Yan Bo's son likes to help his mother in the kitchen. Photo: Courtesy of Yan Bo

 

Cartoonish dishes can be irresistible to young appetites. Photo: Courtesy of Yang Xueyi

Yan Bo's 10-year-old son loves to eat her homemade bread.

Not only is it rich and spongy and stuffed with his favorite fillings, but it's always changing. One week it may be shaped like a crab or butterfly, the next it will be hearts or flowers. Yan has even baked a version of his beloved Anpanman (a Japanese cartoon character whose head of bread is filled with red bean paste).

"I try new things every week, to stimulate his appetite," said Yan, 38. "When he helps me cook, I let him shape the dough into anything he wants." Whenever Yan shares her recipes on Sina Weibo, China's largest microblogging service, the positive feedback she receives from other parents is overwhelming.

Cute food for kids - made from scratch by loving mothers - is the latest trend. The evidence is everywhere on Weibo, WeChat, Instagram and other social media. A quick search will turn up photos of edible cartoons: Doraemon, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Pleasant Goat and his buddy the Big Big Wolf.

In the case of food blogger Wang Xiao, whose site had long featured good-looking dishes, becoming pregnant prompted her to start focusing on kid-friendly fare. She began creating whimsical dishes that she envisioned cooking for her child: lion buns, penguin rice balls, owl cupcakes, chipmunk cookies, Christmas tree salad, rose rolls, Jack-o'-lantern sushi and more.

Her recipe for crab buns has been bookmarked by more than 8,000 users, about 300 of whom say they've already tried out the recipe. "Nutrition is the most important thing, but fun and creativity are also essential in making food for children," said Wang.

When parents seek advice from Wang about kids who are being fussy about food, Wang tells them that bright colors, cartoon shapes and the presence of ingredients they like can help persuade kids to eat foods they hate.

For example, by adding carrot juice to dough, the resulting buns will be yellowish just like a crab - so that even a toddler who dislikes carrots can be enticed to eat the colorful treat.

The only drawback to Yan's breadmaking project is that making cartoon-shaped bread takes about three hours, even longer than baking regular bread. "If you're not a full-time mother, it's a big challenge," said Yan. As an accountant with a busy schedule, she only has time to bake during the weekends.

Fortunately for busy white-collar parents, time-saving tools are available in markets and on Taobao, China's largest online retailer.

There are plastic and aluminum molds to make animal-shaped rice balls, sandwiches, cookies, ice cream and chocolates. You'll also find stainless steel frames to make heart or star-shaped fried eggs, and even embossing tools to add fine details.

Yang Xueyi's Taobao shop, which specializes in kitchen gear, is benefitting from the wave of interest in fun food.

One of Yang's best-sellers is a set of three molds (bunny, sunflower and dolphin) with an stencil tool to form animal faces. Last month, Yang sold about 500 sets at 27 yuan ($4.40) each.

Aside from some foodies who want to delight their boyfriends or girlfriends, Yang's customers are mostly parents who are hoping to whet their kids' appetite. After all, for a parent, nothing beats the happiness of watching their kids cheer at - and shovel down - a homecooked meal.