onigiri bento, japantown visit

 

Hi there, friends! This post was inspired by a delightful trip hubby and I took to Japantown in San Francisco yesterday...a part of the city that entices with so many beautiful and tasty things. After days of rain, the sky was deep, bright and very blue, adding to the pleasure of walking around.

 

 

First stop: savory roast pork ramen at Tampopo:

 

 

Jamison's shot of his ramen feast:

 

 

 

 

Crispy squid

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Soko Hardware, I was eager to find green shiso seeds as these delicate leaves are very hard to come by in Santa Rosa

 

 

Yes!

 

 

Color and fun at the indoor shopping mall...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Peace Pagoda

 

 

 

 

Golden Gate views on the drive back to Sonoma County

 

 

The bucolic landscapes along the way always amaze us...rolling hills, cows, and last night, a ripening moon:

 

 

For back-to-work Friday, a bento with an onigiri (teriyaki chicken filling) from Japantown's Nijira Market, pickled baby eggplant, also from Nijira, avocado, arugula blossoms, shiso and a mandarin orange:

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the upcoming weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

spiced chicken pilaf bento

 

Hello there! In today's bento, a tasty brown rice pilaf with chicken and persimmon, served up with garden radish and greens and a slice of roast squash from Thanksgiving dinner.

 

Brown Rice Pilaf with Persimmon and Chickpeas

 

Saute one half of a large red onion, sliced into crescents in a tablespoon of butter. Add a cup of basmati brown rice, salt, freshly ground black pepper, a half inch piece of diced fresh ginger, and dashes of cinnamon and ras al hanout to taste, then pour in two cups of water.

 

Add a sliced firm persimmon to the pilaf and if you feel like tipping the balance more towards sweet, a handful of dried dates, and toss in a half cup of toasted, chopped almonds. Cook, covered until rice is tender, then add torn pieces of cooked chicken (I used about 1/4 of a roast chicken--dark meat adds extra savor). Stir in a cup of cooked chickpeas, two bias-cut scallions and melt in some more butter. Taste and correct seasonings: is the dish mildly spiced, savory-sweet and buttery? You are there. Serve and enjoy! 

 

"Red Scarlet" radish

 

 

Lemons and pink-violet geranium from the garden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

beautiful gift bento box

 

Today's bento was inspired by a lovely and exotic bento set from a friend (thank you Jennefer!) and the discovery of a savory new spot for Vietnamese fare in Santa Rosa--Kettles Vietnamese Bistro. Jamison and I had a late lunch there yesterday...

 

 

This rustic covered iron bowl contained my entree of savory rice with ginger, chicken, scallion and roast pork

 

 

Jamison's yummy noodles with seafood, sparked with tamarind

 

 

Today I added garden arugula and asparagus (yep--asparagus coming up in mid-November!), carrots, mini pepper and scallion to the leftover savory rice for a bento lunch:

 

 

From the garden a salad of mixed greens, radish, nasturtium

 

 

I love the vibrant colors and elegant shape of this bento set!