Foodie treats for the school lunch
Kids are back at school. Here’s how to treat their lunchboxes without resorting to junk food.
Kids are back at school. Here’s what lies ahead, food-wise.
Light-up lunch box: First there was Twinkle Toes, now LED technology can light up your child’s lunch box as well as their shoes. Activated by a tap or a shake, the LED insulated lunch bag is the latest innovation from Smash Enterprises, creator of the cleverly named Nude Food Movers (basically a series of lunch boxes and snack tubes designed to obviate the need for cling wrap and other non-recyclable wrappings). And if you think something as quotidian as a lunch box doesn’t really rate as a treat, clearly you are not the parent of a young child. Smashenterprises.com.au
Cooking class at Taste Budds: If your teacher’s CV counts for anything, Sophie Budd’s cooking classes must rock. The expat Brit got her start at Rick Stein’s famous Seafood Restaurant in Padstow, is a former chef de partie at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall and was recently offered the job of sous chef to Prince Charles, apparently. But never mind all that: Budd also has a reputation as a first-rate educator of junior palates. Check out her kids’ cooking classes (among many others) at Taste Budds Cooking Studio in Highgate, Perth. Tastebudds.com.au
Dinner at Tetsujin, Melbourne: The key to a successful restaurant experience with young children is to find somewhere that offers a little light entertainment. No, we’re not thinking of a playground a short scamper away like they have at Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Singapore (though it wouldn’t hurt), but the interactive fun on offer at the new Japanese at Emporium Melbourne, Tetsujin. A sushi train! A barbecue at every table! Now all you have to worry about is getting your kids to STOP taking plates off the sushi train and to keep the inquisitive toddler paws away from the BBQ fire. But our four-year-old loved the chance to help cook her own dinner. Tetsujin.com.au
Lemmy lemonade from Karma Cola: Soft drinks? There’s a good reason Jamie Oliver wants these teeth-rotters taxed in Britain. But never say never, hey? In the “special treat” category in our house is a bottle of Lemmy lemonade from the good folk at Karma Cola. Not only is it made from ingredients superior to that of your average fizzy drink, proceeds from sales go to fostering independence in a cola-growing community in war-ravaged Sierra Leone. Plus, we hear word of new products in the pipeline — including, we hope, a low-sugar alternative. Karmacola.com.au