By Melissa Meehan
With the popularity of TV cooking shows like MasterChef, Iron Chef and My Kitchen Rules, a generation of young mini-chefs have been born.
Among them is local teen Morgan Hipworth, who started cooking when he was just seven years old and turned it into a business when he was nine.
So it’s no surprise children’s pay TV channel Nickelodeon has jumped on the bandwagon by producing a new pre-school cooking series called Butterbean Café.
They’ve collaborated with 17-year-old Morgan to develop a short series of do-it-yourself themed doughnut tutorials that air following Butterbean Café.
Morgan is already living his dream entrepreneur life running a successful business, Bistro Morgan café in Windsor.
Within the short tutorials, Morgan shows kids at home how to make some super delicious doughnuts inspired by their favourite shows. That includes Paw Patrol, Shimmer and Shine and Nella the Princess Knight.
Morgan says his success in the kitchen started quite modestly.
“I began by cooking packet mix cakes and cookies, then I moved to more intricate desserts,” he said.
“I first turned it into a little business when I started making cakes and desserts for family and friends.”
His next big break came when he went to a local café for lunch and got chatting with the owner.
She told him they were looking for a new cake supplier and asked if he’d be interested in bringing some samples down. The rest is history.
The former Caulfield Grammar School student grew up in Melbourne’s southeast and spent every spare minute in the kitchen.
When asked about his fascination with doughnuts he replied: “who doesn’t love a good doughnut?”
“I’m just so excited to have teamed up with Nick Jnr. I think it’s a great combination as our doughnuts are about having fun,” Morgan said.
He hopes other kids his age and younger will see his story and feel inspired to follow their passion.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s in the kitchen or anywhere else – love what you do and believe in yourself,” he said.
Morgan’s tutorials air across Australia on Nick Jnr. after Butterbean Café at 8.30am weekdays.
