RIO 2 Bento Box

This RIO 2 Themed Bento Box is the perfect lunch to celebrate the return of our favorite feathered friends! It’s easy to make but will bring endless smiles! I really like to make food fun for everyone and think this is something that will be fun to eat. RIO 2 and its tropical theme leads itself to a lot of fun food ideas and tropical flavors.







Ingredients and Supplies:
• Rice
• Lettuce
• Carrots – shredded and whole
• Raisins (leave them out if the little one tends to make a mess that the dog “cleans up” raisins are toxic to dogs.
• Diced pineapple
• Asparagus – lightly steamed and ready to eat
• Cheese
• Natural Blue food coloring made from Red Cabbage!
• Silicone baking cups
• Rectangular plastic container with lid



Fill one baking cup with shredded carrot. Cut a piece from the whole carrot to approximately 2” long and place into the center of the shredded carrot to create the lion face. Add small pieces of cheese to create whiskers for the lion. Dice raisins to make the eyes and the lion’s nose.

When your rice is cooked and has cooled enough to handle, pack approximately ¼ cup of rice into a ball shape. Create 2 of these “blue birds” and place in the remaining two silicone cups. Add small pieces of cheese for eyes and a small piece of carrot for the bird’s beak. I also added a peppercorn for the center of each eye.



And that’s it! Simple and so fun for everyone!




Instructions:



Begin by placing four colorful silicone baking cups into a rectangular plastic container.

Prepare your instant rice according to package instructions but add a small amount of blue food coloring to the water before bringing it to a boil.

Add a small pile of lettuce to the center of the container, between the baking cups and lay the asparagus stem to create the main part of the palm tree.

With a paring knife, cut the cheese into leaf shapes and lay over the asparagus to create the palm tree.

Fill one baking cup with diced pineapple.