Who said cakes are only for Christmas? No more December exclusivity, cakes are for all occasions and seasons these days. Hence, it was no surprise when Changanassery native Meera Mathew baked an exclusively sculpted Maveli cake.
Sounds interesting, but for the cake artist it’s been a labour of love done over several painstaking hours. Baking is in her blood, says Meera, whose mother was her inspiration as also the smells from mom’s kitchen, which still lingers. Though a techie by profession, she chose to go the baking way as she knew the task was cut out for her. The young girl who used to cut out figures from the chapathi dough at home is a successful full-fledged baker today, specializing in cake sculpture.
So this time around for Onam, Meera Mathew decided to bake a Maveli cake. Life-like and sculpted with precision, the king from the nether world, clad in his traditional attire, is a sight to behold. Her task began by Googling for a relatable Maveli design. Then came the arduous job of measurement and collecting the cake material which took more than a week.
But for the base and steel rod on which the king stands, the entire Maveli structure is one edible mass of tasty cake sculpted with fondant and modelling paste for the exterior look.
Meera took to serious baking about five years ago. What began with toy cakes for her son soon evolved into a serious business. Today, Meera owns her own brand, The Cake Lab that bakes and sells sculpted designer cakes. With her husband’s wholehearted support, Meera hopes to open her dream venture, a cake studio where she can carry her passion and profession to the next level and impart a lesson or two to baking aspirants.
But right now, she is totally into baking Onam-themed cakes.
