This week’s Friday Feature is not only an incredible self-taught baker, she’s also a brilliant content creator… oh and an amazing cookbook author as well! It’s Jessie, from Jessie Bakes Cakes.
Baking all kinds of mouthwatering creations, from cookies to cheesecakes, Jessie has become renowned for her approachable but delicious recipes. Yet, despite having over 200k followers on Instagram, and inspirational success with both her blog and cookbook, Jessie is one of the sweetest, down-to-earth, and supportive women you could find.
Let’s get to know more about her…
For me, there is no better feeling than being in the kitchen, experimenting with flavours, baking up a storm and adding the finishing touches to something beautiful and delicious! But equally, baking doesn’t always go to plan and sometimes it can be super stressful when your cake sinks in the middle, or your cookies spread into flat pancakes, or you mix up sugar with salt (yes, I have done this 😅). In those moments, I’ve had to learn to keep calm, laugh it off and try again!
Hmmm, I remember I won a colouring-in competition aged 5 and was so proud of myself haha! Does that count? 😊 And I also have vivid memories of adding Dennis The Menice edible wafers on top of box-mix chocolate cupcakes with my Granny.
Officially my business started operating in October 2020, when I landed my first client project. However, my blog was actually born in 2013 as a passion project while at University. It was called Jessie Cakes’ Diary back in the day! For the first three years, I shared recipes on the blog and terrible photographs taken on my iPhone 3 on my Instagram page. It was mostly friends and family that followed me, and it was just for fun. Then life became hectic and I entered the world of corporate working in Marketing for many years, which left little or no time for baking. Until… the pandemic in 2020. I was on furlough for four months and it was during this time that I rediscovered my passion for baking, rebranded to Jessie Bakes Cakes and gave my Instagram and blog a reboot! I invested in a food photography course, all the shooting gear (with very little idea!), and put everything into it. Fast forward 5 years and we’re still going strong!
How happy it makes other people! For me, the joy comes in presenting a stunning dessert to my friends and family, or seeing the look on people’s faces after their first bite of a cookie. It’s the most rewarding part of baking for sure.
Writing my first cookbook Chocolate Overload! It was one of the hardest, most rewarding, exciting, and scariest projects I’ve ever worked on. I’d love to do it all over again, especially as I feel I’ve learnt valuable lessons from the first experience and have a better understanding of the do’s and don’ts.
Halfway into my first year being fully self-employed. With no full-time salary to fall back on (I worked two jobs for two years!) it was very scary when projects were either pushed back, or my forecast wasn’t looking as healthy as I’d like it to. I remember the imposter syndrome seeping in, and I was ready to shut up shop and go back to corporate work. But my husband helped me get comfortable with the peaks and troughs of being self-employed. Especially in the recipe world, where we are led by the seasons and occasions of the year. Naturally, Summer is a quieter time of the year but come Autumn it’s bonkers again! I’ve had to learn to make the best use of the quieter periods and be grateful for a slightly slower pace.
The honest answer is Yes and No.
No, in the sense of I didn’t ever imagine where it could go or what it could lead too. Does that make sense? At first, I just thought I’ll bake a few recipes, take a few photographs and that will be it. The influencer and content creator space is still being shaped and therefore what is possible changes all the time. I remember when Reels were first launched towards the end of 2020 and that was a huge window of opportunity that really changed the future of my business.
That being said, I’d also answer Yes to this question because I am a very self-motivated and ambitious person. Deep down I knew that if I was going to make this a business, I was going to give it my all.
This question made me laugh! Ups and downs are a weekly occurrence for me 😅 There are some days where I literally feel like I’ve forgotten how to bake, use a camera, write a caption, type a blog post. Then there are other days where I’ve got my music on (normally Taylor Swift) and I’m in the zone feeling like Mary Berry in her prime! I’ve found on the days I’m not feeling confident, it’s my body’s way of saying take a chill, go walk the dogs and come back to this. There’s no point in muddling through when you know the output isn’t going to be your best.
The baking community is such a lovely, kind and supportive network of women (and men!) who genuinely want the best for each other. I’m proud to be part of it, and hope that through sharing my ideas, creativity, and successes, I can inspire other women to follow their dreams and turn their passion into a career.
Going back to why I started baking in the first place. It wasn’t because I I wanted to make money or because I had dreams of quitting my job. It was purely because of the joy it gave me and those around me. When I’m faced with a challenging moment in my business, I like to strip everything back and bake a simple recipe like a classic Victoria sponge, not to create content off the back of it or for a client shoot, but just because.
We love that even with Jessie’s huge achievements, it still always comes back to her simple joy of baking. It doesn’t matter if you have one follower or one-million followers… having passion for what you create is what it’s all about.
If you want to try one of Jessie’s sensational recipes (trust us, you DO want to!), check out her website: jessiebakescakes.com. And for gorgeous content that will have you licking your lips, take a look at her Instagram: @jessie.bakes.cakes.
If you haven’t already found us over on Instagram – why not come say hi and give us a follow. We would love for you to join the conversation and help spread the FCS movement by liking and sharing our content.
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