A nation of bakers

Forget shopkeeping, if last weekend’s Cake International event is anything to go by, baking is now the national obsession! From what we saw, thousands flocked to the show over its three days, lapping up all the latest ideas and trends for home cooks and professionals alike.

According to Mintel research carried out in 2012, ‘cake’ is the most-searched food term on the Internet at the moment. And over 25% of adults reportedly bake at home every week (that’s men as well as women!).

But where has this interest come from? Certainly, series like The Great British Bake-off have re-ignited our love of home baking. And maybe the mood of austerity has resulted in us all spending more time at home and in the kitchen. Whatever the reason, it’s great to be even a small part of this movement.

For three days last week at the NEC, we served hundreds of customers, had a sneaky peak at other exhibitors stands, and saw just about every kind of cake and cake-making equipment you could possibly imagine. Did you see some of those competition entries? If you didn’t, take a peek on the BBC website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-24891683.

If these creations have inspired you, but you’re short on time (and kitchen space) why not try baking your very own cake pops? You can be really creative, just on a much smaller scale! Our website has all you need to get started, from kits to sticks, melts to melting pots.

And if you’re looking for recipes or ideas, just join all those people typing ‘cake’ into their browser. Just try adding the word ‘pops’ to narrow the search. You’ll be amazed at what you find!