I had other plans for today but last night we were suddenly gifted with a bag of mini-bagels. Shmoo is a big fan of the mini-bagel. I spread them with vegan cream cheese and packed them with some "corn tires", peas & carrots, and two mini-bananas. The smallest container holds four Sharkies for a treat, and for an extra Friday surprise I snuck in a soccer ball pencil topper.Verdict: Okay, the growth spurt must be over for now, because the appetite is going down! After the picture was taken he asked me to take out one banana. At lunch he ate all the veggies (first, of course, isn't he a kick?) but only one of his beloved bagels before he was full. He didn't try to eat the soccer ball. 4 stars.
that looks great my stupid kroger dose not stock vegan cream cheese or cheese i wish it did
ReplyDeleteThis message is late, but I just want to say how much we enjoyed the meatballs with chili sauce and grape jelly. Thanks so much for posting that idea. Do you think it would work with jam or maple syrup?
ReplyDeleteHi, anonymous -- glad you liked it! I don't know about maple syrup, but I think someone else mentioned using cherry jam, so I think other jams would work. You might have to blend it smooth if it's chunky fruit spread.
ReplyDeleteAll this mini stuff is super-cute! It turns out great that you had mini foods to accompany the mini bagels. Do you use Tofutti or make your own?
ReplyDeleteYes, we had the jelly/chili sauce meatballs for dinner last night, too. I used Grape Polaner All-Fruit and it was great! The DH really enjoyed them and my picky 7 year old ate it too. He won't eat any of the vegetarian meat substitution products except corndogs so I was really pleased!
ReplyDeleteSharyn
I can't get over those corn tires...My corn will not cut that nice, even with my ubber expensive knives.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great site! I was wondering, how old is the Shmoo if you don't mind me asking? We have a 3 and 5 year old and are ourselves, along with them, vegetarians. The 5 year old will eat things like you serve shmoo with prodding and the 3 year old is in resistance to anything mode. I was wondering if getting them to eat veggies will get any easier?
ReplyDeleteGary
not to be picky or anything, and im not even vegan, but egg whites are used to wash the surface of bagels...
ReplyDeleteNot all bagels are made like that. In fact, "regular" bagels are only made with flour, water, yeast and baking soda. Plus, before buying, most, if not all vegans (and health-conscious-people, look at the ingredient list to be sure of the foods consumed.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Leslie. No egg wash here! I do always read ingredients lists to be sure, but you can usually see an egg wash on breads and pastries. It gives them a shiny surface.
ReplyDeleteHi, rcwbiologist! My son is 7 1/2. I do think it gets easier if you're consistent in serving fresh fruits and veggies -- shmoo will eat a lot of foods that he originally turned his nose up at. Hang in there! :-)
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed more 4-5 star ratings, thats good news. I hope you dont mind me viewing your site everyday, sometimes I feel like a crazy lunchbox mom. Anyways, I am a Vegetarian, But my husband is not. Do you fix your husband food he likes or does he just eat what you cook.
Melissa, you can snap ears of corn just using your hands. I don't know if you can get them into pieces as small as tires that way, though.
ReplyDeleteI used a sharp heavy chef's knife to cut them into tires before I cooked them. When I used frozen corn-on-the-cob I boiled them first, then cut them. The frozen ones "mooshed" a little bit when cut, but not too bad.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kim -- ah, that's an ongoing struggle and source of tension in this house, I tell you! My husband wants and expects me to do most of the cooking and shopping but wants to maintain his omni-eating ways. I've pretty much gotten it down to eggs and dairy in the house and he eats a lot of the vegan meals I fix. But if I try to keep it vegan too long things get mighty ugly. It's a situation that I hope will change over time, let me put it that way!
Gee, if you made ME food, I'd NEVER complain, hehe... but I guess if he doesn't like the whole vegan thing...
ReplyDeleteMy fiance has been slowly gravitating away from meat since we got engaged and moved in together. Like Jennifer said about Shmoo and his veggies, if you consistently offer healthy food, it starts to catch on. The type of people who would be extremely close-minded about lowering their meat intake are probably the type of people who wouldn't marry vegans. ;)
ReplyDeleteI found out about your blog through my friend Isil from Turkey. Your lunch box looks so colourful! Thanks for your blog.. You can visit mine if you're interested in Turkish cuisine.
ReplyDeleteTijen
This is the most awesome and creative lunch box! I need to step it up a notch with what I offer my daughter (6) in her lunchbox. Thankfully, she's usually open to trying new things. Our BIG problem is that the kids have a whopping 20 minutes to eat. I'm so irrate about that and the food they serve in the cafeteria that I am writing the school board in hopes of them to contract with our local farmers for organic in-season crops. We'll see! Glad to know that even picky eaters become a little less picky over time. My four-year-old has a very limited repetoire. As for husbands, mine acted like a bit of a baby when I nixed meat, poulty, and fish from our diet. But he was ALL smiles the other day when a tight pair of jeans proved to be a bit more loose. I can't wait to check out your other links!
ReplyDeleteHi Jennifer! I found your site somehow (divine intervention?) and even though I am not vegan - or even vegetarian - I just LOVE your recipes. I made, just today, your recipe for your best brussel sprouts. I always HATED brussel sprouts (maybe the way my mom made them in the 60's and 70's?) For the past few weeks they have been "calling" me in the grocery store. Wellllllllll ... today was the day. OMG! Even my husband was stunned. I ate them right out of the pan! Thank you for opening my eyes and encouraging me to try something new! ~ Debbi
ReplyDeletethanks--thats nice to know about the egg whites. well, i guess SOME vegan friend of mine has been depriving herself of bagels with very little reason. not that it matters. she recently fell off the vegan wagon.
ReplyDeleteI love your site! I'm not vegan but it really has me thinking about my food choices and choices for my kids.
ReplyDeleteI was just wondering now that you've had the lunchbox for awhile what you think of it. I'm debating saving the money for one but wanted to know your opinion on the value. How do you clean it? Did you buy an extra set of the little boxes?