Travel with Angela Lansbury: Savoury Birthday Cakes: from Singapore Chicken Rice Birthday Cakes, or Pork cakes in Thailand

Pick Pork cafe, Thailand. Pork cake from their Facebook page.

Here's a blessing, brought to you by covid-19 and an inventive Singapore marketing man.

William Soh is credited with rescuing a business with the idea of a chicken rice birthday cake.

When non-essential birthday cakes and bakeries were banned, and only essential food shops were open, up came an entrepreneurial adviser who invented the chicken rice birthday cake. Chicken rice is the national dish of Singapore.

Two things happened. To attract the customers looking for birthday cakes, shops not allowed to sell sweet ones made savoury ones. The rice is made into a mound topped with boiled or fried chicken and vegetables.

Have seen those lunch boxes designed for picky children by inventive and creative mothers making faces and animals out of slices of tomato? Then you know that miniature tomatoes on sticks and all sorts of sliced vegetables and whole peppers can be arranged decoratively.

Add Happy birthday, or Happy Mother's Day, or Happy Anniversary or any other message on top. Instant birthday cake.

We already have discussions about too much sugar and cake in our family. I want cakes featuring fruit and flowers. My husband and son are not keen on birthday cakes, which mean too much over-eating for themselves and everybody.

If you are looking for a dessert with less sugar, or more fruit, consider cheesecake, carrot cake, banana cake, apple strudel.

For low carb, gluten free, and no sugar, options are available. From locaba.sg

Also look for fresh rose cakes.

Useful Websites

https://www.asiaone.com/lifestyle/singapore-cake-shop-offers-chicken-rice-and-zi-char-dishes-shaped-cakes-your-next

https://www.todayonline.com/8days/eatanddrink/newsandopening/hilton-chef-turned-hawker-sells-birthday-cakes-made-chicken-rice

https://locaba.sg/bakery/blueberry-yogurt-cake/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_substitute

https://jajabakes.com/korean-fried-chicken-cake/

http://www.celebrate-with-cake.com/2013/12/chicken-rice.html

https://www.facebook.com/pickporkcafe/

https://thewhiteombre.com/bakery/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=201