Made to order in Peterborough
Birthday cakes in Peterborough, baked from scratch
Sploffin bakes birthday cakes to order from a registered home kitchen in Peterborough, with real butter and proper sponge. A birthday cake should taste as good as it looks, so every one is decorated to suit the person it's for, whether that's a first birthday or an eightieth, and baked fresh for the day itself.
(the candles are your department)
The sponge
Choose the cake, not just the icing
The sponge matters more than the decoration. My chocolate cake is rich enough to eat unfrosted, the vanilla is made with real vanilla, and the carrot cake, which I also bake vegan, has converted people who said they didn't like carrot cake. The layers, the filling and the icing are all done by hand, and each cake is baked as close to your date as the decoration allows, so it is still soft when you cut it. Fillings and flavour combinations are open to conversation.
The look
Decoration that suits the person
Some birthdays want a tidy, grown-up cake with fresh flowers and a name piped on top. Some want their dog's face in buttercream. Piped names, ages and short messages are always included in the price, and if you send a photograph of the party theme I'll match the colours to it. Tell me which end of that spectrum you're at and I'll be honest about what I can do beautifully. I'd rather make a simple cake perfectly than a complicated one badly.
Two favourites
Character cakes and number cakes
A character cake builds whoever the birthday person loves best in buttercream and hand-cut fondant, from animals and dinosaurs to a favourite story; the first-birthday cat cake in the photos above is one of mine, ears and all. A number cake makes the age the centrepiece, either as a bold hand-made numeral on top of a classic round cake or as the shape of the cake itself. Send the age, the theme and a photo of anything you're matching, like the party invitation or a colour scheme, and I'll design around it.
Where it comes from
Something a supermarket can't do
I learned to bake at my gran's side. She catered birthdays and weddings, and I started taking my own orders at fifteen. That means the usual favourites, and also the rum-soaked fruit cake that came down through the family, dark and dense and deeply spiced, which is what birthdays and Christmases tasted like when I was growing up. It needs booking months ahead because the fruit soaks that long, and it's worth it.
Getting it to you
Birthday cake delivery across Peterborough
Collection is free, and delivery is priced in your quote, so the figure is in writing before you pay anything. The round covers Werrington, Orton, Hampton, Stanground, Longthorpe, Bretton and the rest of the city, with the surrounding villages and the Fens beyond them. A boxed single-tier birthday cake travels well on a flat car floor, but for anything tiered I'd rather deliver it myself, so it arrives level.
The short version
How ordering works
Send the date, rough numbers and any ideas through the form below. I'll reply within a day with what's possible and a firm price, so there are no surprises. Once you're happy, a deposit secures the date. Everything is baked in a home kitchen where all 14 major allergens are present, including nuts. Details on the allergens page.
What size do I need?
Pick by how many people you're feeding rather than by inches. These are round, two-layer cakes; square tins give roughly a quarter more again.
| Cake size | Party slices | Finger portions |
|---|---|---|
| 6 inch | 10–12 | 15 |
| 8 inch | 16–20 | 24 |
| 10 inch | 26–30 | 38 |
| 12 inch | 40–44 | 56 |
A party slice is a proper dessert wedge, the kind you'd actually serve at a birthday. A finger portion is the thin wedding-style slice that makes a cake stretch much further. They're just different slices of the same cake, so tell me which you have in mind.
Tell me about your cake
No obligation. Send the details and I'll come back with what's possible and what it costs. If you'd rather talk it through, email sploffin@gmail.com.
50% deposit to book. A 50% deposit secures your date and is what starts the baking. The balance is due a week before you collect, or before I deliver.
Before you ask
Questions people ask
How much does a birthday cake cost in Peterborough?
Because every cake is made to order, I quote on your actual brief; size, flavour and how much decoration is involved all change the price. Send the date and rough guest numbers through the enquiry form and you'll have a firm price back within a day, with no obligation.
How far in advance should I order a birthday cake?
About two weeks of notice suits most birthday cakes in Peterborough, and allow four weeks for large or heavily decorated cakes. The rum-soaked fruit cake needs far longer, because the fruit soaks in rum for months first, so that wants a minimum of three months. Short notice is sometimes possible on a simple cake, so ask before assuming it's too late.
Do you deliver birthday cakes in Peterborough?
Yes. Collection is free, and local delivery across Peterborough, from Werrington and Orton to Stanground, Longthorpe and Bretton, is priced in your quote, so you see the exact figure in writing before you pay anything. For tiered cakes I recommend delivery, because they travel better in my hands than on a car seat.
Can you make character cakes or number cakes?
Yes to both. For a character cake, tell me who or what the birthday person loves and I'll build the theme by hand in buttercream and fondant. For a number cake, the age can arrive as a sculpted fondant numeral on top or be baked as the digit. Both are quoted the usual way: date and rough numbers through the enquiry form, firm price back within a day.
Can you write a name or age on the cake?
Yes, piped messages, names and numbers are included at no extra cost. Tell me the exact wording when you enquire and check the spelling twice, because I pipe what you send me.
Can you make a birthday cake for someone with allergies?
I bake three cakes vegan: vanilla, chocolate and carrot, all iced with vanilla buttercream made with vegan butter, and dairy-free is possible beyond those. As a registered food business every order comes with a full PPDS allergen label. Everything is baked in a home kitchen where all 14 major allergens are present, including nuts. That means I cannot promise a cake is free from traces. For a severe allergy I'll tell you honestly if I'm not the right choice.
What sizes do birthday cakes come in?
Round cakes run from 6 inch, which gives 10 to 12 party slices, up to 12 inch at around 40 to 44, and tiered cakes go further. Cut as thinner finger portions the same cakes stretch from 15 to 56. There is a full portion table on this page, and if you tell me guest numbers I will recommend a size.