Madison House Chef

Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese and Sprouts Sandwich

Delicious!

Since the MHC household is back into the school year routine, it’s packed lunches for us all. This morning I put a Smoked Salmon sandwich with cream cheese, capers, and alfalfa sprouts on Nature’s Own Sandwich Rounds (a recent find). Their Nutrition Facts show a decent product and they rate an A on Fooducate.

Here are the layers for this satisfying sandwich.

Breakfast for Lunch (Bento)

 
Mini pancakes, small omelette, bacon, onion garnish.

Breakfast for lunch is a common bento right now – most mornings I make a mini omelette and put it in Madeleine’s bento. It’s also not uncommon to find one or more of the following: pancakes, bacon, muffins, cereal (Mini Wheats, Cheerios), strawberries (not in season right now), green grapes, mini bagel, nuts (walnuts) granola or homemade granola bars with peanut butter and chocolate chips.

Mini Homemade Corn Tortilla Chips

 

 

Here’s a fun and creative mini bite for bentos, dip, soup or simply for snacking.

Make or purchase fresh tortillas – the kind in the silver cooler are the best.

Bento for a Friday & Nut Ban

 

Here is Madeleine’s bento for today: peanuts with sea salt, homemade molasses cookie, saltines with peanut butter, grapes, an onigiri (rice ball) with krab over the top, plus a few pieces of krab.  I have yet to be able to create all of the beautiful images and figures that many true bento makers create, but as long as Madeleine enjoys it, gets a fair amount of nutrition, and is satisfied at the end of the meal then I feel like I’ve done my job.

 

 

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip

 In the ongoing quest for good nutrition and a desire to limit chemicals, I’ve been making “really delicious” (per my kids) homade granola bars.  We’ve been working for a chewy, moist bar that holds together when eaten, but isn’t too sticky and isn’t too sweet.  That’s a tall order, I realize, but with a little trial and error, and a great deal of assistance for ‘quality control and taste (thanks, Gregory) I’ve created a recipe that works.

 

 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bar 2

 

This was the second version of the granola bars.  The texture is lighter and not quite as sticky as the first version due to the increase of the rice cereal and flour.

yield: 16 bars

calories: approximately 145 per bar