Piece of cake
A LITTLE CHINWAG WITH COVER ARTIST AND APRIL’S BAKER FOUNDER ROXY MANKOO.
Hello! Who is April’s Baker? I started the business in London back in November 2019 after deciding to pursue my dream of running my own bespoke cake business. Since then, April’s Baker (given that name because I was born in April) has evolved into a sister-run business, with Corinne Mankoo becoming co-director.
How did you get started making such fancy cakes? I initially trained as a pastry chef at Le Cordon Bleu, then took on roles as a specialist cake baker and decorator in bakeries across London and New York. I felt like I’d found my calling in cake-making, and wanted to develop my own signature style. From what I could see, no one in London was really doing the OTT, fanciful, Marie Antoinette aesthetic, which I love. I knew I had the skillset to execute the style well, so I really went for it.
Where do you find inspiration for your ornate designs? I draw a lot of inspiration from the Baroque and Rococo periods in 17th- and 18th-century France. I love all the attention to detail. I originally studied art and design at university, and have long been inspired by architecture and paintings. I also just think of things that make me happy – often I think back to my childhood, creating cakes that exude ’90s pastel nostalgia.
Do you ever have kitchen mishaps? I know a lot of the recipes off the top of my head now, so I don’t have to read through as I go. But one time I was making the cakes, which I bake in batches. I made all the vanilla sponges and put them in the oven. The timer went off and I pulled out a load of doughy lumps. I’d forgotten the sugar. One of the main ingredients that you’d think no one could forget. Luckily, neither of us has dropped a cake… yet!
What kinds of flavours do you make? We offer a large range of flavours, from Sicilian lemon to vanilla sour cherry and chocolate and jam. We personally love the Earl Grey, strawberry, elderflower and mocha. Some of the customer favourites are vanilla and strawberry compote, rose and raspberry, and chocolate salted caramel.
Tell us about a favourite cake-eating memory. In the early stages of the business, I was doing recipe tastings and staying at my parents’ to use their spacious kitchen. I don’t think any of us has ever consumed so much cake in our life. It’s safe to say we all gained some extra weight after sampling the many, many cake testers I made.
What do you love most about baking cakes for a living? I get to spend every day being creative, making something that brings people joy and makes their celebrations that much more special. Plus, as close sisters, we’re so lucky to be able to work together.
Talk us through the process of creating the cover for frankie issue 100. It was a new challenge to approach a cake that would be photographed in a full frontal close-up, rather than how we normally shoot our cakes. The actual piping wasn’t any more difficult than usual – the challenge was getting the right dimensions and proportions to bring the mock-up to life. We loved seeing the finished result.
Where can we see more of your stuff? Online at aprilsbaker.com or on Instagram at @aprilsbakerlondon.