April 5, 2009
Eater's Digest
By Serene Luo
Packing your own lunch is supposed to save you money. And these books show you a lunchbox does not always have to be stuffed with last night's leftovers.
FACE FOOD: THE VISUAL CREATIVITY OF JAPANESE BENTO BOXES
By Christopher D Salyers
2008/Mark Batty Publishing/
78 pages/Hardcover/
$26.75/Books Kinokuniya
Japanese mothers, and some fathers, make it a habit of packing beautiful lunch boxes, known as 'bento' meals in Japanese, for their children to take to school.
In this book, the author finds parents who turn their children's lunches into fantastical depictions of cartoon characters and scenery.
For instance, one father turned his son's lunch into the image of Super Mario, from the Nintendo smash hit video game, with the aid of slices of ham, egg and cheese. He even dyed the ham blue to match the colour of the character's overalls.
There are also lunches in the forms of the Powerpuff Girls, Power Rangers and the Three Little Pigs, to name a few.
The author conducts some question-and-answer interviews to get into the psyche of why parents make these delectable munchies for their children. He also tries to make sense of Japanese culture in the process.
The book is mainly a picture book, with small boxes describing the ingredients. There are no recipes for the dishes. At the back of the book, there are some instructions and two diagrams describing how to assemble one of these fantastic-looking bentos.
It looks simple enough but do not be fooled. I was all thumbs and toes when trying to cut the seaweed into 'eyeball' shapes for my piglets, and when shaping the riceballs into perfect spheres.
It is also not a straightforward task to pack the food tightly into the lunchbox so that the contents do not shift when they are popped into a schoolbag. I found it an effort to assemble but had a great sense of achievement, although my bento was rather shabby next to the ones featured.
Attempt only if you have one to two hours to cook and put together. However, the book is a conversation starter and my family and I had great fun poring through its pages for ideas.
PRET A MANGER: FOOD ON THE MOVE
By Jane Lunzer Gifford
2007/Murdoch Books/272 pages/Paperback/US$23.13 (S$35)/Amazon.com
I loved this sandwich-shop brand (at least during its brief stay in Singapore) and this book promises to demystify why this shop's sandwiches taste so good and make many a Londoner's lunch.
Aside from the tips, the book gives the recipes to sandwiches sold in the store. The fillings are oh-so-fresh, each usually calling for fresh homemade mayonnaise or the brand's special seasoning, for instance.
Sounds good, but making mayonnaise or salad dressing from scratch puts an extra step into your sandwich-making process. Not to mention there is a food processor or blender to clean after.
I made a Mushroom, Cheese And Pecan Nut Croissant, with a large grilled portobello mushroom. Unusual but scrumptious. I loved the unusual combinations: Imagine Fish Finger and Chip Ciabatta, and Chocolate, Raspberry and Rocket on a roll for lunch. The amount of seasoning is just right for me, though the fillings are too generous.
Besides sandwich baguettes, croissants and wraps, there are also recipes for soups, salads and sweets.
My one peeve with the book, though, is the lack of pictures - there are none of the sandwiches. But there are many photographs of the stores, vegetables, close-ups of juice or sandwich boxes. This is frustrating because sandwich assembly can be an art and pictures would have helped.
LUNCHBOX BIBLE
By Margaret Barca
2007/Penguin Group/258 pages/Paperback/
$28.90/Borders Books
Half the book consists of sandwich recipes, while the other half comprises cooked meals, including soups, salads and special treats.
I thought the sandwich half of the book was simple, straightforward and fast to make - ideal for lunch.
Also, there were rather interesting combinations: think Nutella and sultanas on a roll or peanut butter with celery and egg.
The other half of the book made me groan in the morning - too many ingredients and steps to whip up a quick lunchbox.
For instance, the book suggested soup with buttered toast, which sounded delicious. But when it came to making minestrone soup, the 16 ingredients were just too much work for me. All the vegetables needed to be chopped up and the simmering took a good half hour or more. I like my vegetables really mushy, which takes longer.
That said, the book does give suggestions on how to hasten the process, usually to cook ahead of time and store, or use leftovers. Though the book does not have one-picture-per-recipe, it does have a good number of rather appetising pictures.
I also liked the tips and explanations sprinkled throughout. For instance, it gave a rundown of the basic ingredients one should store in their larder. It also gave a primer on which foods tend to store or freeze well and which do not.
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