Have You Ever Baked a Special-Diet Cake?
Creating special-diet cakes involves extra considerations, so it’s essential that your cake maker has relevant experience. They should be knowledgeable about taking precautions to prevent cross-contamination and ensuring that all ingredients and materials are safe for use.
What Types of Cakes and Frostings Are Available?
The variety of free-from ingredients is continually improving, leading to fewer restrictions when selecting your cake. Options now include gluten-free sponge cakes, nut-free fruit cakes, and dairy-free white chocolate ganache. However, there are still some limitations, such as the inability to use marzipan on nut-free cakes. Your cake maker should be able to recommend suitable alternatives.
Can I Sample a Cake Before Ordering?
Food manufacturers are increasingly aware of allergies and intolerances, often modifying ingredients to accommodate a wider audience or creating alternative products. With the growing selection of allergy-friendly cake ingredients, it's important to ensure you’re satisfied with the taste before placing an order.
How Often Do You Check Ingredient Safety?
Ingredients can change frequently, even between batches. Ensure your cake maker checks labels each time they purchase baking or sugar craft materials and understands the various names for allergens, such as egg, which may also be labeled as albumen.
What Measures Do You Take to Prevent Cross-Contamination?
Even a tiny amount of an allergen can cause serious issues for someone with a food allergy or intolerance. Since most kitchens are not completely allergen-free, it’s crucial to take precautions against contamination. Your cake maker should follow strict protocols while preparing, baking, filling, and decorating the cake to minimize allergen exposure.
Are There Any Decorations That Are Unsuitable?
Not all decorating methods are appropriate for special diets. For instance, royal icing is off-limits for vegan cakes or those with egg allergies, even if only a small amount is needed for decoration. Your cake maker should use alternatives, like piping with sugar paste. Ensure that any materials, such as flower paste or modeling paste, are suitable for your special-diet cake.
Can I Have a Special-Diet Tier in a Multi-Tiered Cake?
If your multi-tiered cake includes a special-diet layer, your cake maker should prepare, fill, and cover this tier separately using clean utensils. Ensure that the special-diet cake is the top tier and is placed on a cake board or card. Avoid stacking a regular cake on top, as this could lead to cross-contamination. If you need more portions, consider adding an extra cutting cake.
Can I Get Written Confirmation of Suitability?
Your cake maker is legally required to provide a written statement upon delivery, detailing whether the cake contains any of the 14 main allergens and if it meets special-diet criteria. Discuss any allergens present in their kitchen and the ingredients they will use to ensure you’re fully comfortable with your order.
Will You Inform the Venue?
A good cake maker should notify the venue upon delivery to ensure the cake is kept separate from other foods. They should also instruct venue staff to use a clean knife for cutting the cake and serve it on a labeled tray, distinct from other cakes.
How Should the Cake Be Served?
Vegan cakes or those made without gluten can be crumblier than regular cakes, so it's advisable to use a hot, clean knife for each slice to facilitate easier portioning. Avoid using the same knife to cut both a special-diet cake and a regular cake.
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