(upbeat music)
- 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.
I am so excited because so many people have been like,
"When are the bentos coming back?"
Now! This is the first bento box video of the year, woo-hoo!
Oops. I hit the mic.
I'm sharing a breakfast box and a lunch or dinner box
which can hopefully give you some inspiration
and ideas for healthy meals.
But remember, the goal is not for you
to necessarily recreate these boxes exactly.
It's more just a fun way to present the recipes.
So I encourage you to take what you want, make it your own.
For breakfast, we're starting off
with some easy oat flour pancakes.
I made my own oat flour by blending up oats
in the food processor or blender.
Use certified gluten-free if needed.
And then the rest of the ingredients for the pancakes
get added right into that same blender
which keeps this recipe super easy.
In goes your milk of choice, eggs,
baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla extract.
You can also just whisk this mixture if preferred.
It should be pretty thick when you're done with it.
And if you let the mixture sit, it is going to thicken,
so just be aware and know that you can always
add another splash of milk and thin it out if needed.
I like the batter to be thick
because these pancakes get so fluffy!
Preheat your pan and then add your batter.
For the bento, I made little silver dollar mini pancakes
with a tablespoon cookie scoop.
They take only about a minute on each side
before bubbles indicate that they're ready to flip
and voila, perfect little pancakes
served with syrup for dipping.
But this batter works great for bigger pancakes too.
Give them about two minutes before flipping,
though, of course, depending on size.
They're so fluffy.
They're not too dense, but are definitely filling.
I love to serve mine with fruit and syrup or whipped cream,
but you can go crazy with your favorite toppings.
Actually, let me know in the comments
what toppings do you like on your pancakes?
(bell dinging)
In the next compartment for breakfast,
we have got a super easy banana bread
that requires only five ingredients.
Into your blender goes ripe bananas,
brown and spotty will mean more sweetness,
along with flour, eggs,
maple syrup or honey, and baking soda.
You can also add in cinnamon, salt,
or any mix-ins like nuts or chocolate chips,
but I did not because I wanted to show
that this loaf actually only requires the five ingredients.
Pretty cool.
Once the batter is in the loaf pan, get it into the oven
and bake until a toothpick comes out clean.
Let it cool completely before cutting.
Holy moly, it is tasty.
I love to toast it up with a little bit of butter,
but it's sweet, light, and satisfying.
The texture is cakey and moist,
making for a perfect quick bread that I can whip up
in just a few minutes with a few basic pantry items.
Yes!
(bel dinging)
Next, I've got some hard-boiled eggs,
but these babies were made in the oven,
so I guess they're hard-baked eggs.
This is my new favorite way to boil eggs.
I do love Instant Pot boiled eggs,
which I think is actually technically steaming the eggs,
but preheating the Instant Pot can be so annoying,
so I decided to try this out and it worked amazingly.
I took a mini muffin tin and added some little muffin liners
and then added the eggs and into the oven they go.
Now the liners are optional,
but they do help prevent the eggs and the shells
from getting these little brown spots.
It's just aesthetic, but if it bothers you.
The keys to this recipe are
getting the oven temperature right.
So 325 was perfect for me,
but some people may need their ovens
to be at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Also getting the timing right.
So 20 to 30 minutes tends to work best.
I do 30 for hard-boiled or hard-baked,
but you can also do less for a softer center
like a soft-boiled or soft-baked egg, if you will.
And then the last thing is, use an ice bath.
So get those eggs into water and ice
right away when they come out of the oven.
And then don't wait too long to peel them.
So once you can handle them,
in just five or 10 minutes, peel them immediately.
And they're gonna be really, really easy to peel.
If you wait longer than 10 minutes though,
and then refrigerate them in the shell,
some people have said it's hard to peel.
So you do you.
Either way, I love having these ready to go for the week.
(bell dinging)
Okay, last for breakfast, I have a hearty fruit salad.
It is taking fruit salad to the next level,
combining strawberries, raspberries, avocado, lemon juice,
macadamia nuts, mint leaves, and feta crumbles.
Say what? Okay, here's the thing.
I love fruit salad, but a lot of times fruit alone
at breakfast doesn't satisfy me.
I get hungry an hour later and it makes sense
because you know, the carbs and sugar spike my insulin.
This is normal.
Adding some fat with the nuts and the avocado and the cheese
in this recipe, it helps keep me full.
Plus I liked the variety in the texture and flavor.
This fruit salad actually ends up working out to be
technically a low carb or keto friendly,
although I'm hesitant to say that.
I'm not on a ketogenic diet, but I still enjoy this salad
and find it completely satisfying.
This breakfast box is clearly a lot for a single meal,
but there are some ideas for you to explore
as you consider creative breakfast ideas.
I hope you enjoy.
(upbeat music)
Next, lunch.
Although first I have to remind you to subscribe
and hit the bell for more recipe, bento,
and relationship with food content.
I share new videos every Thursday.
Okay, onto that entree box, which could be lunch,
or it could be dinner.
(upbeat music)
First is an easy chicken salad
that's actually paleo or Whole30 approved.
This was sort of an accident and is really just because
the mayo that I use didn't have added sugar,
but you could use your favorite mayonnaise
with the same recipe.
First I need the chicken.
I find poaching chicken in the water
is best for chicken salad
if I want the protein to be shredded, which I prefer.
Just bring water and chicken to a boil
and then reduce the heat for about 10 minutes
until it's cooked through to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
To shred it,
get this, I actually use a hand mixer.
I read about this online and I was skeptical.
And then my sister walked in on me doing this
in my kitchen and was like, "Have you lost your mind?"
It actually worked.
I had to cut it into half breasts or so,
and at first it took a little finagling,
but it ended up working really well
and it was less irritating than shredding the chicken apart
with two forks, pretty neat.
For the salad itself, first I whisk together mayo,
remember to use Whole30 approved or paleo or whatever
if needed, Dijon mustard, tarragon,
which is my ultimate favorite herb for a chicken salad,
lemon juice, and salt and pep.
Then I can add in some of that shredded chicken,
along with grapes or apples, I kind of switch off,
but today I went with grapes, as well as celery,
walnuts or your favorite nut, and green onion.
That all gets tossed to coat and voila,
a delicious chicken salad.
It's so good on its own, savory with a hint of sweetness
and that texture is so good.
The crunchy nuts with the plump grapes
and the chicken is a win.
You could also enjoy it on a sandwich or a bed of greens.
Today I decided to make some homemade
gluten-free pita bread.
For this pita, I whisk together
gluten-free all-purpose flour.
I have found the Cup4Cup brand to be the best.
This is not sponsored, it's just my personal preference,
and I find that it substitutes really well
in most baked goods.
That gets mixed with baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Separately, I whisk together plain yogurt,
milk of choice, and coconut oil.
I heat that in the microwave for about 30 seconds to warm it
before adding the dry ingredients to the wet
and stirring it into a dough.
Now hear me clearly; do not overmix this.
If you do, your pita will become too hard after baking.
So once you see that the flour is integrated
into the mixture and it can hold together when pressed,
go ahead and stop mixing and start forming your little pita,
even if it seems a little bit crumbly.
I used a cookie scoop to make mini ones for this bento box,
but feel free to make them larger too.
Press them down into flat circles,
about an eighth of an inch thick,
and do not worry about them being perfect, rustic is cute.
Those go onto a floured pan and bake for about 10 minutes
before flipping and baking for just another few.
They're so chewy and delicious.
Of course they're fantastic warm and fresh,
but even later they're really good and I like to heat them
in the microwave for a couple of seconds
if I do have one accessible.
These are really more like naan than pita technically,
since they have yogurt and they don't have a pocket in them,
but they can serve a similar purpose
and they pair perfectly with my homemade chicken salad.
This box needs vegetables,
so how about a Mediterranean salad?
I add rough chopped arugula to a bowl
with chickpeas, cucumber, cherry tomatoes,
red onion, feta, oregano, cracked black pepper, salt,
and a drizzle of olive oil and red wine vinegar.
For sure you will want to season this to taste,
so start with less oil, vinegar,
and salt and pepper, adding to your preference.
I love salads like this because of how easy they are
to whip up and how versatile they are.
So if you don't have chickpeas,
you can omit them or sub a different bean.
If you don't have tomatoes,
you can add bell peppers or anything else.
There are no rules here.
So don't feel confined to the recipe.
At the end of the day,
I end up with a tasty and healthy way
to get in some colorful and nutritious produce.
And when it's easy, I'm more likely to actually make it.
Okay, I also have been wanting to try out
tortilla chips in the air fryer.
So here it is!
Heads up, it's a great idea.
It's too easy, and I thought they were better
than when I make tortilla chips in the oven.
I cut corn tortillas into wedges
and then spray them down with cooking spray,
I used avocado oil spray, and sprinkled with salt.
Now I only did this on one side
because flipping is a pain and it worked fine.
They go into the preheated air fryer.
The thing is, make sure you do a single layer.
So this is kind of the biggest downside.
You will have to do this in batches,
but the good news is they only take six to eight minutes.
So six minutes yielded a lighter colored chip.
Eight minutes was crispier, you do you.
I did not flip my chips in the air fryer
and they work totally fine.
These also lasted for a few days
on the counter and stayed crispy.
That is, they lasted until I ate them all,
they were so good.
And you could totally get creative
with the flavorings by using different seasonings.
(bell dinging)
I decided to pair the chips with a super simple guac.
This is my basic guacamole,
so if I have these four ingredients, I'm set.
Ripe avocados, lime juice, garlic, and salt, that's it!
Now of course you could add mix-ins like tomatoes,
cilantro, onion, salsa, spices, etc.
And sometimes I do, but the bare minimum guacamole
is so tasty and satisfying to me.
I love chips and dip.
(bell dinging)
So that's the last box of the day.
Again, these recipes could totally pair together
as I've shown, but the idea
was just to give you some inspiration.
I hope you enjoyed.
I did link all of the recipes in the description box
and you can also easily print them off there
if you'd like to try them out.
And if you do, let me know.
Also let me know if there are recipes you'd like to see
or bento box theme ideas you have.
I'm gonna try and do more bento boxes this year
and I'm really looking forward to it.
Thank you so much for being here.
I will see you next week with a brand new video
and remember it's all a matter of mind over munch.
(upbeat music)