Pirate Lunch

I was feeling pirate-y today! I blame the Pirate of the Caribbean (4?) preview I saw at the movies the other night. That influenced my lunchtime greatly.... and made it more fun to eat. ~_^



Img might be too big, you can see the full thing here: http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/222980_2071342104354_1268916663_32506137_1626065_n.jpg


Pirate Lunch 450 Calories
Snack box 90 calories

7 Red Seedless Grapes
1/2 Medium Banana
1/8 tsp Nutella
2 Pineapple Slices
2 Medium-Small Strawberries
1/2 cup Cucumber, sliced thin
1/2 cup Baby Spinach
1 Baby Carrot
1/4 Red Bell Pepper
1 Tbl Fat Free Italian Dressing
10 Medium Cooked Shrimp
1/2 cup Rice, cooked (I used long grain white)
1/4 cup Marinara Sauce (I make my own, about 45 calories recipe below)
1/4 Flour Tortilla
1/8 cup Part Skim Mozzarella
1 Black Olive
1 piece Green Bell Pepper (about the size of a quarter)
1 Applesauce Berry Cookie (recipe below)

Pirate: Cut the banana to about 2 inches high. Slice the bottom 'point' off a strawberry and use it for the hat. Using a toothpick and nutella, give the pirate an eye and an eyepatch. Slice a small sliver off a strawberry and press it into the banana below the eyes to make the mouth. Slice a grape in half and stick it on a toothpick about 3/4 of the way down. Stick the short end into the banana to give the pirate his sword. Yar!



Skull and Crossbones: Using an exacto knife or precision knife cut the red bell pepper into a rectangle. Round off one of the short sides. On the opposite short side, cut off a square shape out of each corner. (save one square for the treasure map below) In the center cut a triangle for the nose then above that cut two more triangles for eyes. Cook the carrot in the microwave for 30 seconds or until softened but not mushy. Slice in half lengthwise. Cut two triangles out of each end of each carrot slice. Slice a long curve lengthwise out of the sides, starting a centimeter or two away from each end.



Mini Treasure Map Quesadilla: Cut the flour tortilla into two squares roughly 2x2 inches. Sprinkle cheese on one, top with the other and microwave for 15-30 seconds. Slice a small, long rectangle from tortilla pieces and place it on top of the tortilla. Using an exacto knife or other precision instrument, cut a small X from scraps of the red bell pepper (from above) and a palm tree top shape from the green bell pepper. Slice the black olive into small pieces. Arrange the palm tree, X and olives on top of the quesadilla. Secure with cream cheese if needed.



"Marinara" Sauce - I created this because my stomach can't handle spicy stuff anymore *cry*. 1 Tbl Pizza Sauce, 3 Tbl Catalina Dressing and 1/8 tsp Hot Sauce. Just mix together and stick it in the fridge. You can sub hot sauce with a taco bell sauce packet too.

Applesauce Berry Cookies
1 1/2 cups Flour
2 tsp plus 1 Tbl Ground Cinnamon
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Allspice
1/4 cup Butter
1 Tbl Honey
1/4 cup Almond Milk
1/3 cup Dried Mixed Berries
2 Gala Apples
4 pkg No Calorie Sweetener

Peel and core the apples and puree in a food processor. Pour puree into a sauce pan with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add sweetener packets, 1/8 tsp nutmeg and 1 Tbl Ground Cinnamon. Stir to combine and continue to simmer for at least 15 more minutes or until it reaches mushy applesauce consistency. Preheat oven to 375° F. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix butter into the dry ingredients. Mix remaining wet ingredients plus applesauce in a separate bowl. Add wet to dry and stir to combine. Add berries and stir once more. Use a large spoon to dollop the mixture on a greased baking sheet. Makes about 16, 1.5" cookies.


Arrangement: Place Spinach in the bottom save for one large leaf. Layer cucumbers on top, drizzle dressing over. Place one leaf of spinach on the bottom of the treasure map and lay it on top of the cucumbers (the leaf protects the tortilla from the moisture of the dressing.) Place the skull and crossbone veggies above the treasure map on top of the cucumbers. To the side, place the fierce banana pirate. Put a cookie above the pirate to stable him if needed. Put sauce in a separate container. Place rice in a separated area, top with shrimp. Keep cold!