Cakes celebrate healthcare workers as bakers bounce back

(2 Oct 2021) LEAD IN:
The Cake and Bake Show has returned to London after last year's event was cancelled due to the pandemic.
Bakers have been paying tribute to healthcare workers in their show-stopping contest cakes.

STORY-LINE:
One wouldn't normally wish to eat a legendary creature like Pegasus.
But this flying unicorn is made entirely out of cake – so a nibble is just a little bit tempting.
It's one of the sugary creations on display at this year's Cake and Bake Show in London.
It brings big brands and independent bakers together to showcase their treats to the public.
Last year's event was cancelled as the UK remained in the grips of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But organisers think the lockdowns of the last 18 months have brought more interest than ever to the topic of baking.
"It's good to be back. And we're trying to get as many people enjoying cakes as they used to. Everyone may have started a lockdown business who are now here," says Conor Tallon, commercial director at Media 10, the company behind the show.
"They started with cupcakes in their kitchen which are now here, taking a stall, with 30,000 visitors."
And the first thing greeting those 30,000 visitors as they walk through the door is some seriously posh pudding.
This year's show stopper is a pair of life sized characters from the period drama Bridgerton.
The dashing Duke of Hastings is now tastier than ever.
It was created by British celebrity baker Rosie Cake-Diva.
But don't bother asking for the recipe – she simply can't remember the quantities of ingredients needed to make the edible Regency couple.
"The trouble with making a cake this size is that I genuinely lose count. I think my last count was about 100 kilogrammes (220 pounds) of icing, more than 100 kilogrammes, definitely. Cake wise, essentially I just keep shoving it in there and it's pretty heavy," says Rosie.
"Last I heard, it would feed about 1,200 people."
And there are plenty more show cakes to admire.
Professionals and amateurs get a chance to impress visitors in the cake competition.
This year, lots of entries pay tribute to British healthcare workers
In fact, one of the contest themes is 'Over the Rainbow', a nod to the colourful signs put up to show support for the National Health Service as the pandemic raged.
The virus has affected more than just cakes designs.
Baking businesses like Madelaine Lazaga's have felt the impact too.
She had just quit a stable, well paid corporate job to launch her dream company, Macarons by Madelaine, when the pandemic struck.
"So I've only just about managed to keep afloat. Selling online was kind of a stop-gap, it wasn't really what I wanted to do," she says.
"I had festivals booked around the UK, I had about 36 to 40 festivals booked. I was fully booked for the year, I wasn't really taking online orders, and then COVID happened and I had to change my whole tactic and how I approach business."
With normal life returning, bookings are growing again.
For others, the pandemic was a real opportunity.
Dona Carla's Kitchen previously made a lot of large, bespoke celebration cakes.
But with parties banned, husband and wife team Carla and Saif Shefi turned to nostalgic treats that their customers remembered from school lunches.
"So during the pandemic, I think we came up with this little concept idea of making cheaper alternatives to the big bespoke orders. So we started making school cakes and these little school cakes were just £10 ($13.50) a box," says Saif.
"Orders just went through the roof and from the back of that it's helped our business grow even further."

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