And So It Begins . . .

And then I discovered Bento. MU HA HA.

The concept behind bento is to: 1) for adults: make food look so appetizing that you WANT to eat it and 2) for kids: make food look so CUTE that you WANT to eat it. And when I say cute - I mean cute. Hello-kitty, carrot stars, and little cats cut out of baloney cute.

The funniest part of the whole story being that I found a site called Adventures in Bento Making - and the author happened to be bemoaning her strange obsession with bento - which apparently includes insane behaviors like taking pictures of food you create and posting it on-line. And I felt oddly at home. Seriously - click on the link and take a moment to look at her lunches! OMG!!

(And yes - I've already placed an order for some bento making equipment. FEAR ME!!!!)

But before anyone laughs at my new obsessions . . . look at the following:

Bag of Gyoza (potstickers) $3.79. (With enough pieces to feed a 3-person family for two meals)
Shelled Edamame $1.27 (Ditto. . . )
Cup of Rice $0.50
Dumpling Sauce $2.79 (Which, given the amount needed per meal, will probably live in my refrigerator for months.)

20 minutes of cooking time . . . . and VOILA!


PRICELESS.

And not only am I officially posting pictures of my food . . . I have a SECOND new obsession as well. Please take a moment to notice the kawaii (cute) soy sauce dish I found at Pacific Mercantile. I've always been able to resist knick-knacks because they aren't functional. Well not anymore! MU HA HA.

Whoa nelly . . . let the obsession . . . er collection begin!