Pavlova is always a good idea. Whether it’s for festive feasting, family gatherings or just because… pavlova, the marvellous meringue is a staple on dessert tables Down Under, and though it appears infrequently on our own, it’s always been a favourite of the kids. With my ooky spooky duo busy conjuring up cobwebs for Halloween, they’ve requested we add a pav again to this year’s freaky Halloween feast. But not just any pavlova, my fruity, fearsome Day of the Dead pavlova.

The kids have always been batty about Halloween, but over the past few years, thanks in no small part to gorgeous animated movies such as ‘Book of Life’ and ‘Coco”, they’ve also developed something of a soft spot for Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead). And there’s a lot to love about the centuries old Mexican tradition. It’s believed that the border between the spirit world and the real world dissolves on the Day of the Dead (celebrated each year from October 31- November 2) and families welcome back their late loved ones with a candlelit fiesta of food, flowers and drink.

My culturally curious twosome have read up and researched the celebration – a unique combination of Mesoamerican ritual, European religion and Spanish culture that celebrates the dead, rather than fearing them. And with the utmost respect to Mexican culture, they’ve started to replicate some of its rituals at home. This doesn’t mean just nibbling on sugar skulls, scoffing tacos and burritos, although those will no doubt be on the menu and I have to confess that a celebratory margarita or two may also be involved. But with two much missed souls to celebrate they’ll be setting up a colourful little altar with photos, flowers and ofrendas (offerings) for their grandparents, who they are determined will not be forgotten.

With Halloween and the Day of the Dead falling on the same date, and both celebrations involving costumes, skeletons, graveyards and tasty treats, Sugarpuff’s sweet imagination went into over drive and last year she came up with idea of turning a pavlova into a sugar skull, because there’s not much sugarier than a pavlova. Together we turned her vision into a tasty reality whipping up a crispy white meringue with a fluffy marshmallow soft centre and smothering it in layers of cream and decorative fruit. The result was a smash hit at our annual spook fest and was suitably cooed over before being demolished by our ravenous guests.

Here, we’re sharing our Mexican twist on everyone’s favourite Aussie (or Kiwi if you’re so inclined) dessert, with our recipe for Day of the Dead pavlova.

Top tips for a perfect pavlova

• Ensure your whisking bowl and whisk are both completely dry before you start as moisture prevents egg white from aerating.
• Make sure your eggs are as fresh as possible.
• Separate the eggs very carefully, as even a tiny bit of yolk can ruin the mix.
• Bring the whites to room temperature before whisking.
• To keep your egg white light, beat in the caster sugar slowly. Beating it in too fast can deflate the mixture.
• Don’t overbeat your mixture after adding the sugar, as this can cause your meringue to crack and collapse during baking.

Day of the Dead Pavlova

October 25, 2020

by Aleney de Winter

Cuisine Australian

Category Party & Novelty food

Try our Day of the Dead inspired Pavlova for halloween

Ingredients

• 6x 60g eggs
• 300g caster sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornflour
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 300ml whipped cream
• 50g pure icing sugar
• Fresh fruit of choice, to decorate. We use raspberry, blueberries, strawberries, kiwi fruit and mango

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Line a baking sheet with baking paper and draw a rough 20 cm high skull outline on it. If you have a bake snake use that to create your shape and hold in place with a few ramekins.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, then whisk in caster sugar, one tablespoon at a time, until the mix forms smooth peaks. If it feels grainy, whisk for just a little bit longer (don’t overmix as the meringue will collapse).
4. Fold in the cornflour and vinegar with as few motions as possible.
5. Place the meringue mix on to the baking parchment within the skull outline and mould into shape using a spatula. Work fast though to keep the air in. (Don’t worry if it’s not perfect becasue like mine it can be trimmed a little after cooking and built up with whipped cream where needed).
6. Place the meringue into the oven and immediately drop temp to 120 degrees Celsius.
7. Cook for an hour and half. Then turn off the oven and leave to cool in the oven with the door open.
8. Whip the cream with the icing sugar until it forms soft peaks then dollop over pavlova.
9. Decorate your Day of the Dead pavlova with sliced and diced fruit of your choice.

Tags

cooking with kids,

Day of the Dead,

Halloween,

Recipes

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

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We’re raving fans of Dunedin and its impressive food scene. We’ve lavished praise on its scones and soufflés, extolled the virtues of its bagels and bombe Alaska and written sonnets of salivating praise on everything from its dumplings to its degustation dining. But sometimes in our excitement we forget the obvious and inescapable, and in this case, that is that Dunedinites, and Kiwis in general, appear to have a national fixation with Hokey Pokey (AKA honeycomb).

From straight up slabs to chunks of the stuff smashed into biscuits, chocolate and desserts to hokey-pokey infused ice cream, which Kiwis are said to gobble down two million litres  of a year, the sweet stuff is everywhere.  And Raffles and Sugarpuff want a piece of the Hokey Pokey action.

So being the soft touch that I am (and kind of wanting some myself) I acquiesced.

But further inspired by our favourite Dunedin flavours, I decided to whip up a walnut–infused version, horrifying my honeycomb purist husband… at least until he tasted it.

Turns out my Choc Walnut Hokey Pokey is his new fave thing. In fact, he and the kids have already got me whipping up my fifth batch, so I must be on to something! Here’s the recipe.

Choc Walnut Hokey Pokey

August 6, 2018

by Aleney de Winter

Category Party & Novelty food Uncategorized

Ingredients

• 200g caster sugar
• 75ml golden syrup
• 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 100g chopped walnuts
• 250gm dark chocolate

Instructions

1. Line a baking tray with baking paper
2. Place sugar and golden syrup in a deep saucepan and mix well.
3. Place pan on a low heat until the sugar grains have melted. Do not stir the mixture while the pan on the heat.
4. Once completely melted, turn up the heat a little and bubble until the mixture turns the colour of maple syrup.
5. As soon as it reaches the desired colour, toss in the walnuts and stir for a few seconds to infuse the nutty flavor through the syrup.
6. Turn off the heat, add the bicarbonate of soda and stir through quickl
7. Pour mixture onto the prepared tray to cool for an hour, then crack into chunks.
8. Melt the chocolate in 30 second increments in a bowl in a microwave until smooth.
9. Dip honeycomb into chocolate and set aside to cool.
10. Keep finished honeycomb in an airtight container (if you don’t eat it all first)

Tags

Dunedin,

Recipes

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

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Something wicked this way comes. Yes, Halloween is on its way. And though once – Queen of Darkness though I am – I dismissed Halloween as an overly commercial American holiday and rolled my heavily-kohled eyes disparagingly in its general direction, I am a complete convert.

My little ghouls on the other dismembered hand were hooked on Halloween from the moment they could say BOO! In fact they have embraced the occasion with the enthusiasm of a pack of thirsty vampires at a blood bank. Despite my initial resistance, their passion soon rubbed off on their cadaverous mother and I too now look forward to the horrible holiday in all its tacky, kitschy ghoulishness with suitably wicked glee.

And what’s not to love? It is a night when you let your children join a pagan celebration of the occult. A night when you allow your beloved babies to not only talk to strangers, but boldly bang on their doors and greedily demand they hand over treats. A night when anything even remotely resembling nutrition is thrown out the window… Wait, what?

Hang on a sec. That was the old me cynical talking. The new gothically-enhanced me sees Halloween a little differently. And what I see is a night of imagination and celebration with friends and family. It’s a night that teaches kids the importance of being neighbourly. It’s a night when our kids offer treats to our neighbours as well taking them. It is a night when they can get creative, dress up and express themselves however they want without fear of judgement.

And it’s the one night of the year when I am happy to relax my normally strict nutritional code, because at the Eats Worlds annual Halloween party, I put a limit on their candy collections.

And to offset the proliferation of poison toffee apples, oreo graveyards, soul cakes (complete with ghostly souls), creepy cookies and blood splattered treats I make, I also prepare plenty of healthy, wholesome food… albeit cunningly disguised as monkey’s brains (jars of slippery chicken wontons in spicy sauce), zombie heads (pizza), blood soup (borscht) and Halloween monster burgers, that are actually monstrous.

But most of all, this goth-mama thinks of it is a night where normally civilised people hit the streets to unleash their inner crazy, in a good way, not that this family is ever all that normal… or civilised.

Over the last few years I have become such a Halloween convert that I go all out to decorate the house with cobwebs and tombstones, though given Morticia Addams is my style icon this isn’t a huge leap. And the Eats Worlds annual Halloween Spooktacular has become one of the not-to-be missed events of primary school society. Well, at least it would be if you consider a dozen or so neighbours and friends popping by for a junior gore fest a society event.

And of course, we’ll be laying out all the usual edible blood, guts and gore again this year, along with these healthy halloween monster burgers that are as nutritious as they are vicious and make for a perfect last minute treat for your little ghouls.

Monster burgers

October 24, 2017

by Aleney de Winter

Category Holidays & Festivals Party & Novelty food

Ingredients

• 6 Wholemeal Round Buns
• 500g Lean Beef mince
• 1 small carrot
• 1 zucchini, grated
• 1 small red onion, grated
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 cup chopped continental parsley
• 70g breadcrumbs
• 1 egg, lightly whisked
• 6 cheese slices
• Avocado
• Cucumber
• Stuffed olives
• Red & Green capsicum
• Tomato sauce

Instructions

1. Mix mince, grated carrot, zucchini, onion, garlic, parsley and breadcumbs in a bowl.
2. Shape into six bun size patties.
3. Cook patties on a medium heat in a frypan with a splash of olive oil until cooked through.
4. Slice cucumber and olives into discs and use toothpicks to attach to top half of wholemeal bun
5. Cut triangles from capsicums and insert into top of burger bun.
6. Cut strips from alternate coloured capsicum and attach with toothpicks.
7. Cut zig zag pattern into one edge of the cheese.
8. Assemble burgers with lettuce, avocado, patty, cheese, tomato sauce, and decorated bun.

Tags

cooking with kids,

food for kids,

Halloween,

kids in the kitchen,

Recipes

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

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When Raffles heard that brand new animated kids series, Legend Quest, was a kind of Mexican fantasy comedy-horror period mash up, he did what every good taco and TV addict would, and immediately settled in to binge-watch the entire series. 

And for once having him sitting square eyed in front of the box didn’t get too much complaint from me, as the Netflix original series is heavily inspired by Mexican folklore, with just a touch of Chinese and Japanese legend and a splash of  Norse Mythology, which means an opportunity for a little historical and cultural learning while he binges.

The quirky cool animation, the first animated Netflix original series to be produced in Latin America, is set in the 19th Century, and follows a teenager called Leo, his ghostly pals Teodora and Don Andrés, a shape-shifting familiar and a couple of sugar skulls.

Leo and his creepy crew travel across time on a magic ship to battle Quetzalcoatl, a foul-tempered an moody Aztec deity, and his freaky puking monkey creatures, in an attempt to avert a Zombie Apocalypse… of sorts.

You know, just your standard kids’ cartoon fare… well, at least it would be standard if Quentin Tarantino and the ghost of Walt Disney were collaborating on the production of kiddy flicks while gargling bong water.

Regardless of its cultural and mythological crossover and whacky themes, Legend Quest has a great heart and a good message, and Raffles assures me it is totally epic!

But he also assures me he is hungry.

So while he is engrossed in Mexican television magic, I’ve whipped up some of his favourite Quesadillas, only with a suitable folkloric and supernatural twist.

Dia de los Muertos Quesadilla

July 19, 2017

by Aleney de Winter

Category Central & South American Food Party & Novelty food

Persons

4

Ingredients

• 8 soft flour tortillas
• 1 can refried beans
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 can sweet corn
• Coriander, chopped
• Small jar salsa
• Jar of Jalapenos (optional)
• 1 bag of grated cheddar cheese
• For topping;
• 1 carrot
• Frozen Peas
• Spanish salami
• Ham
• Cheese slices
• Chives

Instructions

1. Cut tortillas to skull shape
2. Cover single tortilla with fillings to taste
3. Cover with second tortilla
4. Pre-cut assorted shapes from carrots and deli meats, chop chives into short portions and set aside a handful of corn kernels and defrosted peas decorate.
5. Place in preheated sandwich press and toast until cheese is melted.
6. Add decorations and serve.

Tags

food for kids,

fun food,

Halloween,

kids in the kitchen,

Mexican,

Mexican cuisine,

Netflix,

NetflixANZ,

recipe

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

Disclosure:  As a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam we received a years subscription to Netflix, and while I will be posting regular updates about the service, and the tasty treats we scoff while we’re watching it, all opinions expressed will be our own.  

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With a few weeks break between our adventures; it is time for me to catch up on writing about our travels while the kids catch up on a little journeying of the imaginary kind. And where better to start their holiday from holidaying than in the crystalline splendour of the Heartestone Troll Market … with a side of my Orange Honeycomb Rocky Road?

No, I haven’t been gargling bong water. The Troll Market is the subterranean setting for much of the action in DreamWorks Trollhunters, a new Netflix series by the amazing Guillermo del Toro, the cinematic clever clogs responsible for another of Raffles and Sugrapuff’s favourite otherworldly animations, The Book of Life.

DreamWorks Trollhunters is no dumbed down animation for kids. It offers ambitious, complex storytelling and stunning visuals that really raise the bar for animated television.

Based on the book of the same name, the series stars an ensemble cast of kooky creatures including the titular trolls, razor-toothed goblins, gnomes, pixies and various other fantastical creatures along with Jim, an ordinary school kid who uncovers an extraordinary amulet that transforms him into the first human Trollhunter. As defender of the trolls, Jim must set out on a quest to save two worlds. As you do.

But before I send my kids down the rabbit hole into this mystical and monstrous world, I need to prepare them. I mean, with twenty-six episodes beckoning, they’re going to need plenty of snacks to binge on while they binge watch the show.

Inspired by the glistening orange crystals of the Troll Market, I’ve created them a tempting Orange Honeycomb Rocky Road treat, studded with glittering crystals and translucent candied orange, to ensure their  Trollhunters viewing is that little bit more tasty!

Orange Honeycomb Rocky Road

January 17, 2017

by Aleney de Winter

Cuisine Sweets

Category Party & Novelty food Recipes

Ingredients

• 150g dark chocolate
• 50g milk chocolate
• 1 tbs. golden syrup
• 100g white mini or regular marshmallows
• 50g scotch finger biscuits
• 3 Crunchie bars
• 2 oranges
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Instructions

1. Heat the sugar and water in a saucepan.
2. Rinse and peel the oranges.
3. Cut the peel into small strips and add to saucepan cooking on a low heat for 30 to 45 minutes or until sugar syrup is thickened and skin is translucent.
4. Remove from heat and spread individual pieces on baking paper then set aside to cool.
5. Break up the biscuits into small pieces.
6. Break up the Crunchie bars into small chunks.
7. Melt the chocolate and golden syrup together in a bowl in 30 second bursts in the microwave, stirring between bursts until you have a smooth glossy mixture.
8. Add the biscuits, marshmallows, Crunchie and candied orange (reserving handful) and mix thoroughly.
9. Place the mixture in a lined baking tray and top with an extra smattering of marshmallow and Crunchie chunks.
10. Place in the fridge to cool for a few hours then serve to your hungry Trollhunters.

Tags

cooking with kids,

family fun,

family holidays,

Netflix,

NetflixANZ,

School Holidays,

StreamTeamANZ,

treats,

trolls,

tv snacks

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

Disclosure:  As a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam we received a years subscription to Netflix, and while I will be posting regular updates about the service, and the tasty treats we scoff while we’re watching it, all opinions expressed will be our own.  

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On a scale from one to ten, Raffle’s obsession with Harry Potter comes in at a wizardly nine and three quarters. So enchanted by Harry and his hocusy pocusy pals is my wee muggle that he’d already read all seven books twice before J.K Rowling’s newest ode to Harry, The Cursed Child, hit the bookshelves a few months ago. And he knocked that over the day after it was released, like a child possessed.

But when it comes to the Harry Potter movies, we tossed an invisibility cloke over the second half of the series, mostly due to Raffles having his five-year old sister lurking about like Moaning Myrtle in a dunny. The themes of each movie gets darker and scarier, the villains get villanier and favourite characters start carking it in violent style, so it’s not really suitable for prime time screening at Casa EatsWorld.

So when Raffles discovered that Netflix was screening the final four instalments of the Harry Potter series, he was as excited as a golden snitch at a Quidditch final and begged to be allowed to watch them.

With Halloween around the corner, and some awesome academic and personal goals scored by our little Potterhead in recent weeks, we agreed to let him enjoy a weekend Harry Potter binge with his dad, while I accompanied Sugarpuff to a plethora of back-to-back pink and pastelly birthday parties.

To make it extra special for my wizard in training, before I left on my rainbow hued glitter filled mission with Sugarpuff, I channelled my best Voldemort and wrote messages on all our mirrors with chicken’s blood, which I personally collected from a few of Hagrid’s coop. Yeah, all right, I used a bit of lippie, but the effect was much the same.

I also left a “wee” surprise in the bathroom and had a peak into my book of spells (aka Google) to see what magic I could whip up for the boys to enjoy on their wizardly weekend.

Thus, a couple of tankards of foam topped Butterbeer later (Mr Eats World’s may have magically appeared in a six-pack from the local bottle shop and been less buttery and more beery) and the boys’ pre-Halloween festival of wizardry and witchcraft was ready to go.

Almost! All that was needed were some snacks for intermission.

Before Raffles could grab his broom and quaffle, a platter of Butterbeer Fudge, and an edible Butterbeer fudge golden snitch appeared as if by magic.

Though no matter how many times I waved my wand and shouted “wingardium leviosa” the only place this snitch could fly was straight into his copious gob!

If you’d like to get your butter beer fudge on with Harry this Halloween, here’s our recipe.

Note: Butterscotch chips are readily available in the USA and Canada and can be easily ordered online in Australia.

Butterbeer fudge

October 17, 2016

by Aleney de Winter

Category Party & Novelty food

Notes

To make snitch: Take a cube of the set fudge and mould into a ball. Cut wings to shape from a piece of edible wafer paper (make sure not to get it wet) Using a sharp knife make a cut in each side of the fudge ball and insert wafer wings Using a soft paint brush coat snitch with food grade edible gold dust

Ingredients

• 125g butter
• 395g can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 tbsp golden syrup
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• Edible wafer paper
• Food grade edible gold dust

Instructions

1. Line a small loaf tin with baking paper, then set aside.
2. Over a low heat melt butter in a saucepan.
3. Add condensed milk, golden syrup and brown sugar to butter and bring to boil, stirring constantly for eight minutes.
4. Remove from heat, then add butterscotch chips and whisk until they have completely melted and combined to a smooth texture.
5. Pour into prepared tin, smoothing over the surface. Allow to cool and refrigerate until firm. Cut into squares.
6. Dust with edible gold.

Tags

cooking with kids,

family fun,

food for kids,

Halloween,

Harry Potter,

kids in the kitchen,

Netflix

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

Disclosure:  As a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam we received a years subscription to Netflix, and while I will be posting regular updates about the service, and the tasty treats we scoff while we’re watching it, all opinions expressed will be our own.  

The post Halloween: Bingeing on Harry Potter and Butterbeer Fudge appeared first on boyeatsworld.

“But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Sugarpuff remarked.
“Oh, you can’t help that,” said the mum: “we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.”
“How do you know I’m mad?” said Sugarpuff.
“You must be,” said the mum, “or you couldn’t be related to us.” 

OK, so I may have taken a little licence with Lewis’ original here but you get the gist… we’re all fairly certifiably nuts at Casa Eats World. Which is hardly news. But what you may not know is that we’re not always travelling or stuffing our faces! Sometimes we’re tumbling down rabbit holes in search of crazy adventures. Though you can pretty much guarantee we’ll always stop for a snack.

Chief nutter and tea party connoisseur, Sugarpuff, has turned five and to celebrate in salubrious style she decided on a decadent tea party sprinkled with a hefty dose of insanity. Inspired by Alice and her whacky adventures in Wonderland, her “easy peasy” requests included games in a giant garden (we live in a flat), a ten-metre tall cake, the presence of a talking cat and magical tea party food that could make her new school friends change sizes and shapes.

I found myself wondering if acid flashbacks can actually skip a generation? And if the parents of said school friends would be upset about my daughter’s desire to drug and experiment on their children? Figuring the answer to both questions was a fairly definitive yes, I sat her down to negotiate.

After much debate and a few mighty harrumphs, she eventually acquiesced to kiddy croquet in a local park, a tallish cake, the presence of some cool cats in the form of her much adored former pre-school teachers and cousin, and some pretty but non-toxic party food that wouldn’t have her mother arrested and imprisoned for narcotic distribution or child abuse.

While Alice may have believed in as many as six impossible things before breakfast, generally I only believe in one… sleeping in past 6.30am with two small children in the house. But on the morning of her party I’m up way before that as I have at least six impossible tasks to perform before breakfast to get this mad tea party on the road, not least of which will be getting the birthday girl to make a decision on what to wear. After a dozen outfit changes, and more than a little flouncing, I could care less if she wore a gorilla suit with a pair of six-inch heels, but I digress.

There are 8,785 perfect little crustless tea-party sanctioned sandwiches to make, a platter ful of vegetables to julienne, fancy fruit to rinse and slice, guacamole to throw together, cream to whip, and a towering cake from hell to finish.

Then I need to find time to comb my unkempt locks and have a shower so I don’t turn up to the party looking, and smelling, like the love child of the Mad Hatter and the white rabbit.

Before the guests descend we decorate our favourite tree in our favourite green park with ribbons, bunting and blooms. Then we put up signs so people can find our mad tea party… like the streamers, high tea platters and raving loons running about the park aren’t give away enough.

And as for mad, we don’t need any magic potions. We simply load the kids up on sugar and the madness and mayhem follow as if by magic.

The children dine on the aforementioned sambos and pretty home made cakes.

They gobble little clock cookies (recipe below) and scrumptious scones piled high with jam and cream.

And they devour the glistening piles of jewel-hued fruit. Someone even eats a whole vegetable crudité. Though that may have been a parent.

The kids play a round of Wonderlandesque croquet before the boys take off with the mallets, and what appears to be the intention of beating each other to death, while the girls run wildly amok.

There is more wanton violence when the piñata arrives.

Trees are climbed and merry made and then it is time for the cake. As over the top, tall and mad as a small eccentric nutter could desire.

Only this year she announces to her gathered friends and their gobsmacked parents that she loves it because, unlike last year’s effort, this one doesn’t look at all like a chocolate vagina. Phew.

• Tic Toc Wonderland Clock Cookies

  

  

  Ingredients

  • 130g butter
  • 130g caster sugar
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 egg
  • 250 grams plain flour
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 cups pure icing sugar, sifted (see note)
  • Black icing pen to decorate

  Instructions

  1. In a bowl cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
  2. Add the egg and vanilla essence and beat well.
  3. Add the sifted flour and stir through until the dough begins to come together.
  4. Divide dough into two portions.
  5. Flatten individual portions, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
  6. Heat oven to 180 decrees c.
  7. Roll out the dough to 5mm thickness and use a gingerbread man cutter to cut out shapes.
  8. Place on lined baking trays in oven for around 10 minutes or until golden.
  9. Cool completely on racks.
  10. Lightly whisk egg white and lemon juice together in a bowl.
  11. Gradually add icing sugar, whisking until smooth.
  12. Decorated cooled bsuits and allow to set
  13. Decorate with icing pen.

  © 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

Lunging down the rabbit hole with Essentially Jess for #IBOT

The post Down the rabbit hole to a truly mad tea party appeared first on boyeatsworld.

Most parents would be familiar with Internet superstar, Lunchbox Dad Beau Coffron, he of the edible lunchbox masterpieces that make my kid’s sambos look spectacularly unappetising … embarrassingly so.

San Francisco-based businessman and father-of-three Beau has been in Australia to help launch Sunraysia’s Lunchbox Love campaign and their healthy new range of delicious all organic juices, to encourage families to get creative and add a little love into their children’s lunch boxes as they head back to school.

And just in time to put the pressure on me to “lift my game” in the school lunch department, our very own interviewer extraordinaire, Raffles, sat down with Beau over a couple of Sunraysia juices to talk about fun and nutritious school lunches and to pay out on mine. Over to the boys…

Beau, Welcome to Australia. You’re from San Francisco, right? My friend lives there and I’ve never been. Would you recommend visiting? Oh, and what’s the food like?
San Francisco is a great place. I would definitely recommend going there. And the food is great. 
Right, I’ll work on my mum to take me.

What made you start making Bento lunch boxes?
It was about three years ago when my daughter started school and I was looking for a way to connect with her and show her that her dad was thinking about her. I saw mums making bento lunch boxes and thought I could do that too. So, on the first Monday of school I surprised her with a Hello Kitty lunch and she liked it, so we decided to make it an every week thing. From there I started my blog to record our lunches.
Your blog is so, so cool. I love it.

A lot of kids eat junk food at school but my mum won’t let us. What do you think is so important about having nutritious food in school lunches?
It is very important. I make nutritious lunches to help build strong bodies and because I want my kids to eat things that will help their brains work really well while they’re at school to help them focus and learn more. I don’t want them to be hyper on sugar and junk food.
That’s what mum says.

What are the most important components of a good bento lunch?
Great question. First you need a good lunch box.I like Easy Lunchboxes and they’re available here in Australia. Then you need some healthy food. I like to use lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains. That’s a great place to start.  You can freeze a Sunraysia 100% natural organic juice pouch and add that to help keep things cool as well as providing a healthy cold drink. (Note: You can also head to Sunraysia Australia’s facebook page to download adorable notes to add a little extra love to your kids lunchbox)
They’re really yummy. I really like the apple guava one.

My mum makes a pretty good lunch but they are nowhere as epic as yours. How do you find the time to create them?
I make them on Sunday nights after the kids go to bed so my kids can take them on Monday morning. I put them all together and pop them in the fridge. 
Mum needs to lift her game!

How do you come up with all your cool ideas?
I get all my inspiration form what my kids are watching and reading at the time.
That’s epic I think I should get my mum to make me a Harry Potter or Kung Fu Panda one.

Bentos come from Japan, have you been there?
I’ve never been and would love to go because I love sushi and Japanese food. Hopefully I can go one day and take my kids with me. Do you think they’d like it?
Yes, you’re kids would love it! I’ve been and my favourite part was eating!

Are you inspired by the food of other countries?
Sometimes but generally what I like to do is use foods that my kids really like that are healthy and I try to get them to try new things that are just around. I did do a big sushi lunch box one time for my daughter and she liked that a lot. One rule in our house is that if we serve something the kids need to at least try it – if they don’t like it it’s ok.
We have the same rule. Luckily I like just about everything because my mum loves cooking stuff from all over the place.

I love your Big Hero 6 and Chewbacca Bentos. What is your favourite ever Bento you made?
Great question. I would probably have to say my Chewbacca one is my favourite because I’m a big fan of Star Wars.
Cool. Me too!

What about your kids – which did they like best?
My 9-year old daughter would probably say the Frozen themed lunch I made. My son would probably say one of the super hero lunches like Ironman.
My little sister would go nuts for a Frozen lunch! But then she’s already pretty nuts.

What about an Aussie themed lunch box next?
That would be great.
It would have to include Vegemite. Have you tried it?
I haven’t but you know its one of my goals while I’m here. Do you like it?
I do but the secret is to use loads of butter on your toast and only a smear of Vegemite!

Will you teach me to make a Bento lunch?
I will today! I’ll teach you how to make two.
Awesome! Thanks so much for talking to me today.

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As if the wrinkles and middle age spread weren’t giveaway enough, I’m about to really show my age! Though Raffles & Sugarpuff are convinced I grew up in the ice age riding woolly mammoths to school, I’m actually a product of the Age of Aquarius… which may explain my penchant for sipping on tree hugging bleeding heart hippy cool aid and weakness for popular 70’s desserts.

And though I was a little too young at the time to love the nightlife or to boogie, there were enough corduroy flares, terry-towelling frocks and lairy polyester prints in my childhood wardrobe to have outfitted a pre-school Studio 54. But I digress…

I’m actually reminiscing about the awesome kids’ shows of my 70’s childhood. Funny, clever, incredibly politically incorrect in hindsight, and clearly written by people on alarming quantities of LSD, they were awesome!

Some of my favourites were Scooby Doo – a show about a paranoid stoner and his dog, and the cartoon version of I Dream of Jeanie, about a bikini clad 2,000-year-old genie that lived in her surfer boyfriend’s bong. Then there was my first introduction to leopard print rock chick fabulousness via the awesomely skimpy outfits of Josie & The Pussycats, and the kung-fu crime-busting ridiculousness of a delusional dog in Hong Kong Phooey.

And of course the endless re-runs of The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show – a show about an inherently stupid moose and a flying squirrel. Wry, full of woeful puns and topical satire, the shows were smart and sassy and packed with quirky characters. There was the fabulously fiendish Boris and Natasha, melodramatic Mountie Dudley Do-Right and my favourite of them all, Mr Peabody, genius talking dog… and his pet boy, Sherman.

Renaissance dog Mr Peabody was an inspiration – business magnate, scientist, Nobel laureate, gourmand, two-time Olympic medallist and inventor of the Wayback machine – his journeys through history resonated with my five-year old self. Twisted and factually redundant though the tales were, I was so enthralled by the anthropomorphic dog and his whacked out adventures that I’ve been hooked on history every since.

When I heard that the Mr Peabody and Sherman Show was being re-booted 21^st century style on Netflix, I couldn’t wait to introduce it to the kids. And happily, they are as hooked as I was at their age. So much so that my little history buffs have decided to make their own Wayback Machine so our future travels can be back in time!

They’re starting with a visit to Belgium and the Battle of Waterloo! Which, thanks to Mr Peabody, they believe was caused by Napoleon being so distressed about not having a dessert named after him that he headed there in search of custard to make his namesake pastries.

I’ve enlightened them to the fact that there was more to the Battle of Waterloo than a hunt for a good crème pâtissière… but still figure it won’t hurt to whip up a Raspberry Napoleon or two for them to scoff in their Wayback Machine before they head off on more historically inaccurate but fabulous adventures.

Like Mr Peabody and his historical facts, I’ve taken a few liberties with the ingredients for my Raspberry Napoleon… but the end result proves as big a hit as the Mr Peabody & Sherman Show with my tiny time travellers.

Raspberry Napoleon

December 7, 2015

by Aleney de Winter

Category European food Party & Novelty food

Ingredients

• 2 sheets frozen ready-rolled butter puff pastry, thawed
• 2 tbs milk
• 2 tbs castor sugar
• 5 egg yolks
• 100 g caster sugar
• 500 ml milk
• 40 g cornflour
• 1 vanilla pod, split down the centre with seeds scraped out
• 250 ml thickened Cream
• 1 tsp icing sugar
• 2 punnets of raspberries
• 2 tablespoons raspberry jam

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200°C
2. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper
3. Place the pastry on the lined tray.
4. Brush pastry with milk and sprinkle with castor sugar.
5. Bake for 5 minutes or until golden.
6. Turn the pastry and bake for a further five minutes until the pastry is crisp.
7. Set aside to cool.
8. Pour the milk into a pan, add the vanilla pod and its seeds and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat.
9. Whisk sugar, egg yolks and cornflour together in a large bowl.
10. Add a little of the hot milk to the egg mixture and continue to whisk.
11. Slowly whisk in the rest of the hot milk and return to the pan.
12. Cook over a low heat, whisking continuously, until thick.
13. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely before placing in refrigerator.
14. Whisk cream until stiff peaks form and refrigerate.
15. Using a large serrated knife trim the cooled pastry into 6 x 12 cm rectangles.
16. Spread pastry slices with raspberry jam and raspberries then add a layer of the custard.
17. Add another pastry slice spread with raspberry Jam then add a layer of raspberries and cream.
18. Top with a pastry slice then sprinkle with icing sugar to serve.

Tags

70's cartoons,

CArdbpard Wayback Machine,

custard,

Mr Peabody & Sherman,

Napoleon,

Netflix,

Raspberry Napoleon,

StreamTeam,

Wayback Machine

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

Disclosure:  As a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam we received a subscription to Netflix, and while I will be posting regular updates about the service, and what tasty treats we scoff while we’re watching it, all opinions expressed will be our own.  

The post Time travel, ‘toons, and a Raspberry Napoleon recipe appeared first on boyeatsworld.

Halloween is lurking creepily around the corner. And whose fault is that? The Irish! The jolly green giant of a country that gave us leprechauns, U2 and whiskey. Not to mention Guinness, a plethora of uses for the potato, herds of dead-armed dancers and soul cakes.

What I hadn’t realised until recently is that one of the Emerald Isle’s less impressive exports, who I happily divorced some time ago, wasn’t the only frightening thing the Irish sent this way! They’re also responsible for Halloween. The festival had its roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, a celebration that marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. The Celts believed that as the sun went down on October 31^st, All Saints Eve, the door to the underworld opened allowing spirits, both naughty and nice, to pass.

All the goblins and ghouls that were normally trapped in purgatory were thought to come a-knockin’ on this one supernatural night of the year. Now, given the Ghostbusters weren’t about until the mid-1980’s, folk had to resort to DIY spirit exterminating. They would don costumes and masks to confuse and frighten off the harmful spectres. Then, after all that exhausting scaring, they’d crack open a bottle or two of the other type of spirits to celebrate the good ones.

The pagan ceremony was later replaced with All Hallows – a mass for Christian Saints. Around the 8^th century All Hallows Eve became a night for pranks and the custom of ‘souling‘. Peasants would visit houses, much as kids do now, but instead of trawling for sweet treats they would sing, pray and collect soul cakes – small round biscuits rocking a hot cross bun aroma – that when eaten, represented a soul being freed from purgatory.

When Irish immigrants brought their version of Halloween to North America, most of these medieval customs were already long forgotten and, despite Halloween being firmly ensconced as an American institution by the end of the 18^th century, the tradition of dressing in silly costumes and taking candy from strangers didn’t really begin to take off until around the 1930s.

In Australia, we’re late bloomers to Halloween’s creepy carousing. I have zero recollection of Halloween during my childhood and, given his British heritage, Mr Eats World instead celebrated Guy Fawkes Day, which happened around the same time of year and has something to do with some 15th century pyro. But over the last decade or two there’s been a spooky shift and it’s become quite the big deal to little folk … and some big folk too.

Including me. My own inner Morticia was unable to resist and the Eats Worlds have been going large for Halloween since the kids could say boo! But tick or treating in our neck of the woods is a little difficult, so instead we conjure up creations like monkey brains (dumplings), creepy crawly cookies and monster burgers to party at a spooked up Casa Eats World.

While visiting spirits seem to be just as happy with a couple of fun-size Mars Bars these days, for cultural and historical accuracy, this year we’ve decided to add traditional soul cakes to our Halloween table… only we’ve added edible souls.

Halloween soul cakes

October 28, 2015

by Aleney de Winter

Category Holidays & Festivals Party & Novelty food

Ingredients

• 350g sifted plain flour
• 175 g brown sugar
• 175g butter
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ tsp allspice
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 100g currants
• 200g white chocolate
• Large chocolate sprinkles
• 40ml vegetable oil
• toothpicks

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Work the butter into the flour mix until evenly distributed.
4. Add the egg, vinegar and currants and stir with a spoon until it comes together into a mass. Shape dough into a ball, cover and chill for 30 minutes.
5. Lightly flour a clean, flat surface and roll the dough out to just over 5mm in thickness.
6. Use a cookie cutter to make rounds and place on lined baking sheets.
7. Use the back of a knife to press a cross into the dough.
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden.
9. While the soul cakes cool, line another tray with baking paper.
10. Heat white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over simmering water, stirring occasionally. Once melted add oil and mix in quickly until smooth.
11. Using a spoon spread the chocolate over the baking paper to form ghost shapes.
12. Cut a toothpick in half and place two pieces in the chocolate at the bottom of ghost (sharp end down)
13. Drop in a two large chocolate sprinkles for eyes
14. Pop into fridge to set.
15. Stick finished ghosts into the cooled cookies using the toothpicks.

Tags

Australia,

cooking with kids,

family fun,

ghosts,

Halloween,

Ireland,

Recipes,

Soul Cakes,

traditions

© 2021 copyright www.boyeatsworld.com.au

The post Soul Cakes for Halloween appeared first on boyeatsworld.