Aussie Food Frenzy

Last week, Liam's class had an international feast.  Every student was assigned a country and assumed responsibility for bringing a dish or food from that land.  Liam got Australia. You know--the land down under. Immediately when I saw his country, my mind drifted to Men at Work lyrics--

I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"  
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich.

Perfect, I thought, I'll just make up some Vegemite sandwiches for the Kinder Kingdom to enjoy.  Now, several people warned me that the Aussie spread tastes like a cross between battery acid and chunky salt, but it still sounded like a pretty good plan.  You know, exposing little taste buds to new things, and all..

I told Jon my idea, and he reasoned, "Where are you going to find Vegemite?"  So, I started looking.  The only place in Irving that even stocks it ran out--guess there was a rush on Vegemite around here.
Once again, Jon tried to be practical, "How about we just find a kiwi recipe?  They call Australians Kiwis. And New Zealanders, too....Look it up just to be sure, though."
(Somehow I always miss that part).
Anyway, that seemed like an acceptable alternative IF I couldn't track down Vegemite.
A few calls later, I found it!  Central Market in Southlake, in case anyone is wondering.
After attending a birthday party in the area, Liam and I stopped at the grocery store on the way home.  At ten dollars for little jar, I'd probably have to buy at least a couple of jars.  I just couldn't bring myself to spending the money, especially since everyone told me how rancid it tastes.  So, I headed over to produce and bought a dozen kiwi.

(Yes, the kiwi I purchased were produce of Italy.  Technically.)

When we got home, Jon asked, "You're sure kiwi are Australian, right?"
"Just a second..."  I mumbled as a picked up my phone and did a Google search.
Here's what I found:
Kiwi is the nickname used internationally for people from New Zealand,as well as being a relatively common self-reference. The name derives from the kiwi, a flightless bird, which is native to, and the national symbol of, New Zealand.
WHAT?!?
Just people from New Zealand?!?
A Bird?!?
Seriously.
Stuff like this happens to me all the time.
All.The.Time.
And, it's always my own fault.
And, kiwi fruit are actually native to China.

No worries, though, we did discover that kiwi fruit is one of Australia's major exports, and Jon found an Australian recipe for apple pancakes topped with whipped cream and kiwi.  We took creative liberties and named them Aussie Apple Jacks with Kiwi Fruit. Sounds Aussie-rific, right?  Not only that, Jon also cut and sculpted some of the extra kiwi into a koala bear, just to add a little extra Australian flare.
Kinder Kingdom international feast success, but not without some grunt work!