I don’t know about you, but I’ve been noticing a lot more ‘special’ cakes appearing at festivities lately. I am talking about a very particular kind of cake and I’m wondering if it is just me who is seeing them popping up more regularly.
I should preface this by saying that I am most certainly NOT a cake person. In fact my palate is definitely squarely in the sour/umami camp. Which is why I think I am that one step removed enough to observe the gentle but firm increase in the number of bicycle themed cakes that have magically appeared en masse.
The rise of the bike cake
They are certainly not your run-of-the-mill normal cakes. They are hard not to miss given they are often covered in garish-coloured icing and they are clearly decorated with a plethora of bicycle inspired settings and motifs.
I’m pretty sure that cakes and baked goods have always been pretty popular and prevalent. If there is an actual increase in cakes in general, I think it could have more to do with the upcoming holidays, Christmas and festivities about to take place – and less to do with a sudden unexplainable boom in cyclists needing to express their love of life and two-wheels through the only medium viable in the house at the time their expressive urge takes hold – namely sugar, flour and water. But I could be wrong. Either way, bicycle theme cakes are here to stay.
Whether the bike cake influx is an actual and real phenomenon, or just because I am now more hyperaware of them given that I am seeing them everywhere (similar to the ‘buying a blue car scenario’ – where you are looking to buy a car, and the one you like is say for arguments sake – blue and now as you look around you start seeing blue cars EVERYWHERE – well I think the same thing could be happening here). Either way, it is definitely a ‘thing’.
Bicycle cakes for every occasion
A birthday for a 45-year old man, a wedding cake centrepiece, a kid’s 8th birthday party and a retirement party – all with bicycle cakes. How can this be? It certainly makes for interesting party conversations and throws down the gauntlet to any would-be home-made cake making challenge. I have been impressed with the variety, ingenuity, creativity and resourcefulness of some of the bicycle cakes I’ve seen. Whether it is a snapshot of a peloton on a road ride, or a solo MTB ride – many of these cakes transform the humble vanilla sponge or chocolate cake base into towering multi-mountain stage races before your very eyes.
I find many bicycle cakes to be equal parts gaudy, interesting, personal and a little unusual. In my experience, no matter what the cake looks like, it will always be delicious. Bicycle cakes are now branching out from traditionally being the sole realm of kid’s birthdays – as seen recently in the case of retirement, cycling event celebrations and of course wedding cakes……which of course I am no stranger to as my father made my own wedding cake – which was a tower of cupcakes decorated with various aspects drawn from my husband’s and my life – of which bicycles featured prominently of course! Suffice to say the cake was a smash hit and a truly memorable part of the day. I will always appreciate the effort and thought that has gone into creating an edible vignette of someone’s life and most enduring passion.
Our childhood cakes
I remember as a kid, each year we were allowed to pick a theme or a topic for our birthday cake. Pirate ships, dump trucks, swimming pools, even our family cat – there was nothing my mum could not turn into a creative and visual spectacular that would make Nigella Lawson jealous. Every cake was just as equally delicious to eat as it was amazing to look at. I still marvel at how things like jelly, toasted coconut and licorice straps could be transformed into a giant wave with a surfer on top, a tabby cat’s fur or a swashbuckling marauder’s sword!
Seeing these bike cakes reminds me of happy times with family and friends, of mum’s home cooking and the love and effort that went into making our happiest dreams manifest before our eyes for all to enjoy and devour with delight. Hard to beat and certainly not the same as a store bought cake.
Have you seen, made or had a bike cake?
If you are keen to try your hand, or know someone who can make a bike cake for you and unless you have a favourite (family) cake or ye-olde-faithful cake recipe that has never let you down, or even if you want to mix it up and experiment or try a new flavour or style – then I highly recommend checking out Gretchen’s Bakery where there are videos how to make your cake. She is a professional baker and on her blog she provides an amazing selection of layer cakes and vegan cakes and also has heaps of inspiring baking ideas and recipes to stimulate your cooking and eating pleasure – no matter what taste, age or event, there will be something on her list you can transform into any cyclists dream dessert.
I’d be very interested to hear if anyone else has been in contact with a bicycle themed cake. Would you/have you had a bicycle themed cake to celebrate a special occasion before? If so what scene would you want depicted on your cake?
Have a look at some of these beauties I’ve seen elsewhere online – a selection of which nearly covers the full cycling code spectrum! Get inspired, get baking and share the love of bicycle cakes!
Enjoy and happy cake making, sharing and eating!
