The fourth winner of the Vegan Lunch Box Contest is Candice, who sent in her entry all the way from her current home in Laos. Candice handily beat out all competition in the categories "Most Unusual Fruit" and "Funniest Lunch Box Logo". 
Candice writes:"In this lunch box that I bought in China (attached pictures for the humor -- there is 'Chinglish' on the lid) I have packed fresh spring rolls stuffed with bean sprouts, home made peanut butter, Thai basil, lettuce, and glass noodles (I cut one open in the middle so you could see inside. For the record, fresh springrolls do not photograph well!)Best of all Candice was kind enough to send me her healthy
"In the red bowl is spring roll dipping sauce made from palm sugar, vinegar, water and chilies. The red bowl has a lid (Tupperware). In the blue bowl is ground peanuts that are sometimes dumped into the dipping sauce, but you can always just mash the spring roll down in there and get some peanuts on the end of it. The green stuff is bell peppers. The eyes on the spring rolls are hijiki seaweed.
"On the other tray are dragon fruit (about 1/3 of an entire dragon fruit), two rambutans, and home made roll-out vegan oatmeal cookies.
recipe for Roll-Out Vegan Oatmeal Cookies and I have posted it for all to enjoy.
Thank you so much, Candice! I hope I have a chance to try rambutan and dragon fruit someday. They look like crazy Dr. Suess fruit to me -- I love it!
I saw some rambutans at the Asian market the other day, and I was like, what the heck is that?! I have no idea how one would eat one, but I'm guessing the spikies are not consumable.
ReplyDeleteI love, LOVE Rambutan. LOVE. I ate a ton while living in Indonesia, the family I lived with used to send the servant out to market every morning for 1-2 lbs for me. It's like lychee a little bit. You break open the outer soft spines and the skin releases easily from the fruit. There's one seed in the middle you eat the fruit off of. Repeat until you're full!
ReplyDeletemmmm. When I was in China, I finally got to try Dragonfruit and Rambutan - and also Mangosteen. All so delicious! So exciting!
ReplyDeleteOhhhh, rambutan. I have been looking for it at the farmer's market, but can't find it at all! Is it out of season? I really know nothing about it other than that it is delicious.
ReplyDeleteyummmmmmmmmm rambutan! It's like a cross between lychee and a young, tender coconut.....deeeelicious!!!
ReplyDeleteThat's a pretty good lunch. I just have a quarter cup of almonds and a quarter cup of dried fruit.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever have to choose, I like Dragon Fruit best! :)
ReplyDeleteI had some dragonfruit in Hong Kong and it was delicious, but the only ones I've seen in the US so far have been expensive and terrible looking.
ReplyDeleteGreat looking lunch! I've never had rambutans before, they look spunky!
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I were at a Farmer's Market in Hawaii, and one of the fruit sellers gave my husband a free rambutan when she found out we never had eaten them before. Once they're peeled, they look a bit like a larger peeled grape, so Nick just popped it into his mouth. The woman gasped, "Pit! Pit!" thankfully before he chomped down on the fruit. They're pretty tasty, but not easy to find in Boston...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kcra.com/sponsors/14375189/detail.html
ReplyDelete"Mercy's build a better lunch"
http://www.carebeginswithme.org/cm/content/build_a_better_lunch.asp
You should apply for this contest with Rachel Ray. I have your book and I love it, I look forward to use it with my child when she goes to school. I am constantly thinking when I watch TV food contest that one contestant should submit a vegan option.
My BIL's family is from Palau, and rambutan is quite popular there. My sister told us all about it last summer after they got back from Palau, but her MIL didn't know the English name for the fruit. We found freeze-dried rambutan at Trader Joes. Quite yummy! Hopefully sometime I'll be able to find it fresh.
ReplyDeletei eat rambutan whenever they're in season, which is about the same time with durians :)
ReplyDelete