The number one question I get asked about my business is what inspired me or why I started Mrs. Bakewell’s. It’s difficult to provide a short and precise answer.
I began baking at age 14, and with no family history of baking, I had to learn to bake on my own. I started with boxed cake and cookie mixes because I didn’t know you could bake from scratch.
When I was 23 and had my first baby, he had food allergies and was allergic to eggs and milk. Determined not to let my son miss out on birthday cakes and desserts at parties and gatherings, I developed vegan cake recipes and brought them in a little container so he could have cake, too. I did this for two out of three of my children, and my third child was thankfully unscathed from the horrors of food allergies.
Twelve years ago, vegan desserts weren’t really a thing. However, I remember trying the rare vegan cupcake once, sold at a major grocery store chain, and it was hard, flavorless, and chock-full of shortening.
I was a proficient label reader at this point, thanks to my children’s food allergies, and when I realized there were ingredients in our foods that I couldn’t even pronounce or envision what they even looked like, I decided to bake everything from scratch. Cakes, breads, cookies, crackers, etc., and began decorating cakes as well.
     
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My children eventually grew out of their food allergies, and around this time, my infatuation and love for England was at its peak, and I wanted to try these amazing things that I’d only read about but couldn’t access here in the states. Foods like Yorkshire pudding, Victoria sponge cake, sticky toffee pudding, chocolate biscuit cake, clotted cream, and of course, English scones. The only way to try them was to make them myself. With some experience developing recipes, I worked relentlessly to perfect various English bakes. Through research, pictures, and descriptions, I came up with what I envisioned an English scone would be like. The texture, the aesthetic, the flavor, you name it.
I began making clotted cream at home and packed them into mini mason jars to gift to people, along with freshly baked scones and homemade jam. It was a unique gift the recipient’s entire family could enjoy.
When I wrote my first book, ‘Lottie and the Tea Party,’ which features my scones, I would take a basket of scones with clotted cream and jam to anyone I would pitch my book to. SCBWI conferences, libraries, and even Butler’s Orchard.
So, to sum it up, the build-up to the launch of Mrs. Bakewell’s was gradual, and I didn’t even know it. I was a stay-at-home mom passionate about history, afternoon tea, baking, and spending as much time as possible with my children.
I want people to experience a taste of England while knowing what they’re putting into their bodies when they eat Mrs. Bakewell’s scones. We use the finest ingredients: pure grass-fed butter, unbleached flour, aluminum-free baking powder, freshly zested orange, and lemon zest.
Our values of using pure, whole-food ingredients make a difference in the quality and taste of our scones. Try them for yourself here. It’s the perfect gift to indulge in and also send to a loved one. We ship nationwide!
