The Bento Box To Go

Our beautiful Japanese daughter-in-law has introduced us to lots of wonderful new foods and ideas for eating. One of those is the bento box. It's a container with little compartments so that you can enjoy a variety of tasty foods without having them get all mixed together on a plate. Bento boxes come in all sorts of sizes and shapes and when you order a bento box meal in a restaurant, you can sample several different items rather than getting a plateful of just one thing with a side of rice.

But the bento box is also a convenient way to tuck in some food for travel for the airplane or the car ride or the train or bus. Find a bento box with a lid and three or four compartments. Pack some healthy snacks like grapes (they always travel well), some cheese, crackers, trail mix (if you're traveling on public transportation you may want to exclude nuts), mini-carrots or other finger food that will help you get past the hungries while you travel. It sure beats over priced airline and airport food and will help to keep you healthier.

There are lots of recipes and ideas for bento box lunches, snacks, meals, if you search around the web. I found one that would travel and sounds good. It's a Tangy Apricot Pecan Pasta. Check it out. The site also sells boxes.

Grab some tortillas and wrap up some veggies and maybe a slice of ham or other lunchmeat. Slice them into smaller sections and tuck them in your box with fresh mini-carrots, grapes, and cherry tomatoes.

For breakfast, a small muffin and some fruit will travel well. Don't add yogurt until you're through TSA checks though. You can always find some at one of the airport kiosks.

And remember, you can take an empty water bottle through security and refill it once inside the concourse.

Domo arigato!