Hellobee

With Easter coming up next weekend, I thought it would be fun to surprise my son with a bunny-themed lunch box. Just a few little touches — a plastic egg along with cheese and egg bunnies — are enough to add some fun to his bento box without a ton of extra work.

I started out by mixing a little chopped, roasted red pepper into some leftover rice, placing it in a silicon baking cup and adding the cup to the top tier of the bento box. Next, I put some clementine wedges in the box and I topped them with a plastic egg filled with golden raisins.

The bottom tier held some peas, a cheese bunny and an egg molded to look like a rabbit.

To make the fancy egg, I used an egg mold. This is an inexpensive bento supply that’s lots of fun to use. If you can’t find one in a store near you, Amazon sells one in a set along with a bear mold. The first time you use an egg mold it can be tricky to figure out exactly how to use it — particularly if you can’t read the Japanese instructions on the package! Here’s what you do:

Start with a peeled hard-boiled egg. It works best if the egg is still warm, but I’ve molded eggs straight out of the refrigerator before and they work pretty well too. You will want to use a large egg as jumbo or extra large eggs are too big for the mold.

Your instincts will tell you to lay the egg on the mold horizontally. Don’t do it!

Instead, stand the egg upright in the mold.

Slowly shut the egg mold over the top of the egg and gently squeeze the mold closed. This will force the egg into all the nooks and crannies inside the mold and will give you the best impression.

If a little bit of the white squishes out, don’t worry about it. Close the egg mold using the latch and then scrape the squished part off the outside edges of the mold.

Put the mold in the refrigerator until the egg is completely cooled. If you are in a rush, put the mold into a bowl of cold water and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes to speed this process up.

Open the mold and behold your adorable little bunny egg! If you had a squishing issue, you can clean up your egg by scraping the extra bits off with a sharp knife.