Rachel's Cupcakes

Rachel Price-Whittle is the face behind ‘Rachel’s Cupcakes’. I first met Rachel last summer at a preview event, at the One Elm in Stratford-upon-Avon, for last year’s Stratford Food Festival. I remember trying her mini cocktail cupcakes which were mojito and strawberry daiquiri.  I was then lucky enough to win a box of four of her cupcakes in a raffle that evening. I fell in love with her award winning and very scrumptious gluten-free sticky toffee pudding cupcake.

Since meeting Rachel her business has gone from strength to strength. Rachel always baked at home as a child with her Mum, who is a chef. When she was eighteen she began a degree at Coventry University studying Sports and Exercise Science, something she admits is the complete opposite to what she’s doing now. However, she felt it gave her the confidence to pursue what she wanted to do, open her very own bakery! During her time at university she began working in her mother’s farm shop. This is where her cupcakes were born. She was there for two years before the demand for her cupcakes became so great she required larger premises so she moved to Yew Tree Farm Café in Wootton Wawen. She was there for three years but unfortunately had to leave at the beginning of this month after her lease wasn’t renewed. Onwards and upwards, she moved to Redditch, bringing forward plans to open her own bakery at the end of this year. However, this worked in her favour as she now has cakes flying out of the door on a daily basis with the shop front due to open in two weeks’ time. She also currently has a stand in The Kingfisher Centre in Redditch which has proved extremely popular and led to the managing director offering her a shop within the centre which she plans to open as a cupcake café in April or May.

So if you’re ever in Redditch DO NOT leave without paying Rachel’s Bakery or Cupcake Café a visit!

Rachel’s business may be called Rachel’s Cupcakes but they are not the only thing she bakes. If you follow her on Twitter or have liked her Facebook page you’ll see images of lots of divine looking cupcakes (some of which are seasonal) but also giant cupcakes, beautiful wedding cakes, fun birthday cakes and various tarts and slices. It was coming up to February which is when all my family’s birthdays begin, mum in February, myself in March, dad in April and my brother in May (expensive few months), and unlike my dad and brother I actually begin to think about my mum’s birthday more than a few days in advance. So in January I bought my train tickets home, bought her present, but what about a cake? No birthday is complete without a cake! I wanted something unique, not a generic shop bought cake. It was her 60^th last year and I’d been planning for her to have a crossword cake then, as at weekends she always sits and does the crossword and if my Nan is there they do it together, but sadly I couldn’t find anyone to make it for her. This year I immediately thought of the wonderfully talented Rachel. I sent her an email outlining what I wanted and left it in her capable hands. She couldn’t have done a better job! It looked absolutely fantastic (so much so that Mum didn’t want to ruin it by cutting it), tasted lovely (the sponge was gorgeously moist) and most importantly Mum adored it.

If you want a cake for a special occasion that looks delicious, tastes delicious and isn’t stupidly expensive then Rachel is the lady you need to contact! I know who’ll be making all my family’s birthday cakes from now on!

You can:

Follow Rachel on Twitter – @RachelsCupcake

Or

Like Rachel on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rachelscupcakes1