Bright spots in a pandemic: Cakes to say ‘thank you’

For a cake is a slice of happiness, literally and figuratively, especially in this grim time. And nothing better than sharing a slice of goodness to express gratitude to those who stand by you in such times of need. That’s what people in Delhi-NCR have taken to, after recovering from Covid. “A lot of people are gifting ‘Thank You’ cakes to friends and families who helped them in their quarantine period. Once they recover, they send a cake to those who stood by them, with a thank you note. I’m delivering such cakes to seven families! Three of them have opted for a hamper along with a basket of breads and goodies,” says Anubha Patankar, a Gurugrambased baker.

Such cakes seem to have gained popularity of late not just to say thank you, but also to applaud efforts of Covid-19 frontline warriors. Ragini Saxena, a Delhi-based baker, says, “People want to keep themselves in a positive frame of mind and extend hope to others, that is why the demand for such cakes has risen. I recently made a chocolate truffle cake with blueberry filling for a doctor on Covid duty. His mother ordered it for him as she hadn’t seen him in a long time, and wanted to thank him for doing such a wonderful job. The cake had an edible stethoscope, medicines, injections, and was themed on a doctor’s coat.” Ila Prakash, another baker from Gurugram, says the trend is only going to increase in the coming months. And mango, pineapple, chocolate, and ice cream cakes appear to be top favourites this season. “Fruit cakes are colourful and bring cheer. For the ‘Thank You’ cakes, the number of orders will only increase as more and more people recover and come out of quarantine, as survivors. I’m sure we’ll come out of this crisis, and cakes are going to be a means to celebrate life, which will certainly win the battle against Covid,” she says.

I’m sure we’ll come out of this crisis, and cakes are going to be a means to celebrate life which will certainly win against Covid.

ILA PRAKASH,

Baker