The Leicestershire-based cake producer that made the wedding cake for the Prince and Princess of Wales is pulling out all the stops for the coronation of King Charles III.
For their 2011 wedding, Prince William and Princess Kate turned to Fiona Cairns for their eight-tier iced fruit cake, which was finished with intricate white icing and decorated with up to 900 delicate sugar-paste flowers.
Equally exquisite are her crown-shaped cookies sprayed with luxe gold paint and fairy cakes decorated with delicate bunting, crowns and a coronation printed sugar disk in the British red, white and blue colourways.
“Thousands of tiny intricate golden crowns, union jacks and bunting - all handcrafted as always to adorn our ever-popular fairy cakes. All in preparation for the big Coronation Weekend,” she posted on Instagram.
Fiona Cairns is a luxury bakery brand that designs and makes cakes for all occasions. Apart from the Royal Family, the producer supplies cakes and biscuits to high-end retailers including Waitrose, Harrods, Fortnum and Mason and Selfridges. It also exports to Dunnes Stores in Ireland.
The family business was founded almost 40 years ago by the former pastry chef and her husband, and today, boasts a 120-strong workforce.
The company is now focussing on introducing sustainable initiatives that will help it remain resilient and become more cost effective while having a minimal impact on the planet.
To support its green ambitions, it secured funding from Lloyds Bank’s Clean Growth Financing Initiative to install 4,500 square feet of solar panels to one of its three production units.
The panels will supply almost a third of the building’s energy (around 10% of the company’s total energy usage), reducing CO2 emissions by 15 tonnes per year. The business – which recently became RSPO certified – uses its food waste is used to help generate electricity, with the aim to send zero waste to landfill. Further plans are also in the pipeline to install solar panels across all three production sites, with the hope that renewable energy will be the dominant energy source in the future.
“Sustainability is something I’ve been passionate about for a long time, and as the next generation of leadership, it’s important to look at all areas of the business to see where we can reduce our impact on the environment,” said Tara Patel, second-generation owner and director at Fiona Cairns.
“The installation of our solar panels forms just one part of our sustainability journey, and when combined, these changes are helping us to bring down the emissions of our business.
“Retailers are increasingly scrutinising the emissions of their suppliers. As a partner to some of the UK’s most prominent retailers, it’s our responsibility to ensure we’re operating as sustainably as possible, helping them to achieve their net zero ambitions, as well as our own.”
As the UK prepares for their next monarch to take the throne, Blondie’s Kitchen is working their magic to create a collection that pays homage to King Charles III’s coronation.
The Coronation Collection is blue, red and white themed, available as Cookie Dough Rolls to be baked at home (£14), Personalised Cookies (milk, dark and white chocolate cookies topped with vanilla icing), including a Giant version (£32) and 7” personalised cookie (£16).
All the cookies are hand rolled and baked fresh daily, comprising quality ingredients like pure butter, unrefined sugar, Cotswold flour and free range eggs.
The full Blondie’s Kitchen collection is available online, while stocks last.
The home baking brand is sharing a little joy with the launch of coronation-themed NPD.
It is also back on TV with a new brand-building campaign that celebrates how little gestures of kindness can make a big difference.
Research commissioned by the brand found that Brits love to celebrate the big moments in life – like the auspicious occasion scheduled for Saturday, 6 May – but also prize those little moments shared with others that contribute the most to our overall wellbeing and happiness. This is especially true when friends or family gather in the kitchen to whip up a bake, or even send a basket of home baked goodies to your next door neighbour or charity.
“Baking often features in major celebrations like the coronation, but it can also be a fantastic way of making a big difference in everyday moments,” said Jen Johnson, head of Marketing, Cake & Dessert, Dr. Oetker UK.
“It’s a great way of sharing a little bit of joy with those we love, which is at the heart of the creative idea.
“We’re also delighted to launch a new product range that makes it easy for home bakers to add some royal touches to their coronation bakes and spread more joy that makes a big difference in families and communities across the UK over the bank holiday.”
The limited edition products in honour of the coronation include Great British Baking Cases 50pcs (£1.50) sporting a patriotic Union Jack Flag design, along with Great British Sprinkles Mix 74g (£2.00)and Dr. Oetker Great British Decorating Icing 4 x 19g (£2.00), designed to inspire home bakers to get creative for the big weekend.
Available from major UK retailers, including Asda, Booths, Co-Op, Sainsburys and Tesco, as well as on Amazon, while stocks last.
Birley Bakery is proud to present a range of treats to put the icing on the cake for the coronation, alongside the bakery’s signature selection of breads and cakes, viennoiseries and chocolates.
Soldier Shortbread (£2.40 per piece)
A classic English shortbread, topped with white and dark chocolate, depicting one of the King’s Soldiers – utterly delicious and great for the kids.
Coronation Quiche (£58, serves 8-10)
His Majesty announced the Royal Family will be dining on Spinach, Broad Bean, Tarragon & Cheddar quiche at lunch following his coronation. As huge supporters of the Royal Family, Birley Bakery has decided to create its own version.
Victoria Sponge (£40, serves 8-10)
A classic Victoria sponge, strawberry jam, light vanilla cream and coated in a velvety white chocolate.
His Majesty’s Crown Cake Topper (£15 per crown)
A dark chocolate crown on a coconut meringue base puts the crowning glory onto Birley’s Victoria Sponge and can be ordered separately.
London-based Birley Bakery takes its inspiration from the traditional boulangerie-pâtisseries that were ubiquitous in every city, town and village of France at one time, but now all but disappeared from French life. While maître pâtissier Vincent Zanardi and head baker Eshak Belabed have devised recipes with a more contemporary twist on the classics, ingredients remain true, including wheat flour from an artisanal farmer in Burgundy, sea salt from La Guérande in Brittany, almonds from Valencia and dark honey from hives in Bermondsey. A special reserve of bitter chocolate, created specifically for Birley, and mixed with cacao beans from the Philippines, forms the basis of the range of chocolates.
In celebration of the coronation of His Royal Majesty, Danish bakery Ole & Steen are helping royal fans build an enviable party spread with a ‘Coronation Afternoon Tea’ bundle (£34.45).
The bundle includes 2x Kroningskage, 2x Strawberry Tarts and 2x Raspberry Slices, ensuring no-one turns up to their street party without a head-turning coronation selection. It’s available for home delivery via Deliveroo, making sure all home celebrations are fit for a royal visit.
The limited edition Kroningskage (Danish for Coronation cake) takes inspiration from the Danish Christianshavner tærte and features a chewy hazelnut base topped with strawberry cream, fresh berries and a sugar plaque displaying the official coronation emblem.
The Coronation Afternoon Tea bundle is available from all Ole & Steen bakeries as well as via Deliveroo for an RRP of £34.45, until 9 May.
We are clearly a nation of flan fans. According to UK pastry supplier BakeAway, Brits are so keen to recreate the Coronation Quiche that readymade shortcrust pastry has seen a +100% uplift in week-on-week demand.
"Grocery retailers are clearly bracing themselves for street party fever to sweep the nation and predict Brit bakers will be baking up tasty treats in time for the weekend," said BakeAway's sales director Doug Hall.
"We have seen a +100% rise in week-on-week sales of shortcrust pastry,# as home cooks prepare to entertain. From the moment Buckingham Palace released the Coronation Quiche recipe, our retail partners have forecast a sharp rise in demand and our bakers have been busier than ever.”
To get everyone into the kitchen to bake up a storm – and ensure they dine like a king – contract caterer Wilson Vale has shared its own quiche recipe.
The Royal Family has designated a quiche made from spinach, fava beans and tarragon as the event's official dish, but Wilson Vale has given it a seasonal twist, using wild garlic and asparagus.
For the tart:
- 200g plain flour
- 90g unsalted butter
- Pinch of salt
- 55ml cold water
For the filling:
- 200g eggs
- 200g double cream
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Red onion
- Asparagus
- Wild garlic
- Mature cheddar cheese
Method:
- Preheat oven to at 170°C.
- Mix flour, butter and salt to a crumble.
- Bring together with cold water and shape into tarts.
- Blind bake for 20 minutes.
- Mix egg, double cream, salt and ground black pepper.
- Blanch asparagus.
- Pan fry red onion until slightly soft. Mix in wild garlic and take off the heat.
- Grate cheddar and combine together egg mixture, asparagus, wild garlic and onion.
- Add filling mixture to tarts.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
