Alice's Adventures in Cake

Welcome to my delicious little corner of the internet, pull up a chair and grab some cake and a cuppa!

It seemed like an appropriate title for this Substack - I too feel like I’m wandering around lost half the time, but I’m very fond of un-birthday cakes and tea parties (every day is a cake day here)…oh and I also love cats!

If you’re new here, I’m Alice, a baker and illustrator from Essex, who’s now a Londoner spending most of her days in the kitchen or trying out London’s best afternoon teas.

Of course, the reason most people might know of me is because I went on The Great British Bake Off in 2019. I was the reserve (had 16 hours notice before walking into the tent) and somehow made it all the way to the final. It was hands down, the wildest experience of my life, it was such a rollercoaster (I don’t recommend taking part in a televised competition whilst completing your teacher training) but it changed my life for the better in so many ways. I’ll probably dive more into the ins and outs in another post, but essentially Bake Off kickstarted my creative baking career, and in 2020 I left my job as a Geography teacher to pursue baking and content creation full time.

Since then I have baked for royalty, worked with so many amazing brands, got to travel the world, and even started my own illustration business. Being creative is what gets me out of bed in the morning, and I will be forever grateful for the call that said, ‘we want you in the tent’.

My time now is split between baking delicious things (mostly desserts tbh) and illustrating said desserts. I eat with my eyes, and as much as I know deep down the most important thing is that something tastes good, the part of baking I fell in love with is the decorating. I love sharing my recipes and illustrations online, and will be sharing exclusive ones here for subscribers so follow along (thank you!).

Anyway, you might see me baking cakes and sipping afternoon tea on the internet, but here’s a few things you might not know about me…

Here’s 5 things you might not know about me:

1. I’m in a Musical Theatre choir

   Honestly, it’s my favourite hour and a half of the week. Currently we’re singing a Hamilton Act 1 Medley and it just brings me so much joy. Someone also told me recently that singing activates the vagus nerve, which can help calm you down, so not only is it fun, it’s basically a stress reliever. Just know that if you’re ever watching a video of me online, I’m 90% going to be listening to musical songs while doing it.

2. I went to Art School in New Zealand

   I lived in New Zealand when I was younger, and it was one of my favourite periods of my life - if it wasn’t so far away from the people I love, who knows, maybe I’d still be there. Before I went to Uni, I did an art course at a small little school deep in the NZ bush. You basically had to hike through the ferns in between each class. I was so happy there, flitting between jewellery making, life drawing, painting and sculpting. It really cemented that I wanted to do something creative with my life.

3. I was in the Navy (sort of)

   At the interview for my first ever teaching job, at a very good school which I was desperate to get, the last question of the day was ‘if we were to offer you the job, would you be able to help run the extra-curricular CCF courses?’ to which I obviously replied, ‘I can’t think of anything I’d rather do more’. I got the job. I ended up in Dartmouth a few months later at the Royal Britannia Naval College, polishing my shoes, learning to march and how to drive a speed boat. I even used to have to sleep on old war ships!

4. My spine is full of metal

   When I was 15, my back was a little niggly, and I started to wonder, as you do when you’re a self conscious 15 year-old, why I didn’t look the same as my friends in tighter clothing. It turns out I had severe scoliosis that needed to be operated on imminently, so after a spinal fusion, I now have a few metal rods and screws in my spine that’s keeping me (sort of) upright. It doesn’t really affect me now, other than just being a little careful, but I struggled a lot as a teenager and it had quite a big impact on me mentally and physically.

5. I have a Number 1 single (…if you listen very closely)

   Now this is a tenuous one, but I still like to whip it out as my ‘fun fact’ every now and again. In 2001, when I was at primary school, my music teacher entered our school choir to be included on S Club 7’s Children in Need hit ‘Have You Ever’. It went straight to Number One, and if you look very closely, with a magnifying glass, you can see my school’s name in fine print on the cover insert. Sadly it’s not as special as it sounds as the song is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as having the highest number of people's voices recorded in a single song. Still, that’s my claim to fame - an accomplished recording artist by the age of 10!

   Other than that, I love cats, Earl Grey tea, puns, Tomato Ketchup flavoured crisps, anything floral and pretty, and crumpets.

I would love for you to join me on my ‘Adventures in Cake’ so please subscribe for delicious cakes and ramblings!