Christmas Lunch 2: Winter Snowman.  Hey readers, here is a New Year's Eve pic of the other lunch we did on Good Day Sacramento.  My daughter is out of school again this week for Christmas break, but I didn't want to leave all of you without a lunch.  We will be back next Monday with a brand new lunch which I know my daughter will be excited about, and you will be too if you are a fan of Disney Princesses!

Well, here is the recipe for this simple lunch.  Use cookie cutters or two different size cups to cut out bread in circles.  Put peanut butter on one side and jelly on the other and make two small circular sandwiches.

Use your lunchbox container and put down lettuce for the background and then use shredded cheese for snow on the ground.  After that, put your two sandwiches on top to shape the snowman.  I used dried blueberries for the buttons and eyes with raspberries for the scarf.  I cut out a little wedge of carrot for the nose.  Attach them all on with cream cheese.  Cut out some fruit leather or fruit rollup for the hat and your snowman is done!

Then, dip a little broccoli in cream cheese for some snow covered bushes and use half a mandarin orange for the sun.  Just like that you are finished!

I hope you all have a great new year and stay tuned to Lunchbox Dad for some exciting things to come in the next month or two.  Tell your friends and make sure to follow us on Pinterest and Twitter.

#lbdbento

Christmas Lunch: The Grinch

Christmas Lunch: The Grinch

Hey Lunchbox Dad readers, it is Christmas break so no new lunch but I thought I would go over one of the lunches I did with my daughter on Good Day Sacramento.  There is still time to make this today for your kids, even though they are out of school!

Start with your background of lettuce.  Then cut out your bread into the shape of a santa hat.  Make sure and make two pieces since it is a sandwich!  Put peanut butter on the inside and then coat the top with some sort of red jam.  Then roll up some cream cheese to put on for the brim and then a ball at the end of the hat.  Make sure and do this last or you will get red bleeding into the cream and cheese.  Next, cut out a little collar out of bread and put cream cheese on that.

For the face, cut a green apple in half and use food dye or a food dye marker to draw the face.  Go ahead and try it, don't be intimidated, its not that hard!  Cut out some cheddar cheese for the eyes and use a little red food coloring on that as well.

Put it altogether like it is shown above and finish off sprinkling craisins and yogurt covered raisins to add a little holiday cheer.  Remember to think about what your kids like and don't like to tailor the lunch for them so they will eat it!

Have a great Christmas and stay tuned because there are some really fun things in store for next month.  Also, share this blog with whoever you think might enjoy it and follow us on Pinterest and Twitter!
#lbdbento

Food Color Markers Tip

Hey Lunchbox Dad readers, I thought I would finally post that tip about the food color markers that I use.  I found these online after looking at a couple different blogs.  These seem to be the best and are Americolor Gourmet Writer Pens.  You can get them on Amazon.  These are the same ones I used on Good Day Sacramento this week to make the Grinch's face (on the apple) and the eyes (on the cheddar cheese).

I have used them a few times now (see the Tangled, Christmas Story, and Grinch lunches) and they seem to work pretty well.  They are made to decorate cakes but I have used them on bread, fruit, cheese, etc.  Harder surfaces seem to work the best though, bread is tougher for them to look good on.

Overall, I am very happy with them and find that they are a great complement to regular store bought food coloring.  If you are looking for something fast to decorate with, these will work great.  Leave comments below and let me know if there are any other products out there that you guys have used that you recommend.

My daughter is off school for the next couple Mondays, so no new lunches, but I will be posting pics of the two lunches we did on T.V.  As always, I will also posts ingredients and instructions.  Have a Merry Christmas!

Lunchbox Dad on TV this morning!

Hey everyone, I had a chance to share about my blog and my family this morning on Good Day Sacramento!  My daughter and I did two segments and it was tons of fun.  Thanks to the Alyson Schulz, Amy Carabba, and the rest of the staff for a memorable morning!  I thought I would share a few pics and links to the videos:

 Segment 1:
Winter Snowman
http://gooddaysacramento.cbslocal.com/video/8075922-the-lunchbox-dad/

Segment 2:
The Grinch Who Stole Christmas
http://gooddaysacramento.cbslocal.com/video/8076352-lunchbox-dad/

Here are some pics of our morning

Abby (my daughter), Amy (one of the hosts), and I before our segment

Abby and I in the kitchen

A shot of Abby ready to make a lunch

The main desk while we were waiting

The Good Day Sacramento Logo Lunch I made.  In case you are wondering this was just some eggs with corn starch and water mixed with red food coloring.  The letters are cut out of Provolone cheese and there is spinach in the background.  I put on some Christmas sprinkles to give it some holiday cheer.  If you heated it up, it would be like a spinach omelette!

There is no school for the next two Mondays but I hope to post some pics of the lunches we made today and also give some tips I have found for the first half year of doing lunches as lunchboxdad.  Thanks for reading and make sure to follow this blog, comment below, and follow me on Pinterest (lunchboxdad) and on Twitter (@lunchboxdad).

Reminder about tomorrow

Remember to check us out on Good Day Sacramento tomorrow morning. We will be on in the 8 am and 9 am hours making lunches. It is on the cw 31 if you are in the area. Otherwise I will link the video to this blog as soon as I can. Because we will be doing the show tomorrow I won't be able to post a lunch but stay tuned for pics of the at the show where I will make two new lunches with my daughter!

Week 13: Gingerbread Man

Week 13: Gingerbread Man.  Hey readers, this week is a healthy version of a gingerbread man.  I didn't have as much time this week, after doing A Christmas Story last week and getting ready to do two lunches for the T.V. show, but here is a very simple lunch that can be easy to replicate at home.  I wanted to do one that would be quick and simple for you guys to try for your kids if you havent done one before.

The Gingerbread Man is just a PB and J sandwich on wheat bread.  I had a cookie cutter that I used on the bread to make the shape.  Instead of frosting and candy I used dried fruit and cream cheese.  The buttons are dried blueberries, the mouth is dried mango, and the eyes are dried cranberries.

The ground is made of fresh raspberries and blackberries while the background is lettuce.

The christmas tree is white cheese that I colored green using the food markers.  I also used dried cranberries as ornaments on the tree.  There is a few scraps of bread behind it to give it some depth instead of it being directly on the lettuce.

Follow me on Twitter and Pinterest and make sure to catch my daughter and I on Good Day Sacramento (CW 31) next Monday if you are in that area.  Otherwise it will be posted on their website and I will link it on the blog here.
#lbdbento

Lunchboxdad on T.V.!

Hey lunchboxdad.com readers.  The exciting news I told you about is official.  Good Day Sacramento is going to have my daughter and me make lunches on Monday December 17.  We will be on for two segments in the 8am and 9 am hours.  This is the local cbs/cw morning show which airs on channel 31 every day.  If you are in the northern California area check it out, otherwise the videos will be posted on their website after it airs.  Thanks to Sarah Tieszen for sending in the link for the blog in to the show!  Here is a link to their website: http://gooddaysacramento.cbslocal.com/

Week 12: A Christmas Story

Week 12: A Christmas Story.  This lunch is such a "Pink Nightmare", or maybe its "A Major Award" for my daughter.  Well, it is a little "FRAA-GEE-LEE."  Ok, enough with the Christmas Story references.  This is my favorite Christmas movie and my daughter and I watched it last week together so I thought I would theme this week's lunch around it.

As always, let me know what you think and what you might use in this lunch for your child.  Stay tuned for the big announcement in a day or two!

Please remember to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube.

Ingredients

2 fresh slices of whole wheat bread 

   Yellow, blue, and red food coloring and/or food coloring markers

1 small orange (mandarin, tangerine, etc.)

1 stick of string cheese

1/4 cup fat-free strawberry cream cheese

1 serving creamy peanut butter

5-7 raspberries (or similar berry)

2-3 leaves of iceberg lettuce

Directions

1. Using template as a guide, cut Ralphie and the pink bunny suit out of a slice of bread.  Repeat with a second piece of bread.  Cover one slice with strawberry cream cheese.  Spread peanut butter on the other slice.  Press slices together into a sandwich with the cream cheese facing up.  Cut a round piece of string cheese small enough to fit on the face of the of the bunny suit and place it on.
2. Mix equal parts yellow, blue, and red food coloring in a small bowl to make the color black.  Dip the end of a toothpick in the black coloring and use it to draw the details on the pink bunny suit and Ralphie’s face.
3. Trim the remaining stick of string cheese to 1 1/2 inches long (this is the leg of the lamp).  Cut a women’s high heel show shape out of the scrap.  Stick the shoe to the bottom of the leg using a toothpick.  Cut the lampshade out of half the orange using the picture as a guide.
4. Using either the above method, or food coloring markers, fill in the shoe and draw lines on the leg and lampshade as shown in the picture.
5. Place lettuce leaves in the container as background.  Set in the sandwich, shaped like Ralphie, in the bunny suit.  Lay the berries along the bottom in a line.  Finally, place the string cheese and orange together, in the form of a lamp, right above the berries.

#lbdbento