Being a migrant to Melbourne myself, I know how hard it can be sometimes to feel the displacement and homesickness that hits all newcomers to the country.
The one thing that I do know cures all, is being reminded by the comforts and familiarity of food from my homeland.
When I am incredibly sad, homesick, stressed or just plain ‘ol missing my Madam Mummy and grandparents, I find that replicating the food they cook for me is a good strong cure.
What can I say? Food and I are the best of friends!
So when the Immigration Museum offered us a sneak preview of their Sweets Festival, showcasing the “Tastes and Traditions from Many Cultures”, I couldn’t help but grin, and say “Yes, please!”
Five different communities from Melbourne have been highlighted to showcase special sweet foods.
So this is a great chance for the people of Melbourne to explore the different cultures and sweets from the Indian, Italian, Japanese, Mauritian and Turkish communities.
Discover the way in which they are carefully prepared and the significance behind them.
Japanese Sweets: Nerikiri
Take for example the delicate wagashi (Japanese sweets) and art of making Nerikiri.
Nerikiri is a dessert made to celebrate the changing of seasons. Made from a blend of Gyuhi (a mochi like paste) and Shiroan (Japanese sweet white bean paste), the Nerikiri is not only delicate and beautiful, it is also quite a painstaking art to master.
At the Sweets Festival, you not only get to learn about these little titbits, but you also get to try these delightful creations as well as be entertained by performances and demonstrations!
Scroll down to see how you could win an exciting double pass to this event!
Meanwhile, I’ll let the sweets speak for themselves 🙂
More Japanese Sweets: Daifuku (with Red Bean Paste) and Matcha (Green Tea) Mochi
Turkish Sweets: Baklava, Lokumlu Kurabiye & Hanim Gobegi
More Turkish Sweets: Tel Kadayifi
Mauritian Sweets: Gateau Coco, Tarte Banane, Coconut Macarons and Gateau Gingeli.
More Mauritian Sweets: Napolitain & Puit d’amour
Italian Sweets: Pistachio Biscotti & Cannoli.
More Italian Sweets: Tiramisu a Limone
Indian Sweet: Gulab Jamun
A table of selected “artifacts” donated by the communities partaking in this festival, showcasing the different items connected to sweets, celebrations, and life events.
We also had a chance to try a couple of dessert beverages (which may or may not have included alcohol! *Wink* )
We had Pina Colada, Turkish Coffee, Shoju, Moscato as well as Tea and Coffee.
[Ms I-Hua attended the Sweets Festival Preview Night as a guest of the Immigration Museum Melbourne]
Important Dates:
Sweets Temporary Exhibition:
“Tastes and Traditions from Many Cultures”
Opens Thursday 15th March 2012
10.00am – 5.00pm (included with Museum entry)
Sweet Dinner with Guy Grossi:
Thursday 15th March 2012
6.30pm – 10.30pm
Cost: $180 per person (Bookings are essential on 13 11 02)
Sweets Festival:
Sunday 18th March 2012
11.00am – 4.00pm (included with Museum entry)
Competition:
The lovely folks at the Immigration Museum have decided to let me give back to my readers!!!
Win a double pass to the Immigration Museum (which you can use to attend the Sweets Festival on Sunday the 18th of March!) and a Sweets Recipe Book.
All you have to do is:
- ‘Like’ my Facebook page (if you haven’t done so already), if you have (you are Wonderful!) skip this step 🙂
- Leave a comment here telling me what your one favourite dessert is and why
*Please leave a valid email address (emails won’t be published). Competition is open to Australian Residents only.
The competition closes Thursday, 8th March 2012 at 6:00pm. The winner will be drawn randomly on Thursday Night, the 8th of March 2012!!!
So what are you waiting for??
Get cracking!!
For more drool-worthy sneak previews:
Off The Spork
I am so hungree
Mel: Hot or Not
Immigration Museum Address:
400 Flinders Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Website: http://museumvictoria.com.au/immigrationmuseum/
How to get there:
Tiramusu is my favorate now, I like the smoothness taste and the smell of coffee and cheese. Nice for summer time
I will have to agree with you! Tiramisu rocks!
My new favourite is from Golden Fields – Miso Icecream with Compact Apple. Yum~
Oh that’s a new one! I haven’t had that before!! MmMmm
Definitely pavlova for me, I always request it for my birthday even though my birthday’s in the depths of winter! Nigella’s chocolate pav with raspberries is the best version ever of it, too…
Oh good one 🙂 Do you know, I don’t think I’ve ever had a proper pav before!
Choosing one dessert is near impossible. But, I’m going to have to say pancakes because you can have them for breakfast or dessert and they also come with ice-cream, so it’s like two desserts in one.
It’s definitely a hard task for any sweet tooth!
Tiramisu will be one of my fav dessert, coz i love coffee dessert, even i dont really like to drink coffee 🙂
What? Not drink coffee?? NoooOooOOoo! Lol
What an amazing event! 😮 And I used to stare at the displays of wagashi when I first arrived in Tokyo. They were so beautiful! 🙂
I would too! They are such delicate and pretty things!
FLy me back to Melbourne?
Lol.. unfortunately I can’t 😛
Gosh! Your pictures look like a dream buffet! Heheheheh imagine the sugar rush after that! 😀
hmmm… my favourite dessert would be tong suis! It would be hard to choose one but one of my favourite would be sweet potato ginger tong sui! Cause my mum used to boil them every weekend and it would be the week’s highlight!
Hahaha… I was hyper after that!
Lovely pictures!
Thanks Michelle!
Oh oh oh! I’m so so so JEALOUS!!! I really wanted to go but I’ve just missed it 🙁 Look at all the desserts and goodies sighhh my mouth is watering SO SO SO badly!
That’s such a hard question…favourite dessert 😛 I said Lemon tart on Ashley’s blog but it’s not fair I have more than one favourite dessert hehe My other favourite dessert would have to be salted caramel over vanilla bean ice-cream! 😀
Thanks for the opportunity I-hua!
Awww… if you win you can go! Will you be back in Melbourne?
oo o o o o o MEMEMEMEMEMEM EMEMEM! pick me!
=).
so sad, i couldnt attend that night – stupid work.
Hehehehe…. stupid work… work stinks!
Lucky lucky you! Look at all those sweets. Yums yums yums!
My favourite dessert is green tea daifuku because it is ‘soft soft one’. Haha, not because of that only, but also because I really love matcha! 😉
PICK ME! 😛
hahahahaahha… you made me snort at the ‘soft soft one’!!! Hahahahahha
It’s so hard to choose one dessert! I love all sweets, but especially Greek desserts… I can’t go past galatoboureko (custard and filo pastry) or baklava (nutty filo pastry) or kourabiethes (crescent-shaped shortbread biscuits). They’re all delish!
Thanks for the great giveaway 🙂
It is hard, but choose you must!!!
All I can say is OH MY GOD !! Is this actually possible 😛 THanks for sharing !!
thanks for a lovely giveaway! Mine will be a mango sago because it’s fruit and not too sweet!
MMmMM… that is a good choice!
Omg I want it all… NOW!!!! You’re so, SO lucky to get to go for that tasting! Hopefully I get to win this giveaway so I can go nuts when I’m there too, hehe…
ANYHOO,my favourite dessert is still the classic apple crumble. I just love warm desserts and anything crunchy, and this certainly ticks the boxes and tickles my fancy!
Also, it’s something quite dear to my heart too because it’s the first dessert I learned to make from Mum and so I’ve had many, many fond memories of eating this with her and the family over the years =]
Piggy 😛 ooo… can you please make me one?
Chocolate mousse. Because it reminds me of my host sister who taught me to make it when I was in Belgium 20 years ago and of eating at French expat restaurants while living in Cambodia more recently, and is the favourite dessert offering of a friend who lives conveniently just around the corner.
That’s interesting that you learnt it in Belgium and rediscovered it at a French restaurant in Cambodia 🙂 Hahaha… wonderful story!
What a good review and sneak peek. I wouldn’t miss this event for a chance to taste these lovely sweets from the world.
I personally like the tiramisu, the coffee and cheese totally make me feel I’m in heaven.
Tiramisu seems to be a popular choice 🙂
This is Sweet Amazing! A multi-cultural sweet feast. I love the Japanese sweets, even in food preparation they are naturally artistic. I want to taste the Turkish and Mauritian sweets and most of all I want to win the free passes.
Hahahah good luck!
What a very lovely festival indeed! A great idea to bring cultures and communities together.
I just love ice cream. Something about the smooth cold creaminess I guess. I also love tapioca, again I guess it’s a textural thing 🙂
Food and sugar brings everything together I say 🙂
Your post makes me feel hungry. I am sure those foods will not disappoint me. They sure are of great taste. It can make you forget the homesickness you feel.
Branson show tickets
That is definitely true.
Ugh, you’ve all beaten me to it! Gotta get my summary up this week – though I’ve got my work cut out for me cos everyone’s posts are amazing! 🙂
I feel like baklava now… mmmm.
Slow poke 😛
I wish you would have provided some napkins with this blog post – I find my mouth watering a little more than I would like. I’ll definitely have to check out the festival out – it sounds yummy.
Oops! Hahaha I shall! Here you go *virtual napkins*!
I’m here to win the tickets to the Sweet Festival so my answer is Bubur Durian since you decline my Epok-epok! 🙂 Why? because i’m here to represent Malay dessert and you aint a foodist if you cant even handle a Durian 🙂
Good luck! I didn’t decline your epok-epok! I declined your curry puff!! LOL and I love Durian 🙂
my favourite dessert is custard bun! available at all good dim sum joints, i love the sweet custard paired with the good old bun. yums!
Oh yummm… i love salted egg buns!
My favourite dessert was served at the Yellow Heaven Soup Kitchen in London years ago (it closed down in the 90s).
It was a serving of home-made coconut ice-cream mixed with coconut biscuit bits and two dark chocolate Bounty bars stuck in the top. Genius.
That sounds really good! mMmm
Definitely ginger souffle, the one I had in Hong Kong to be precise! I like the mild gingery flavour and it’s also very light and not too sweet.
Loving the many different responses! mMmm
Favourite puds..hmmm..I had black sesame seed ice cream at Sushi Zanmai (great place to eat) at Plaza Low Yat in KL which was heavenly and a mango souffle I had once at The Priory in Bath, England which was like an explosion of sunshine! 🙂
Ooo yes I still haven’t made my way to Sushi Zanmai!!
Aww, would have totally entered but I’m not here in Melb *cries* But I will like your Facebook page lol. The Japanese sweets look so delightful!
*not here on that date, I mean…
Oh boo!!!
I cannot go past hot fudge brownies with vanilla bean ice cream and mixed berries…it’s ridiculously simple to put together if you have a bit of time…and it’s my go-to dessert whether I’m impressing the friends or feeling down in the dumps 🙂
That sounds decidedly tasty!
I want Sweets. Nice photos, did A take those 😉
Not all 😛 We did them together!
Chocolate fondant – warm, comforting and a crowd pleaser.
Ooh yes, please!
napolitaine from the mauritius is the best!!!!!!!!!! 😛
yum!