Facebook Bento

So my latest Bento: Impossible challenge was born of random suggestions from friends on Facebook. I took the first 3 suggestions and vowed to turn them into the main dish of a bento lunch.
Ryan's lunch: avocado, bbq tempeh & couscous wrap; 2 chocolate chip cookies; steamed broccoli; cantaloupe.

The wrap was a little
messy with couscous
as a filling, so I included
a Pikachu spork in his
lunchbox just in case.

I've been changing my
bbq tempeh recipe over
and over during the past few weeks. Finally I've opted to post the one my husband liked best, since he's usually the most critical. I like it because it's darker and not too tomato-y (I've never cared for bbq sauces made with tomato paste as a base), plus it's really simple. And my husband likes its moistness.

This recipe is full of estimates. I may come back later with more precise measurements, but I'm not one to measure everything exactly.
If you're using this for a packed lunch, it's easy to assemble the bbq sauce the night before, slice the tempeh, and cover it to marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Then just pop it in the oven while you're making breakfast and it's ready in no time!

BBQ Tempeh

1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 T blackstrap molasses
1/2-1 T ground cumin
1/2-1 tsp. garlic powder
1 T smoked paprika (or 1 T regular paprika + 1/4-1/2 tsp. liquid smoke)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 package tempeh
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix the first 7 ingred-
ients in a baking dish.
Slice the tempeh into
strips. Toss in the bbq
sauce. Sprinkle with
salt.

Bake in a 350F (180C)
oven for 20-25 minutes.

For use in the wraps, I
sliced the tempeh again
lengthwise after cooking
so that I had nice thin
strips.

For the couscous, I just
followed the directions on
a box of dried couscous, using the whole box with 2 cups water, 1 T olive oil, & 1 cube vegetable bouillon. Couscous is probably the easiest rice-like pasta to cook. You just boil the water, add the couscous, cover, turn off the heat, and come back later to fluff it up and serve. Thanks for reminding me about couscous Marianne! I hadn't used it in so long!