take a picture of it but I did take some pictures of the fruit snacks I also consumed that day as well as the night before. The first one I made was a simple strawberry fruit kabob nothing special but it adds a touch of love to it without much work which is a really great way to show case any fruit. As you can see I added a little Cinnamon because it goes great with a wide variety of fruit and its good for you. The only thing I would like to go with it would be some whipped cream but I didn't have any :(.
The second Snack I have is an apple flower cup that was filled with more blueberries. I love my fruit but my carving skills are subpar it seems but it was my first time working with it and I used a thick pairing knife instead of any proper fruit carving tools but it was nutritious and tasty which is all that matters.

Thursdays Snack contained a bagel pizza, 2 breakfast sausage, and a fruit salad (blueberries, banana, and strawberries. This pretty much filled my pink takeout box and wasn't really enough to sustain my appetite even with the babybell cheese (not shown) and cheddar crackers I added to my bag as well. I don't know if I was just overly hungry today but I just wanted a little something extra. Keep in mind that I have breakfast around 4 and snack at around 8 so this needs to keep me full till 12 or two in the afternoon, but my mother came to my rescue when she visited me around 10 and brought me delicious Chicken Adobo and rice for an early snack. Shes so sweet and adorable I just love her.

Normally I tell you I will try a new gluten free product then a post later I will let you know what I think but since I forgot to post my snack yesterday but since I already have my opinion on the product you get to know today. This is Udi's Gluten Free Bagel, it is pretty decent and something I could make as part of my bi weekly shopping list. I believe it cost just under $4.00 for 4 which is pretty well balanced with its gluten counterparts. Taste and texture wise it feels almost as if I were eating a wheat bagel, making it easier to adjust to the switch easier then other products. The bagel itself toasted really well and I became amazed with the crispness the outside produced while still having that nice softness in the inside. In this picture I did over sauce my bagel but it held its ground with out getting soggy even when I had it in my bag for a few hours. This is by far one of my favorite Gluten free products I have discovered, normally I consume bagels at least once a week when I am running to class late in the morning and it feels good to know that I will still be able to continue in the tradition of darting to class with books in one hand and a beagle in the other.

When I left I realized yesterday morning I realized I forgot to show you how it looks packed in its little pink box. So I propped it on a chair and clicked away, why I didn't just set it on a table is a question I asked myself as well believe me. Anyway have a good night.

Almond Cracker Snack

Good morning everyone I hope you had a wonderful Aprils Fools Day. Today and Yesterday I have been feeling very sore and Flu like (minus the coughing, sneezing, and the many constant races to the bathroom for nausea) symptoms so I haven't been up to being very creative, but I have made some pretty snacks out of fruit, however those were taken on my phone and was dumb enough not to take the proper charger (mine hooks up to the computer), instead I grabbed the one for my camera :( so it will be another 4 days until I can show you how cute they are but my carving skills still need a lot of work. Anyway like I said earlier I have been dizzy and sore for the last 3 days so I just purchased my snack for yesterday and today's I forgot to take more pictures; but anyway here is my snack for today.

In the picture above you will see that once again  chose the Chinese take out box but this time its just simple and pink with no added embellishments or design. Inside I packed 2 Babybel Cheese wedges with a small flower cut into the wax. To go with those cheese wedges I have included some Blue Diamond Almond Rice Crackers, one is original and the other is cheddar. I personally have never tried them before but they were on sale and had good reviews so I thought why not? For my sweeter side of the snack I also have 3 GF ginger snaps which by the way I did not like when I ate it yesterday, the texture was once again chalky and it tasted more like a coffee (I hate coffee it makes me gag from all the bitterness)  then the normal ginger cookies... I guess I will have to find a new brand. Regardless I refuse to waste $6.00 worth of cookies (yes GF products are SUPER expensive) so I will have to suck it up and just finish it off, at least the bag was never big in the first place.

Finally we have a strawberry and some blueberries for a healthy kick. Once I packed these inside the little pink box I noticed that I still had alot of room left so I added more fruit, 4 oz of yogurt in a reusable container (otherwise it wouldn't fit) and some honey to go with the cheese. Any way that's my snack for this morning, tomorrow I will let you know what I think of those crackers, and next week I should be back home and creating more inspiring and creative meals that I can hopefully pack in my not so little green and orange bento lunch boxes.