Feisty Bento #197: Economics 101

Cooking dinner on Monday night... yes, I am that anal retentive.

So I went to the grocery store and found a big package (three lbs.) of sweet Italian sausage for $2/lb.  They had smaller 1 lb. packages for about $3.59 or 3.99.  I live by myself.  Do I REALLY need 3 lbs. of sweet Italian sausage?  I don't even really eat sausage much (aside from breakfast sausage... or my homemade breakfast sausage), but I had been thinking how nice it would be to have some on hand instead of always using bacon to start some meals... fine.  My wallet nagged at my sensibilities, because to be honest, I wouldn't have used an entire 1 lb. package right away ANYWAY, so I bought the 3 lb. package, took 4 out for dinner, and froze the other 12 links in three-link-baggies.  Perfect for a meal just for me, with enough leftover for one lunch.  (Four turned out to be just a touch too much for just the one lunch, but it wasn't a big deal.) 

I sliced these into small rounds, plopped them into a pan over low heat and let a lot of the fat render out, then added a quarter red onion I had lying around, and a green bell pepper chopped.  I don't like green onions raw anymore, finding them too grassy for my tastes, so I made sure to cook these extra much, and wound up blistering the skin and really just roasting them into yummy sweet deliciousness.  Fantastic, I tell you. 

For a snack while dinner cooked... spicy masago spread on garlic & olive oil ciabatta.  YUM.  (Masago + a little mayo + hot sauce)

And finally, bento.

Top tier: marinated grape tomatoes; baby carrots; roasted pine nut hummus
Bottom tier: sweet Italian sausages with peppers and onions; tea infused pasta salad

The marinated grape tomatoes are just quartered, tossed in a bowl with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Yummy.

Happy bento!!!  Also, if you have any interest in winning a copy of the cookbook Fish without a Doubt: The Cook's Essential Companion, head on over to The Feisty Foodie to enter my contest.  Good luck!!!