Korean lunchbox cakes are the cutest, most adorable delicacy you can have. People know of this South Korean food trend as bento cakes. Bento cakes or lunch-box cakes are two-by-four-inch cakes that weigh about 300-350 grams. This is ideal for a person who hates to share their food. Joey from F.R.I.E.N.D.S. would definitely approve. Now, you might wonder why we’re talking about Korean lunchbox cakes. Well, sister-duo bakers from Kerala’s Kochi picked up this Korean trend so you can experience bento cakes like never before.
Starlit and Esther Jacob, the two sisters who run Stars and Mittens from their home in Eroor South, Tripunithura, have given us the opportunity to appreciate a foreign culture through food. They want us to give Korean lunchbox cakes a try and trust us, you’ll not go back to normal cakes again.
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The sisters have always been fond of baking all kinds of treats since they were kids. As such, they grew up learning and experimenting with different delicacies. It enabled them to achieve a broad palate. Speaking to PinkLungi, they shared, “We started baking in our childhood home, Bahrain and now as young adults, we want to use all that we’ve learned over the years to create standout products for the people of Kochi. We simply could not let all that knowledge just sit in our heads and instead brought it to life.“
Adding to Kochi’s already diverse cuisine, Starlit and Esther started Stars and Mittens to introduce Malayalis to Korean Lunchbox Cakes. They enthusiastically shared, “We were obsessed with the Korean cafe culture. It’s one of a kind and purely aesthetic. During the lockdown, we would spend time watching nothing but Korean food videos on YouTube and so, fell in love with the idea of truly aesthetic treats, the sight and taste. Among such products were the Korean lunchbox cakes which we noticed were not common in Kochi. We started this in March 2021 and immediately knew that we could most certainly make it a thing.”
Stars and Mittens is an outlet for their creativity and most importantly, they wanted their personalities to shine through their cakes. They commented, “Korean Lunchboxcakes are hyped up because of how imperfectly perfect they are with their rough edges & minimal designs. They are small, but they stand out, which is right up our alley.”
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What Should You Get From Stars and Mittens?
You could barely go wrong with anything on their menu. However, if you have to choose from the lot, we’d recommend the artsy Buttercream lunchbox cakes and Ferrero Rocher Lunchbox cake. Their best selling cakes, btw!
The artsy buttercream cake is quite popular because customers can choose either a vanilla/chocolate base and it can be customised however they like.
The Ferrero Rocher Lunchboxcake is a Stars and Mittens original and has been a hit since the beginning. One of the sisters commented, “It’s sorta like the boujee kid of the block, made of rich and indulgent ingredients and is essentially like eating a huge Ferrero Rocher but in a cake form (basically what dreams are made of).” They also have a very dramatic yet soft red velvet sponge available and are among the very few places in Kochi where you’d get a red velvet ‘lunchbox sized’ cake.
All the base sponges are made from scratch and include a rich butter-based vanilla cake, which has a consistency that’s a combination of a sponge and a pound cake. Their chocolate cake base is very moist and oil-based, made with Dutch-processed cocoa powder. Their frostings include American buttercream, whipped non-dairy cream and whipped cream cheese frosting. All the filings in their cakes, including their salted caramel sauce (inside their snickers Lunchboxcake) are homemade.
Clearly, you definitely won’t be disappointed with anything that you order.
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How Can You Order?
The prices of their products are based on the flavour, frosting, ingredients and the level of customisation required to make a particular cake. Price ranges for their artsy buttercream cakes start at around ₹300 and can go up to ₹470 for their Biscoff Lunchboxcake.
You can view the detailed menu, descriptions and prices, and place pre-orders via their platform on thrivenow.in.
If you’re planning to pre-order on the website, you need to book it in advance (1 week to 2 days). All the payments can be made online by card, app wallet, UPI, and other popular payment options. For customisations, you just need to mention it in the special instructions box at the checkout on the site or if necessary, you can send them reference pictures via Instagram DMs or WhatsApp. They are available for any enquiries on Instagram or WhatsApp/call (9400056899).
