FRIDAY FARE: Bento Box Lunch

I've been thinking about lunches lately, because it's back-to-school time. For those of you who want to pack a healthy lunch for your kids, or yourself, here is a fun recipe:

Egg Salad Bento Lunch
(found at Eatingwell.com)

This egg salad bento box is a hearty lunch and snack all in one. Spoon the egg salad into a lettuce “bowl” to keep it looking pretty and enjoy with cocktail bread and veggies. Toss banana and blueberries with yogurt to keep the bananas from turning brown. Save the chocolate chips and pistachios for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Ingredients

2 hard-boiled eggs, (see Tip), peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons finely diced celery
1 tablespoon low-fat mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon minced scallion greens
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 leaves Boston or Bibb lettuce
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup banana slices
2 tablespoons nonfat or low-fat vanilla yogurt
2/3 cup broccoli florets, cooked or raw
6 cherry tomatoes
3 slices cocktail-size pumpernickel bread
1 tablespoon shelled unsalted pistachios
1 tablespoon bittersweet chocolate chips

Preparation

Mash eggs in a small bowl with a fork. Stir in celery, mayonnaise, mustard, scallion greens and pepper until combined. Line one container with lettuce leaves and fill with the egg salad.
Combine blueberries, banana and yogurt in another container. Arrange broccoli and tomatoes in a third container. Place bread in a fourth container. Nestle a dip-size container in with the bread; fill it with pistachios and chocolate chips.

Tips & Notes

Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate egg salad (Step 1) for up to 2 days.

Tip: To hard-boil eggs, place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook at the barest simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, pour out hot water and cover the eggs with cold water. Let stand until cool enough to handle before peeling.