This Week in Bento...

Meatball/Onigiri Santa

The Christmas season is in full swing in Okinawa - whatever that means.  This morning our temperatures were in the low 60s and I was FREEZING in my sweater!  That's how you know you've arrived in Okinawa - you start responding ridiculously to the weather.  60-65º weather should not make me shiver! I'm from a significantly colder climate than this.  Ridiculous.

Anyways, last week my husband had Friday off and with all the commotion, I didn't get A up for school.  So I made her bento for her to eat at home for lunch.  She had a meatball santa onigiri with a strawberry/mini-marshmallow hat, steamed broccoli and a reindeer marshmallow Peep.  Santa's details are nori and ketchup.  It's fortunate that she wound up eating this lunch at home because the lid wouldn't fit over Santa's hat.  I went a little bit overboard, apparently.

Santa and his elf onigiri

This is today's bento.  It's a Santa onigiri and an elf onigiri with hot dog "snowflakes", steamed broccoli, holiday marshmallows, cheese, and diced fruit.  I got the inspiration for Santa from Sonoma Bento (hers is WAY cuter!!) but I used a fruit roll up for his hat.  Looking at her bento makes me realize I should have made his cheese hat pom pom a lot bigger.  Oh well.  Santa's elf is wearing a smooth egg sheet hat (my first attempt at this technique!) and both onigiri are filled with minced teriyaki chicken.