Home Bakers Whip it Up

Baking was right up there with cooking when budding chefs were at home during the pandemic. Home-baking has grown leaps and bounds to become a business for so many. We pick a few from across the country in this special feature

Text: Lyle Michael

Cakes and sweets like brownies and tarts are synonymous with bakers, but it goes on to comprise a wide range of foodstuffs, from breads to savoury items like puffs and croissants, sourdough and more. Baking has come a long way and our resident bakers have, too. They have not just been catering to the sweet teeth of near and dear ones but are running full-fledged businesses from their home kitchens and delivering country-wide as well as abroad. Some even run online workshops to spread their knowledge to budding bakers all over the world. 

In this issue, we have closed in on six home bakers across the country.

Shivya Gupta from Delhi, Fatema Hamza from Dhule in Maharashtra, Leena Yengle from Poona, Ankita Lunia from Surat, Kasturi Sonalkar from Bombay and Meghna Ashish from Bangalore, who specialise in a variety of baked items from tiered cakes to gluten-free cookies, sourdough breads, brownies, crackers, and more, with healthy ingredients for all to enjoy. They are home bakers, all, some part-time, and others full-time into their humble business, making the world a sweeter place with every product that comes out of their oven.

Take a look at their offerings here or on their social media pages and tell us you’re not tempted to indulge your sweet tooth on your non-cheat days! Just give them a call, place your order and bring the home-baked goodness to you.

Kasturi Sonalkar: @bakeologythane

Mob: 0 97663 67788

We have a doctor in the house, who loves to bake. Dr Kasturi Sonalkar was inspired to bake when her child was born, in 2015, and took her gluten-free products commercial till 2020 through physical interactions and workshops at her Thane studio. Once the pandemic hit, everything went online including her workshops. The advantage of this was that it went across the world thanks to technology. Today, she has resumed her in-person workshops, and has participated in the recent Home Chef Studio at the UpperCrust Show. Baking is her full-time profession and she is even a permanent sourdough master, FYI.

Kasturi shares, “I am a dentist by education and now focus on baking. I have a mad sweet tooth but prefer to offer healthy options to customers. Gluten-free is my forte.” Be it cookies, brownies, puffs, cakes, breads… all healthy and high quality, served out of @bakeologythane’s kitchen.

Her range will have you feasting on 100% wholegrain sourdough for Rs 500-850 (based on inclusions in the dough), crackers, cumin cookies at Rs 1500-2200 for a pack, beautifully customised cakes at Rs2800-5000 per kg and more. Would you believe Kasturi bakes 50 kgs of gluten-free plum cake every year which remains her super-hit product. All this with the help of a full-time intern.

Kasturi delivers all throughout Bombay and makes time to enjoy a sourdough chocochip cookie in between her work – her favourite cookie from her range.

Fatema Hamza: @doctorbaker_dhule

Mob: 0 99708 42140

Doctors and bakers seem to be go hand in hand. We’ve got a homeopath here, who fuels her innate passion for baking to give you a premium range of confections from cakes to cookies, donuts and brownies… healthy and yum. Fatema Hamza started her home-baking business post her delivery in 2018 when she realised she could create healthier confectionery options for her child at home. “I began with whole wheat cookies for children, without sugar, only jaggery, and moved on to oat and almond cookies,” says Fatema. People liked the taste of what she was baking and lo and behold, @doctorbaker_dhule was in motion, pandemic be damned.

With recipes that keep adapting and multiple online baking workshops that she conducts, Fatema juggles her baker-doctor (offering online consultations) and mum roles deftly. She delivers her products around Dhule (2 hours from Nashik) and neighbouring districts and brings them with her when she comes to Bombay if there’s an order. Yes, Fatema is originally a Bombay girl! She even delivers to cities like Calcutta and Indore. Visit her Instagram page and choose from attractive cakes – all chocolate ganache-based, not cream-based like the Classic Chocolate Truffle – ½ kg at Rs 750, the assortment of brownies at Rs 600 for ½ kg, donuts at Rs 70-75 a piece. The more the order is customised, the higher the prices go. Customise all you want, and the doctor-baker will have you covered.

Ask her what she loves most from her baked goods and brownies is the answer. “They will make you happy anytime,” Fatema smiles. The Double Chocolate Brownie is a divine flavour to order, for sure, she affirms.

Shivya Gupta: @bakeyourownbrownies

Mob: 0 82871 78962

This Delhi-based baker comes from a hospitality background with her father running their respective business and her training from The Leela where she developed a real passion for baking. As 2020 rolled around, Shivya founded her boutique studio which catered to customised cakes and gifting options. However, as true to her Instagram handle, she did begin with brownies. “It was during COVID that I started baking brownies which became a hit with loved ones, and I moved ahead with cakes. My nephew’s birthday was the first time I baked a designer fondant cake, and everyone loved it,” reminisces Shivya, who set up her own cake studio in Ghaziabad in 2020, just before the pandemic hit.

Today, she has a team of five members of which two are assistant bakers. She has even displayed her cakes at AAHAR in this very year itself. @bakeyourownbrownies – #BYOB – does couture cakes for any occasion and desserts for an any-day indulgence. Brownies are served in several flavours like Caramel and Double Chocolate, Oreo, Walnut, Nutella, to name a few, which are all a sinful treat. Prices range from Rs 700-1200. Gifting options run the gamut from festive occasions to baby showers, engagement parties, birthdays and anniversaries, what have you. Ask Shiyva and she’ll customise it, wrap it up and present it beautifully. Cakes can be baked and decorated as per your desires and range in pricing from Rs1700-2200 per kg depending on weight and designs. Deliveries are done only in Delhi NCR for all products.

“I love baking and have a sweet tooth myself,” laughs Shivya, “but I am fed up of tasting sweets all day.” Then we’ll leave the tasting to you, sweet customer.

Leena Yengle: @leenasbakespune

Mob: 0 90117 91905

And we have one more doctor for you! Poona-based Leena Yengle used to be a physiotherapist before she made her passion for baking her profession. Due to medical issues, she gave it up but God’s grace, it all worked out for the lady who believes

in the power of Christ in her baking prowess. “The support of my family and

the Lord has helped me start my home-baking business and I am extremely grateful for that,” Leena states. Given her history with health issues, Leena specialises in healthy breads, beginning with yeast followed by sourdough.

“The first sourdough starter I prepared was eight years ago and it is like taking care of a child. You have to nurture it so it can grow,” Leena shares. It’s been a fascinating journey for her as it requires a lot of patience and it’s all worth it. The proof is in the breads! And the teatime cakes that come out of @leenasbakes. The classic sourdough boule is a crowd favourite, priced at Rs 300 for 500 g while the loaf is available at Rs 250 for 800 g. All products are chemical-free with no artificial agents. Bread loaves come in fancy designs, too, like the Leopard Print Bread Roll and snacks are also on offer, like the stuffed buns and the Stuffed Caterpillar Bread Roll. Teatime treats include Mexican Coffee Buns, Sesame Seed Bagels, and more.

Delivery is free throughout Baner only. If you stay in Bombay, place your order and @leenasbakes will deliver for a fee.

Leena is also proficient in offline and online baking classes where you will learn the basics of sourdough bread at Rs 4000 and yeasted bread at Rs 1900. Interested bakers join in from across the country and abroad as well.

Ankita Lunia: @ankitachocolatzz

Mob: 0 94287 43557

Surat is home to this celebrated baker who won the trophy for her desserts, whipped up at the Home Chef Studio at

the UpperCrust Show recently. And it all began with her love of chocolates. Hence the name @ankitachocolatzz! Today, she offers a premium range of chocolate cakes, vegan bakes, cookies, desserts and handcrafted chocolates.

Ankita shares, “When I was studying for my CA, CS and MBA entrance, I realised my love for chocolates and baking. With the help of books, the best tutors and experiments in the kitchen, with flavours, I was ultimately able to set up my confectionery business.” The certified chocolatier from the Government of India serves up a wide range of chocolatey goodies which include Gianduja Brownies and Dark Chocolate Cookies, Vegan Double Chocolate Walnut Cakes and a Cappuccino Mocha Crunch Brownie Cake to give you a delicious idea. Ask Ankita what’s her favourite from her vast array and the choices are mawa cake, the Gianduja Brownies, 10 Layer Dessert Tubs and nut cookies.

Ankita uses healthy and only the best quality ingredients in her bakes such as Mejdool dates in the no-sugar bites which also consist of figs and pista and the like. Cakes such as the Nutella Rocher and the Kaju Anjeer Milkshake are set apart, all done exquisitely by @ankitachocolatzz.

Whether you are in India or abroad, Ankita and her team of four will ensure your sweet choices reach you safely and beautifully-wrapped. Prices vary from 25-100 per pc for cookies; Rs 150-250 per pc for brownies, Rs 350-500 per dessert jar and Rs 2000-2500 for signature chocolate cakes. 

Meghana Ashish: @meraki_cake_studio

Mob: 0 80500 67727

When we think of baking as a therapeutic process, we might not realise its true effect. This Bangalore-based baker can testify to it. Meghana Ashish lost her mum in 2016 and her father last year, and she owes her strength to baking, art, her husband and her little girl, her in-laws, too. “I thought I would start my home-baking business with my mum,” shares Meghana, “but it was not meant to be. To get out of that phase, I turned to baking and thanks to my talent for art – inherited from my artist father – I was able to combine my love for both into a profession.”

Meghana began with her customised cakes for celebrities and politicians after her mum passed away and then took a break for two years when she gave birth. Just as she was ready to get back into the game, COVID hit and her plans were stalled. Then post her father’s passing, she decided to get back into it full-fledged and now we have @meraki_cake_studio catering to all of Bangalore.

You have cupcakes, which can be customised, at Rs 80-100; brownies at Rs120 per pc (which can be carried abroad well); cake pops at Rs 50 per pc. Her Red Velvet and Dutch Chocolate Brownies are a hit, the latter her very own favourite. But it’s majorly cakes – fancy, tiered, detailed to perfection, that Meghana whips up.

All from the passion a self-taught baker possesses. “I am an engineer by education but art and baking are what I love and with the help of YouTube, I am able to live out my dream.”