This vet doesn't need a cat to make a cat

Today, meet Kanitha Chongstitwattana, a multi-talented lady with a doctorate in animal science (she's a veterinarian) who speaks and reads English, German and Japanese - in addition to Thai, of course.

She's also a fine chef. Ask her how to "make" a cat, and she whips out her knife.

It's a very sharp knife. Her "cats" are great as activities you can do with children, but do set up a system first: the kids can assemble the cats, but you're in charge of the knife.

With that sharp knife, Kanitha cuts an orange in half, then slices strawberries into quarters for the cat's ears, and into eighths for whiskers.

The cat's cheeks are whipped cream; the nose is a raisin.

Your kids can have fun making the cat happy, sad or angry, depending on the direction of the eyes and the mouth.

"You don't have to follow exactly what I do," Kanitha says. You can use other fruit if you wish - instead of an orange, try grapefruit. Instead of strawberries, try sweets. It depends on what you and your family prefer - and your imagination.

For another cat, Kanitha takes a large slice of bologna and runs a toothpick slightly below the top edge to form the cat's face and ears. Then she fills the resulting "cup" with mashed potatoes, but next time, she'll use egg salad, just making sure that the salad is smooth and creamy.

For the face, you can cut up pieces of bell pepper, and for the nose, a raisin. If you don't like bell peppers, you can use sausage. Just choose one with a fairly dark colour to contrast with the potatoes.

The third "cat" Kanitha presents is quite difficult to make. It requires lots of balance, and the whiskers and such have to be cut very thin. She likes the cat, though, because in addition to the cookie on the bottom, the legs are made from sliced tinned peaches, her family's favourite breakfast fruit.

She suggests that for a larger base, try a bagel, available at most supermarkets. For the head, she uses a candy, but melon balls would go much better with the cat's tummy, made from whipped cream cheese.