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- Hey, Munchies, welcome to the channel,
if you're new or if you're not,
I'm Alyssia and I am so happy you're here either way.
Today, I have got more bentos coming at ya
and I'm extra stoked
because these three meals are all paired
with a different flavored soda.
Say what?
It is actually more like a 2.0 soda
because it looks and tastes like regular soda,
but it doesn't have any of the processed sugar
or artificial ingredients.
It's called Olipop
and they are the sponsor of today's video.
I have to say, as a previous Diet Coke addict,
I am both stoked and impressed.
They call it a sparkling tonic and it tastes legit.
The link in my description box
will get you 15% off plus free shipping site wide.
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Let's get started with the first box
which features my second favorite Olipop flavor,
ginger lemon.
When I tasted this flavor,
I immediately thought of Asian cuisine.
Okay. So get this.
These teriyaki chicken skewers are made in the air fryer.
First, the marinade.
You could use a store-bought marinade,
but this homemade version is super simple.
It's just soy sauce, chicken or vegetable broth,
fresh orange juice, brown sugar or coconut sugar,
fresh ginger, and garlic.
That gets whisked together.
I cubed chicken thighs and added them
to the skewers first before marinating.
You could totally skewer after,
but it was less messy this way.
So that chicken can marinate for at least an hour,
although I usually just leave it overnight
if I have the time.
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The skewers go into the preheated air fryer
for about 15 minutes,
although it will depend on the size of your chicken cubes.
So check to make sure that the temperature
is 165 degrees Fahrenheit to be sure.
A lot of people say to flip halfway,
but I never do that in the air fryer
and they work just fine, and it's one less step.
Yes!
These skewers are sweet and savory and so satisfying.
I add a few sesame seeds for flair more than anything,
although they do add a nice crunch and flavor too.
Skewers like this are great for an on the go lunch
because they can be heated and enjoyed warm
or simply left as is and eaten cold.
For this box, I'm also adding in an apple.
This is a neato trick.
Cut the apple into wedges
and then add a rubber band around it to hold it together.
The apple is cut and ready to enjoy,
but it also stops the browning since the flesh of the apple
isn't exposed to the air. (bell ringing)
Nice.
For some green color and veggies,
I'm making adorable cucumber cream cheese rolls.
I used a mandoline to cut my cucumbers
into long and thin strips.
I found it was best to pat the strips dry with paper towels
so that the cream cheese could spread more easily
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and then I sprinkled a few sesame seeds, rolled them up,
and rolled the entire rolled roll.
Rolled the entire rolled roll.
I rolled the entire rolled roll into sesame seeds
on the outside.
So cute and super tasty.
It's a nice savory and slightly naturally sweet bite
with soft creamy and crunchy textures.
And this meal is perfectly paired
with the ginger lemon Olipop,
which is almost like a gingery Sprite.
Mm. It's not a sparkling water.
It's actually like a soda, so it is sweet.
But, instead of sugar,
they use an original sweetening blend
that's made of natural sugars from fruits and cassava syrup.
All of the flavors are only 35 calories per can
and they're gluten-free, non-GMO, paleo-friendly,
vegan, and keto-friendly without anything artificial.
But actually what makes them so cool, I think,
is the digestive health benefits
because they include prebiotics.
Our bodies have probiotics naturally in our digestive tracts
and the prebiotics feed the probiotics
which help keep our microbiome strong and healthy.
Nice. Okay.
The next box features the vintage cola Olipop
and in my brain, what goes better with regular soda?
Pizza.
It is pizza Lunchable time.
And I am showing this one, two ways.
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For my crust I am using pita
and for the Lunchable version
you can totally cut the pita into wedges
so it fits in your box.
Or if you want a classic Lunchable flare,
I use a biscuit or cookie cutter to get circles.
Now don't worry about the excess pita, calm down.
Obviously you don't need to waste it.
I just ate it as a snack while preparing my lunch.
We also need pizza sauce for assembling
along with a little spoon or spreader,
some cheese, and your favorite toppings.
I went with mini pepperonis and bell peppers.
I also added some fruit to this box,
just berries and clementines for a little more nutrition
and for a sweet treat we're making brownies.
But not just any brownies.
Brownies without eggs,
which apparently is a thing that a lot of people want.
So here it is.
Whisk together melted butter and sugar
and then add in some milk and vanilla extract.
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Separately combine your flour, cocoa powder,
baking powder, and salt.
And then the dry mix can get added
into the wet and mixed into a thick batter.
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Then you can spread it in the pan.
I like to add chocolate chips on top
because it looks pretty,
but you can also mix them in if preferred.
Bake that in the oven and cool completely
before cutting into squares.
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Okay, seriously, these taste like regular brownies,
you wouldn't know that they don't have eggs.
They're chewy, but cakey.
They're not too fluffy or dense.
And I love the crisp edges and soft center.
Sometimes brownies have too much cocoa powder for my taste,
this balance was just right for me.
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Paired with the vintage cola Olipop,
which tastes like Coca-Cola,
and I am feeling the nostalgia of Fridays in high school
when we would get pizza and soda for lunch.
They called it pizza and sodie.
So when a sports team won a game
or school clubs competed in an event or whatever,
the groups that would win stuff
would get pizza and sodies is to celebrate.
Woo Hoo!
Although I didn't play sports,
but the drama kids, which was my group,
we did get pizza and sodies once, okay.
Of course it wasn't a delicious prebiotic soda
with two grams of sugar per can, but what can you do?
Literally Coke.
Seriously though.
A regular Coca-Cola can has 39 grams of sugar,
as opposed to two grams of sugar.
That's half a sugar cube.
Also. This is pretty cool.
They add caffeine to the vintage cola Olipop with green tea.
Okay, so the other thing about pita pizza
is it is delicious baked.
Just add sauce to pita
with cheese and your favorite toppings.
It only takes about 10 minutes in the oven
and it's so good hot
or you can pack it and eat it cold later
with your favorite side dishes.
I am totally about cold pizza.
What do you think?
Comment below, is cold pizza a yay or a nay?
Like you got leftover pizza delivery,
do you heat it up or do you eat it cold?
The final box features my personal favorite Olipop flavor,
root beer.
I love root beer and I love it with barbecue food.
So that was the inspiration for this meal.
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For my pulled pork,
I add salt and pepper to a bone-in or boneless pork butt
in the slow cooker and I let it go low and slow,
usually overnight, for nine or 10 hours.
It shreds apart so easily.
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And then you can toss it with your favorite barbecue sauce.
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I store that along with a Hawaiian roll,
which is my favorite with pulled pork,
and for some vegetables on the side, I've got a coleslaw.
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The dressing is just your favorite mayo,
I use an avocado oil based one,
along with apple cider vinegar, some Dijon mustard,
lemon juice, parsley, and salt and pep.
If you get a good tasting mayonnaise,
I personally don't think coleslaw needs sugar so I skip it.
You do you.
The veggies are just the coleslaw mix of cabbage and carrots
along with additional purple cabbage
and shredded carrots for color and crunch.
Now, as is the case with slaw,
I personally like it better the next day
after it's sat and it's softened a bit,
but if you like it crunchier then eat it right away.
It's deliciously creamy and tangy and pairs perfectly
with the smoky sweetness of the barbecue pork.
I also made a corn arugula salad
so we could get some green in there.
And corn always makes me think of barbecue.
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I boil water and add corn cobs for just one to two minutes
and then get them into an ice bath.
Once they're cool enough to touch,
I cut off the kernels, keeping some of those big chunks.
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I toss arugula with corn,
bacon, and my favorite white cheddar dressing,
which I've shared before.
Feel free to use store-bought,
but I will link my recipe below ,
and then some cracked black pepper to finish.
That's it, it is such a simple salad,
but has so much flavor.
The fresh tart and peppery arugula
is balanced out by the savory white cheddar,
salty and crunchy bacon, and the sweetness of the corn.
I even like to eat a huge plate of this on its own.
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But of course what ties it all together
is Olipop's classic root beer.
It's got that distinct root beer taste.
It's sweet and cool and perfectly carbonated,
aligning with this barbecue pulled pork lunch
in all the right ways.
It's also worth mentioning that all Olipop flavors
have nine grams of fiber per can too.
If you wanna try out these featured flavors,
or their others, including strawberry vanilla,
cherry vanilla, orange squeeze,
or their newest release orange cream,
the link in my description box will get you 15% off
plus free shipping site-wide
so you can use it on all of their products
and try exactly what appeals to you.
Get it while you can.
I hope you enjoy these bento box lunches as inspiration,
remember to take from them what you want
and make them your own.
There are no rules here.
Just inspiration for you to get creative.
I'll be back next week with a brand new video
and remember it's all a matter of mind over munch.
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