While fast food and quick lunches may be the norm, parents still want to provide fun and healthy meals for their children. A widespread trend sweeping Japan is the homemade specialty bento parents prepare for their children. This trend is now becoming popular in Hawaii and just in time is a new cookbook filled with fun, easy-to-make bento box recipes that will delight the eye and tickle the tummy. Sliced carrots become plumeria flowers; scrambled eggs become little chicks; a vegetable croquette becomes a puppy dog; and home lunch becomes something to look forward to. With recipes and step-by-step photos, any home cook can prepare these bentos for even the pickiest eater. Have fun. Make food and art and feed your child nutritious, delicious lunches that are picture perfect.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Susan Yuen is a former Sous Chef at Palomino; former Acting Chef at Kincaids , and former co-owner of a local catering company. She began creating special bentos for her daughter not too long ago, and soon children at the school began asking her how to create these whimsical lunches.
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More About the Author
Aloha! I was born and raised in Hawai`i and grew up with a great love for food and cooking. For many years I worked in the food industry, and was the sous chef for Palomino Euro Bistro and later for Kincaid's. In 2008 I wrote Hawai`i's Bento Box Cookbook, Fun Lunches for Kids and am currently working on book 2 slated to come out in the spring of 2010.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 40 people found the following review helpful
By BookWRRM
Format:Spiral-bound
This is a beautifully produced book with step-by-step pictures and really cute lunches. The only complaint I have is that most of the critters and characters in the lunches are made of bologna, cheese, hot dog, spam, or kamaboko (a type of fish paste) and are ornamented with seaweed and/or cake decorations. I was hoping these cute figures would be more healthy and/or edible. There are other recipes for Japanese foods but they had more salt and processed foods than I was expecting. I wanted a more American-ized take on bento boxes with fresh food and ingredients that are available in the average American grocery store. If you are looking for Japanese-style food for kids, though, you will love this! I am tempted to keep it as a reference for Play-Doh creations.
15 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By C. Chan
Format:Spiral-bound|Amazon Verified Purchase
If you are looking for easy and fun ideas to decorate the lunch boxes / bento for your kids, this is not a bad book. But if you are really concern about putting artifical stuff in your children's tummy, I'm not sure if you would want to follow the instruction of this book. For instance, you will find something call "color mist" (food color spray) in a lot of the recipes ( which would turn food into color like blue, pink, purple..). I don't know about you, but I certainly won't put these coloring in my girls' tummy. It is so hard to avoid these articial coloring stuff in everyday / off the rack supermarket products already, I am not going to give my daughters an extra dose of these myself.....
Actually I have read in other bento blogs that teach people how to give our food some color using really natural ingredient ( eg like using egg york, beetroot etc), yes it would mean a little less convenivent than "spraying" whatever color you want on your children's food, but I think it is worth the trouble. Afterall, in my opinion, if you are not concern about setting up a healthy eating habit for your kids, you won't even be bothered to make them bento / lunch box anyway, won't you?
Actually I have read in other bento blogs that teach people how to give our food some color using really natural ingredient ( eg like using egg york, beetroot etc), yes it would mean a little less convenivent than "spraying" whatever color you want on your children's food, but I think it is worth the trouble. Afterall, in my opinion, if you are not concern about setting up a healthy eating habit for your kids, you won't even be bothered to make them bento / lunch box anyway, won't you?
6 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Spiral-bound|Amazon Verified Purchase
I love all things kawaii and the food here certainly falls into that category. I am vegetarian so much of what is in this cookbook would have to be modified for me but you could actually easily use Tofurky cold-cuts to make many of the adorable characters for the bento boxes. This would actually be much healthier too!
I would love to see the author do another book - perhaps one with more vegetarian options?
I think the design of the book is excellent too - more Americans should get into bento!
I would love to see the author do another book - perhaps one with more vegetarian options?
I think the design of the book is excellent too - more Americans should get into bento!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Cute and easy recipes!
Cute recipes and designs. Gave me ideas to use cookie cutters for other foods to make shapes and come up with other ideas. Good looking food too!
Published on February 15, 2009 by Manga Cruiser
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Bento Cookbook
This is a great little book - I use it all the time. I especially like the fast and simple recipes in the back. Read more
Published on December 6, 2008 by Lisa E
5.0 out of 5 stars
Creative and Fun
This cookbook is a fun and creative way to spend quality time with your children or anyone making food that taste great and fun to eat.
Published on October 4, 2008 by Boogies
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great how to make fun lunches for your kids cookbook!
This cookbook is a great instructional cookbook filled with fun pictures and easy to make recipes that kids will love!
Published on September 16, 2008 by GTN
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