Behold the Absolute Cutest Toast You'll Ever Get to Not Eat
This Japanese culinary instructor is turning white bread into edible art.
Japan-based culinary instructor Nayoko Kobayashi teaches classes on the art of sugar cookies, so she knows a thing or two about making beautiful, edible creations. But it’s another creative carb she started showing off earlier this year that’s made her into a social media star. Feast your eyes on Kobayashi’s cute and colorful toasts dotted with subjects ranging from glistening goldfish to dainty donuts to bite-size bunnies.
The mom of three says she initially came up with the idea simply as a way to get her 20-month-old to take a bite of her breakfast (an ongoing issue most parents can easily relate to). “I first made it for my daughter to eat. I found a picture of strawberry toast on Instagram and imitated it.”
That was back in April. Since then, Kobayashi’s Instagram following has grown to nearly 20,000 users who keep an eye on the toasty takes she regularly posts. She whips them up using basic, round-top white bread, smeared with plain old cream cheese from the grocery store and then delicate dots various ingredients on top to create her delightful designs. “They take 5 to 10 minutes to complete,” she says. “Sometimes, if it is difficult to make, then half an hour.”
So far, the toast she made dotted with the faces of “Ted” the bear (modeled after the foul-mouthed titular character in the Seth McFarlane movie) has been her most-liked with more than 7,200 likes at last count. “The face of Ted is peanut cream, kinako [a roasted soybean flour popular in Japan], marshmallow, chocolate, and pine nuts,” she shares.
And while Kobayahsi adorns her toasts with other cute faces like Minions, dogs, and Russian nesting dolls, we’re kind of in love with one she posted in May that boasts adorable little frying pans made from black sesame cream cooking up teeny tiny over-easy eggs made of whipped cream and mango jam.
“Toast art is easier than sugar cookies. Inspiration comes out one after another, so it's fun,” she says. And while the toasts may look too pretty to consume... well, they aren’t. “After taking a picture, we bake it again and eat it.”
