Pot Noodle is a piece of cake (From Barry And District News)

Pot Noodle is a piece of cake

A BARRY businesswoman rose to the challenge when she was asked to make a cake nearly two feet tall.

Allison Manning, 49, of Allison's Celebration Cakes shop in Barry Road was commissioned to make the dessert to feed 600 people - in the shape of a Pot Noodle.

She said: "I had a telephone call from Unilever saying that Pot Noodles were celebrating 25 successful years and they wanted a cake for the occasion. It was going to be presented at a special party they were holding in the Cardiff International Arena. And it had to feed 600 people. Well, I love a challenge, so agreed immediately."

When Allison costed the ingredients and the time it would take to make this masterpiece, she quoted a price of £700, which Unilever agreed to.

The cake took weeks to 'build'. First Allison had to bake the fruit cakes and then let them stand. Then she had to cover them in marzipan and let that stand. The next stage was icing the cakes and let them stand again.

Finally, on Thursday October 10, it was ready to be covered in the artwork.

Allison added: "The last stage is building the cake. It needed scaffolding to keep it from falling over. My assistant Julie Harkin has been with me for 11 years, and we're a good team. We completed the whole job ready for the Friday night."

The company were so impressed with Allison and Julie's work that they kept the cake whole, and donated it to Ty Hafan Children's Hospice to raise money.

Allison added: "I make between 60 and 70 wedding cakes a year, as well as cakes for other special occasions like birthdays and retirements.

"But I've never had to make a cake in the shape of a Pot Noodle, and never one this big."