The One with All The Eyes Bento

Yeah, that's right. Still on the Friends kick. 

My Dad is very disappointed with me. I'm going to draw eyes on grapes? He told me that I was an idiot (I think the word he used was 'thick'). He thinks that I don't know that?

The eyes started off for Wednesday breakfast, when I ate some turtles.

Its an ode to turtle my pet cardboard tortoise. You'll meet him someday-but not today. I know, I'm a tease :P 

I would love to claim responsibility for coming up with these kiwi turtles, cause they are JUST SO CUTE, but I am no where near clever enough to come up with this idea. I copied it from the blog Meet the Dubiens which is full of amazing bento pics. 

Now, I know what you're saying. My turtles aren't in a box. I know I'm an idiot, but I must admit, I have noticed. They are actually on my plate, my plate which has been sitting wrapped in the cupboard for months because there hadn't been anything special enough to put on it. Now there has been. 

Okay Ana, now you've waffled on about your special plate, get on with explaining WHY your turtles are not in a box. Well, apart from the fact that I didn't need a lunchbox today, and they look so much better on a plate on a blue background than they would in my pink lunchbox, I was experimenting with a creative food plate. Basically, the cuteness factor of the bento on a plate. Usually made by experienced bento-ers on the days when their children are on 'vacation'. Plus, I think my turtles may have turned into a load if kiwi slices and grape bits by the time I got them to school/college/wherever. Kiwi shapes in the lunchbox, kiwi turtles on the plate (I just can't stop mentioning the plate!) 

Talking about the plate, who's going to place bets on how long it is before I break it? Possibly a good job they are only 60p!

My Turtles are made up of one kiwi split into 4 lenghways, and 6 grapes. (7 if you count the one that I dropped on the floor- and that my Dad stepped in. In socks.) You can't see it very well, but two of the turtles have blue glittery eyes, and two have purple glittery eyes. I should have definitely stuck with the purple, the eyes show up so much better!

Dad is aghast that I actually went ahead and drew eyes on grapes. I think he was hoping I'd realize how ridicoulous it is and that I wouldn't do it. He doesn't even want to see the pictures. And how did you disappoint your father? Drugs? No. Alchol? No. Bad grades? No. I drew eyes on grapes.

All eyes (and other facial features) were drawn on with writting icing. You are supposed to do it with food safe markers, however, I don't have any, and apart from online, I don't know where you can get them. Which is kind of an obstacle, you know? And so I used writing icing that I found in the supermarket. However, I found them to be unpleasantly sweet, and so I may have to invest in some markers. I ended up wiping as much of the icing of as I could before I ate my lunch.

I've got a Quorn (TM) sausage roll (or, as we generally call it, a quasage roll), some grapes, some cucumbers sliced with my new crinkle cutter, and a Mini Milk chocolate bar. 

Oh. And I put eyes on the outside to. 

1. TIME I put this bento together in advert brakes (while watching the last ever How I Met Your Mother. Sad face.) so I was using up time where I'd otherwise be doing nothing. One star. 

3. RECORDING Yeah, well, its two days after Friday, so that's not bad. Plus, I was going to do this yesterday, however, Dad and brother went out to watch the football, and Mom was out for coffee, and so I made the most of the situation be monopolizing the TV and watching Friends. So I had good intentions. Two stars. 

4. BALANCE We almost lost a star here. I had every intention to cut out some cheese flowers, however, when I opened the cheese, it had gone weird, and I wasn't giving it the benefit of the doubt. So for a while it looked like we would be without calcium today. But then I remembered that the Mini Milks had 30% of your calcium. It may be chocolate, but it still counts! 3 stars. (Oh my, we are getting high!)

6. PACKAGING Okay, this one is HARD for me. Never do well on it! So, the sausage roll and the Mini Milk came individually wrapped. Because that's just how they come. Plus, I had a Fruit Shoot. Down to 2 stars. 

7. CUTENESS I didn't like the icing, so I wiped it off. Plus, it was not as neat and crisp as it had been when I first did it. I mean, it didn't even last until I took a picture, never mind the next day! But then the student nurse said it looked good (I think it was the crinkle cuts), so thats good. Plus, I made an effort to decorate the outside. How about we stay neutral?

8. PLANNING Okay guys, if you're having cucumber for lunch Thursday, and in your lunchbox Friday, and so you cut enough for two meals, that's totally good planning, right? So up to 3 stars again. 

9. EATING Yeah, this was way too much food for me. Like, way too much. Probably only needed half the sausage roll. So down to 2 stars again. 

And so we end on 2 stars. Which is way better than one star- right?