Young baker has cake decorating moving in different directions!

Honing in on his creative gifts and combining those with his keen interest in mechanics, 21 year- old Aidan Mulvihill of Stonewall, Manitoba is getting to be well known for his intricate cake designs which sometimes have moving parts. His creations are nothing short of amazing and very unique. The most recent is a gingerbread fish, its tail is wagging, the head is moving side to side while the body is swishing about. Aidan is the grandson of Glenboro resident, Barbara and the late Martin Anderson, and son of Holly and Paul Mulvihill, and is presently enrolled in the one-year Professional Baking and Pastry course at Red River College.

While Aidan ’s creative gifts were evident at a young age through drawings and art, he explained, the cake decorating didn’t emerge until a few years ago. “I definitely got the creative side from my Dad. My Dad’s uniquely decorated birthday cakes have become famous in our family and I would sometimes help him; but that is as far as it went until a few years ago,” explained Aidan.

He attributes his fascination of mechanics to a set of Knex (similar to Legos) he received as a gift when he was a child. “I spent hours and hours trying different ways to work with the mechanisms.” Being captivated by small machines at a young age was only the beginning. Aidan is also popular for his entertaining shows where he not only juggles, but does it while riding a unicycle. He has entertained crowds at local events in Stonewall, as well as at the Forks in Winnipeg, since he was a young boy.

A 2020 graduate, he figured his career path would be in the field of nursing and aptly enrolled in the prerequisite courses for nursing at the U of M. “Yeah,” he said smiling and slightly shaking his head, “that didn’t even last a month.” Even during the interview, the young man still seemed perplexed why he knew so quickly this wasn’t the field for him. “It was during the Covid lockdown so I was taking all my courses online at home, that may have been part of it,” he surmised.

After his short foray with the U of M, Aidan was able to change his part-time job as a grocery clerk to a full-time position and later gained employment at the local bakery. “I really enjoyed working at the bakery, so I looked into available courses at Red River.” The Professional Baking & Pastry course captured his interest so he applied, even though the wait list was quite long as it only accepts 20 students.

“Upon learning of the 3-year wait list, my friend and I decided to move to Newfoundland for a year. We both were able to find employment quickly; mine was at the Tilt House Bakery, known for its traditional bread.” The year, however, was cut to nine months when Aidan was notified by the College that he was put on a short list. “Nothing was guaranteed, but I didn’t want to take the chance of missing out if a spot became available.” The two friends returned at the end of June and then, the day before the course orientation in August, Aidan received word that he was in!

When asked about the process of designing, baking and decorating his intricately decorated cakes, Aidan explained that the process takes approximately ten hours. “When I make a portrait cake, I begin by finding an image on the internet, then I make a digital image of my own. Sometimes I make a template and project the image on to the cake; but that is difficult due to my hand blocking the image when icing it. The other option is printing the image on to a gridded paper, setting it beside the cake and working from that.”

When asked if he has aspirations of turning his passion into a business, he answered that he has thought of it, but feels he would have to design a webpage to market it to a wider audience. “And I am concerned that turning a hobby that I enjoy so much into a business would result in it becoming a job more than a pleasure.”

RRC, as part of their program, encourages their trades students to take part in the provincial Skills Canada Competition which will be held in April. The winner of the competition will move on to the National Competition in Montreal. The competition Aidan will be taking part in comprises of 6 plated desserts, 12 petit fours bite sized delicacies and a sugar show piece. The competitors are allowed 7 hours from start to finish, including the 45 minuteset up. They will be provided with the ingredients and are also allowed to request 3 of their own.

A photo of Aidan’s work really can’t capture it entirely; it is upon seeing a video of him creating a portrait cake freehand with icing, or seeing his gingerbread creations come to life with multiple mechanisms the make you gaze in wonderment. Knowing that these creations are also 100% edible is really the icing on the cake!

PHOTO CAPTION: Aidan Mulvihill of Stonewall creates cakes that are visually stunning and sometimes include moving parts.