EriVica Cakes in Hadleigh has found a delicious way to reduce its food waste
EriVica Cakes has recently started selling handmade cupcakes on Saturday mornings, so the residents of Hadleigh can now sample smaller versions of their celebration cakes. Although this is a new venture for owner Terri Newman, the idea sparked after she decided to reduce waste. Instead of throwing surplus butter cream away, Terri was passionate about putting it to good use and decided to bake a different selection of cupcakes each week. But at EriVica Cakes, there is no cake too big, too small or to extravagant for Terri to create. In fact, she loves a challenge, so if you're dreaming of a six-tier wedding cake, or fancy gifting a friend an edible version of their beloved pet, Terri will make your dream cake a reality.
Family memory
The unique name 'EriVica' was inspired by Terri's parents, Erica and Vic. After Erica passed away in 2007, Terri inherited her cake decorating tools and took it upon herself to learn the art of creating handmade cakes. Terri said: "I've always been a very creative, hands-on person. When I started baking, I loved how I could manipulate cakes so they became exactly like a picture or an idea that a customer communicated to me." It wasn't until Vic passed away in 2017 that she decided to open EriVica Cakes in memory of her parents.
"I bake like grandma", Terri confessed, as she only uses natural, FairTrade ingredients and free-range eggs, leaving out any unnecessary additives. In a bid to be more environmentally friendly, Terri also avoids using single-use plastic where possible.
No limits
As Terri is self taught through watching YouTube videos and reading books, she is passionate about improving her designs and delivering the best possible service for her customers. Terri commented: "When someone comes to me, I don't think 'I can either make a round or square cake - what shall I put on it?' It's more about understanding what people actually want, and working out a way to produce it for them." Each cake is a blank canvas in terms of shape, size, design and flavour - EriVica Cakes sees no limits, however obscure an idea may seem. Terri is known for her ability to think outside the box and carve the most incredible designs.
Every cake is made as personal as possible. To achieve this, Terri and her team will ask for specific hobbies, interests and passions, or a photograph to recreare. Some of their cakes are so lifelike customers haven't wanted to cut them. Terri shared: "I once made a Jack Russell cake which is partly still in the freezer - he looked so similar the customer didn't want to cut him!" Each cakes sponge, butter cream and filling can also be specifically tailored to each customer, and with an extensive list of flavours, the different combinations are endless. As some cakes can take days to create, EriVica Cakes charge on size and skill required rather than by the hour.
Although each cake looks like a masterpiece, the team are always conscious to make them taste just as good. This means that you won't receive a beautifully decorated cake which is just a 4-inch block of sponge, nor will they produce a cake that has been coated with copious amounts of butter cream.
To buy Terri's cakes, head down to EriVica Cakes on Hadleigh High Street. Every Saturdays between 10am-1pm, the team will be sell small cupcakes, too. Vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free options are available upon request.
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