Shalini Grosu isn't your average home baker, nor does she own a bakery. What she has is a 700 square feet kitchen in Yousufguda equipped with two ovens, three refrigerators, professional baking equipment and a team of five, including a delivery boy, who help her churn out huge orders — and we're talking 500 to 600 cupcakes — for her label, Red Velvet.
Growing up in a family that's been in the hotel business for generations and armed with a degree in Food Technology from RMIT University, Australia, Grosu started Red Velvet, which quickly became popular among her huge family circle. "We are all foodies you see," she giggles. Now, she not only undertakes large party orders, but also supplies her baked goodies to popular cafés and outlets in Hyderabad like Tabula Rasa, Autumn Leaf Café, Chit Chat Chai, Rangrez and more.
"In Hyderabad, we have places like Labonel for cakes and Conçu, which is a patisserie, but I wanted both varieties," says the 29-year-old, who bakes everything from dessert jars and cupcakes to customised cakes and of course, as her brand name suggests, her specialty — red velvet cakes.
With many youngsters taking up home baking as a profession, we spoke to Grosu for a better understanding on how one can take home baking up a notch. And she nails it right on the head with the very first piece of advice. "Everything we bake has a home-baked quality to it, a gourmet touch that distinguishes it from the regular stuff. I wanted to bring that homely-touch to commercial baked goods," says the Nellore-born baker, adding that quality should never be compromised when you scale up.
For more information check their page: facebook.com/theredvelvet14/
