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Tuesday, June 15, 2010

blue butterfly bento, lamb feast

Tuesday's lunch was made with wonderful lamb prepared by hubby Jamison, an awesome, intuitive cook with a knack for combining flavors with a Mediterranean-meets-Silk Road spice twist. This weekend a lovely leg of lamb with a rich, fragrant marinade of fruit and spices was on the menu!

Here, green apples and peaches marinate in red wine with whole cloves, star anise, vanilla bean, coriander, onion, and dates. The leg of lamb was added to absorb the exotic flavors for a few hours. Next, everything was roasted in a copper casserole until the lamb was medium rare.
 
 
Beautiful, flavorful lamb at the table:
 Salad with fresh oregano, artichoke hearts, mushrooms...
 
A new favorite red wine: Klinker Brick Farrah Syrah from Lodi, California with deep vanilla notes (yum!):
Today's bento features the last of the lamb, sliced thin with yogurt sauce and basil, romaine, parsley, blackberries, kiwi, peach, watermelon, dates with coconut:
Some images from the Farmer's Market this weekend:
 
 
 
 
 Dahlia plants:
 
And at home, the peach daylily is in bloom...
Japanese Morning Glory seedlings:
 
Have a very good Wednesday, bento friends!

20 comments:

Lia Chen said...

Your hubby is a great cook. The lunch looks great and delicious! Beautiful bento work as always from you, very natural and colorful. And the pictures from Farmer's Market are just awesome with the colors and freshness. Have a nice day Jenn :)

hypothermya said...

Wow! What an amazing sounding marinade. And lamb is always a favorite of mine. Sounds so delicious. I also love how this bento uses blackberries as a backdrop -- the other items just pop out and appear more vivid as a result. Amazing work, as always!

Token said...

Wonderful lunch! I can smell the vanilla *__* Farmer's Markets are great! All the great colors and smells - just like your beautiful bento! Great as always! <3 <3 <3

KidsDreamWork said...

Wow, your hubby is a real good cook! The lunch looks so yummy! And needless to say, your bento is always so finely done and is always an inspiration to me! :)

Bentobird said...

Hi Lia, charming and sweet comments as always, thank you!! Glad you liked the market pics, every week there's more color and inspiration there. Have a wonderful day :)

Bentobird said...

Hi Christie! Cool! Free range lamb is a real favorite of ours, rich in flavor, minerals and protein. So we are always looking for new ways to prepare it, and this hubby-devised method was fun and made the kitchen smell heavenly--vanilla!

I loved your comment about the blackberries and will remember to use them more for both flavor and deep, shiny backdrops to other fruit! Have a wonderful day :D

Bentobird said...

Hi Token, thank you dear, glad you liked this bento! Are there outdoor markets going on where you live?

Bentobird said...

Hi there KidsDreamWork, aw--many thanks! I really appreciate your kind comments and bento enthusiasm, see you at your blog!

Kuusou said...

Your bento looks so beautiful! I love the contrast of colors.

tinyskillet said...

What an amazing lunch! Was is a special occasion? They have such great flavors going on. My husband can make me grilled cheese...I think he did that once...when I wasn't feeling well. :)
Your bento is another beautiful piece of art!

Love the farmer's market photos! Did you get some of the squash blossoms? I have not been able to find them here.

You have yourself a wonderful Wednesday!

Bentobird said...

Thank you Kuusou! I think my diet has become more colorful since I started to bento, how about yours?

Bentobird said...

Hi Lyndsey! Nah, just a hot, muggy Sunday which had us sheltering in the a/c, surrounded by colorful produce from the farmer's market...a relaxing way to spend the afternoon.

Yay, you got the Penzy's smoked chipotle powder!...think I mentioned how awesome it is on stove-popped popcorn with a little butter and salt?

I did not get the blossoms this time, but plan to soon! There's a recipe with the blossoms filled with goat cheese and herbs lurking in one of my cookbooks, must investigate :) Thank you for such wonderful comments and I hope you are enjoying the day!!

tata | bonitafood said...

Both your bento picture and flower pictures are beautiful Jenn :D. Are those little pink flowers roses? So cute :D

Bentobird said...

Thanks so much, Ta! They are indeed a variety of mini rose with an old-fashioned look at hot pink color...I found them cute, too--thanks for noticing them!

Meggy said...

Hi!
Congrats for your blog, it's super cute!I have a recipes/cooking blog too and today I wrote a short review about Bento, then I decided to found some bento-blog on blogspot and I found yours!I'm going to follow you with pleasure!
P:S: I love your cat!
^^

Bentobird said...

Grazie mille meggY! Glad you found my site, as in turn it led me to yours, which is so spirited and charming! Looking forward to sharing culinary ideas and fun with you :)

tofugirl said...

That salad looks so good! I have been feeling very "blah" on the blogging front lately (writer's block, maybe), but I am still reading, and I hope all your gorgeous creations will inspire me!

Bentobird said...

Thanks so much Carol, your comment inspired me to do something creative today! I think blogging has its own ebbs and flows...and I'm sure your inspiration/motivation will return (and will make me want to start baking!). Have a great weekend!!

megan said...

that lamb looks A-MA-ZING, what a treat to have a hubby who can cook! and you've arranged it beautifully with the greens and the perfect sprig of basil -- you two are quite a team! :-)

Bentobird said...

many thanks, megan--this was a fun project and made for delish leftovers! do you and bf also work on kitchen collaborations?