The Just Bento Cookbook 2 Make-Ahead, Easy, Healthy Lunches To Go [Paperback]

The author of the best-sellingJust Bento Cookbookis back with hundreds of delicious new Japanese-lunchbox-style recipes — including many low-carb, vegetarian, and vegan options -- that can be made quickly and without a lot of fuss.

The passion for bento boxes shows no signs of letting up. Leading the way in popularizing these compact and portable boxed meals has been Makiko Itoh, bloggerextraordinaireand author of the perennial bestseller,The Just Bento Cookbook. Itoh was instrumental in spreading the word that bentos are perfect for busy adults-on-the-go — they don’t have to be cute and they don’t have to take a lot of planning or prep time in order to be tasty, nutritious, and economical.

In THE JUST BENTO COOKBOOK 2:Make-Ahead Lunches and More, Itoh offers hundreds of new recipes for bento-friendly dishes. The premise of this second cookbook is that anyone can make delicious, healthy bentos quickly and easily. Itoh focuses on three types of bentos with specific and appealing benefits: bentos that can be made ahead of time, “express” bentos that can be put together fast, using components right off the shelf or out of the refrigerator, and bentos for special dietary needs. Full-color photos accompany the directions and showcase the finished dishes.

THE JUST BENTO COOKBOOK 2 opens with Itoh’s basic bento rules, revised to reflect comments she’s heard from her many fans after the first book came out. “Build Up Your Stash” explains why having some items ready to pack up and go is the key to stress-free bento-making. Here are tips on making foods that store well, organizing storage space, the best containers to use for different foods, what store-bought items to have on hand, etc.

The first section, “Make-Ahead Bentos,” features recipes for a wide variety of dishes that can be prepared the night before or first thing in the morning. Here are dlÃ-