velo bento -- april 22, 2010

It was almost picnic weather yesterday...so in the spirit of spring [and the new logo courtesy of Gage & Desoto], here is a long overdue Velo Bento:

A Whole Foods whole wheat pita stuffed with spinach, oven-roasted turkey, and a dollop of cranberry sauce. Orange and some organic string cheese on the side. All in an OXO TOP container.
I first saw the new TOP containers on the OXO site on my hunt for something leakproof. As a big fan of OXO, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a few. Good thing my sister works there, which means none of that ordering through Amazon, paying for shipping, or trying to hunt them down in person. Just an email, some cash, and a good excuse to hang out the next time I went down to NYC for a visit.

I haven’t tested their full capacity yet, but I love how substantial these feel in comparison to my other tupperware containers. They’re BPA free, too, so I don’t have to worry about not being able to have babies because too much plastic is leaching into my food. Plus they’re freezer, microwave, and dishwasher safe. I swear, OXO thinks of everything.

Okay, I admit, I wrapped up those pita ‘wiches in some saran wrap before I tossed the entire thing in my bag because overflow-age seemed inevitable. I can’t wait to try these containers out for real though.
These will def be making more of a regular appearance...much like [bike] picnics should.

velo bento -- march 18, 2010

Disclaimer: I don't just eat salads.
That said, I inhaled lettuce, chicken, mushrooms, and grape tomatoes covered in nooch and raspberry vinaigrette the other day. Surprisingly, it traveled well; the dressing didn't get everywhere and there was no leakage. Yay for giant tupperware containers!

While not incredibly interesting, this fueled me through a meeting, the commute home, and the first leg of my ride. Protein is amazing.

Carbs are, too. I'm off to do a quick two hours in the saddle with that [chopped up] Larabar before getting back to work. Is it weird that two hours is starting to feel sort of...short?

velo bento - feb. 25, 2010

A few days ago, Mike sent me a link to this Friskies commercial which is probably the trippiest thing I’ve seen this year. Apparently someone tweeted it, claiming that it might be better than Avatar. I believe it [I haven’t seen Avatar yet!].
I remembered that video yesterday, with the turkeys bowing down and the cows munching away at the grass and the giant fish boat, all participants oblivious to the fact that they were already slaughtered and made into catfood, when I got to school. I was drenched. Soaked. Miserable. But then I pulled out my lunch.
Lunch! Yum!

Yes, I love food. I think we all do. I have a theory that even those with eating disorders love food; they just haven’t figured out a way to manage that love. It’s like going into priesthood because you can’t get away from the all-too-human desire to bone hot chicks. But back to food - I love it, you love it, cyclists all love it. And because I’m Japanese I like to put it in containers and carry it around. And blog about it.
Because putting containers of food on your back and transporting it via bike can result in some interesting stuff. So while my lunches haven’t achieved the status of “bento” [I think that requires more thought and effort; my mom set the standard high in our family], I’m convinced everyone wants to see what I’m nom nom nomming on. And to keep it interesting, I’m posting what it looks like before and after the short commute to school.
Yesterday was mixed greens [I could live off that stuff], topped with spicy tofu, some avocado, and grape tomatoes [sorry about the pink-ish light in the above picture]. That got double bagged with an orange, then carefully placed on top of my laptop, book, change of clothes, and essentials. Of course, by the time I got to school, it looked like this:

It looks so sad, I know! But well tossed, right? FYI, despite how it looks, it was pretty delicious.
I’m working on better containers [I love containers]. And more interesting meals. I doubt they’ll ever be as cool as my mom’s, or induce hallucinations and highs like Friskies might, but you’ll get to hear all about it. Oh, and if you know any container makers in China or something, let me know. I have a few ideas...