Claire Ptak made the royal's lemon and elderflower wedding cake
Claire Ptak, founder of East London bakery Violet, shot to fame after she made Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal wedding cake in 2018.
Five years later, the baker has opened up about the behind-the-scenes brief from the couple, describing the Duchess of Sussex as a "cool" and laid-back bride. While some engaged couples want full control over every detail of their big day (especially if they know the world is watching), Claire explained to Tatler that Meghan gave her creative freedom when it came to the cake.
"Meghan, she specifically said to me, 'I don’t want to tell you what to do… the reason why I’ve chosen you is because I love your baking and your work and your point of view and your ethos,'" said Claire, who Meghan previously interviewed for her defunct lifestyle blog, The Tig.
She added: "And I was like, 'Oh my god, that’s so cool. The best job brief ever!'"
After offering the couple six flavours to taste, she said they decided on "my first choice as well." A departure from the traditional royal fruit cake, the confection was made with Amalfi lemons and elderflower syrup from the late Queen’s Sandringham estate and displayed on gold platters at Windsor Castle.
On the subject of their unconventional flavour, the Love is a Pink Cake cookbook author told : "We discussed that they wanted something very unique and outside the box; they didn’t feel that there should be any kind of constrictions, to do something within tradition."
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Despite the fact that Harry and Meghan had warned Claire about the intense media interest she would receive after the royal wedding announcement, she was still surprised by the "wild" response.
"They sort of told me, 'Look, this is going to be a big deal. Make sure you’re ready. When we announce this, you’re going to get a lot of interest'... I just thought it’d be fine. And I was really wrong," she explained to Tatler, adding that Violet became "so crazy busy."
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