So it was my birthday recently,

feel free to show me a little bit of belated birthday love by clicking on that subscribe button.

Now one of the gifts I got for my birthday were these bento boxes,

and I thought it would be a lot of fun to share with you some meal ideas using them,

starting with breakfast first.

Now each of the meals you are going to see me make here takes only 5 minutes,

so there really are no excuses when it comes to having a wholesome breakfast in the morning.

And you can enjoy this at home or you can take it on the road with you.

And for me personally, this was enough for both my breakfast as well as for my morning snack.

But I'll just show you what I mean.

Let's get started.

Here we go with breakfast number one.

So we're going to start by making this deconstructed yogurt granola and fruit parfait.

I just started by cutting up some kiwi, and I also used some fresh raspberries,

but you can use whatever fruit you have on hand or whatever fruit you enjoy.

And then on the side I poured in some soy yogurt,

I didn't want to mix it together because I didn't want it to get soggy,

but you can use any plant yogurt you like.

And then I also included this roasted pecan and cranberry granola that is so delicious.

Now, the recipe is already up on the Pick Up Limes blog,

so I'll put the link in the description box below,

but I've also made a video recipe that I'll link at the end of this video.

And I usually make this granola recipe on the weekends,

that way it just lasts throughout the week and makes for quick breakfasts whenever I need them.

So back to the bento box.

I always like to sprinkle on some ground flax seeds as well as some chia seeds,

just because of the healthy omega fats that these offer.

I also included some coconut flakes.

And it's that easy to make this deconstructed parfait.

And then I just mix it all together when I'm ready to eat it.

On to my morning snack.

It's pretty much just a peanut butter and banana sandwich,

except for instead of bread I use these whole-grain crackers

that I cut in half and then spread on a generous amount of peanut butter.

Then using a ripe banana,

I cut it into very thick slices to place on top.

And just a little bit of peanut butter on the other side to help it all stick together

and so that it doesn't come apart in my lunchbox.

Then served it with some fresh oranges on the side.

And that was my morning snack on this morning.

So breakfast number one is done.

On to breakfast number two.

So to make this mashed bean and avocado sandwich,

we're going to start by using half a cup of pinto beans,

then a tablespoon of salsa,

half a teaspoon of ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika,

and then we mash it together until it's all well combined.

And then on two pieces of whole-grain bread I put on some baby spinach,

and then distributed that mashed bean mixture that we just created.

Now if you don't have pinto beans, any beans that you have on hand will do.

Then I put on some chives, some tomato slices, as well as some ripe avocado.

And then I drizzled on some sriracha hot sauce,

because I think the combination of that with the avocado and mashed beans is out of this world.

Sprinkled on a little bit of freshly ground pepper,

and that's it to make that sandwich.

I also served it with some fresh strawberries on the side.

And that was my breakfast on this day.

As for my morning snack,

this is another orange that I sliced up this time.

You'll notice that I like to prepare my oranges.

I find that if an orange goes into my bag whole, it's going to come home with me,

unless I prepare it in some way so that it's ready to eat.

And then I also had this with some roasted peanuts and dried cranberries,

to kind of make my own homemade trail mix,

as well as these dried figs that I'm absolutely obsessed with.

And to be honest, this was a bit much for me just as a morning snack,

so it trailed off into being my afternoon snack as well.

But that's it for breakfast number two.

Super super easy.

And for the finale, breakfast number three.

This is a chunky monkey banana sandwich, or whatever you want to call it.

So to make this you're going to need two slices of whole grain bread,

and then spread on a generous amount of almond butter or whatever nut butter you've got on hand.

I then sprinkled on some hemp seeds again, for those healthy omega fats that it offers,

and then another ripe banana cut into thick chunks.

Now what makes this incredibly delicious are these roasted coconuts,

that I made just by dry roasting some regular coconuts on medium-high heat,

until it became fragrant and golden.

And then using this Canadian pure maple syrup,

that a friend gave me when I most recently visited Vancouver,

I use just about half a teaspoon to drizzle on top,

and it made it so absolutely delicious and sweet.

And so that's it to make this sandwich,

which is kind of a fun twist on the traditional nut butter and banana sandwich.

And then on the side, I just served it with some fresh grapes.

And that was my breakfast on this third morning.

As for the morning snack it really doesn't get easier than this.

It's just two pieces of rice cakes,

as well as the leftover salsa and avocado from yesterday's breakfast,

that I then mix together and it kind of makes this faux kind of salsa guacamole dip for those rice crackers.

Then on the side, I put in some mixed greens,

to enjoy the leftover salsa with

once the rice cakes were done,

and some fresh basil as well.

And that's it for breakfast number three.

How easy was that!

Now in addition to having breakfast like this,

I'm also making sure to stay super hydrated throughout the morning,

by having either water or tea or both.

And I've also gotten into the habit of taking my Vitamin D and B12 supplements first thing in the morning.

Now if you liked this video, you are absolutely going to love the next one,

which is also going to be bento box style,

but the theme is going to be lunch and afternoon snack ideas.

So be sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on it.

And if you found any inspiration from this video, be sure to give it a thumbs up.

Alright thanks for stopping by, I'll see you in the next video.