by Gurvinder Kaur
Simple and sweet, Nancy Cakes have been catering for over five decades and running their baking business in Ipoh. The company operates from a bungalow in Lebuh Lasam. Well-known for their tempting homemade butter cakes, Nancy Cakes have always been the top choice for people to celebrate big occasions – whether it be family functions, birthday parties or weddings.
Although it is their whole 1kg butter-base cakes that they are commonly known for, Nancy Cakes offers a tempting mixture of flavours. The cakes come in three other base flavours: orange, chocolate and vegan banana. Piped to perfection, the cakes are beautifully decorated with their signature butter icing, with an exquisite floral design. In addition, they bake fruit cakes, infused with rum. Frequently ordered during the festive seasons, their pineapple jam tarts and homemade cookies are simply delicious. Other flavours include cornflakes with raisins, peanut butter with cashew, coconut and the soft, warm, and melt-in-your-mouth suji. You name it, and they will bake it.
All the recipes for these homemade delicacies originate from the legendary Nancy Chong herself. Since she was a young child, Nancy was fond of baking. Her passion for baking was displayed in family parties, where she would bake birthday cakes. Occasionally, she would share her ‘creations’ with her colleagues at her workplace, the Dewan Bandaraya Ipoh (DBI). Collectively, her colleagues and family encouraged her to step forward into the baking business, as she had already started receiving requests and orders to bake for others’ events. And so she started her side business, in her bungalow, in Lebuh Lasam. Her business took off extremely well. It expanded when she decided to go full-time, as she retired from DBI. Soon she was known as the renowned baker of Ipoh. Nancy’s homemade recipes successfully beat the fanciest bakeries in Kuala Lumpur, as she received orders from all over Malaysia.
After years in the business, Nancy passed the baton to her two daughters, who live up to the legacy well. Despite her daughters running the business, until recently, customers still have had her magical touch on their cakes, for she was found in the corner of her kitchen, icing the cakes with dexterity.
Unfortunately, earlier this year, Nancy Chong passed away at the age of 90. The news of her demise brought tears to the eyes of many, as she was always uniting families and friends through her heart-warming cakes. Nevertheless, the business that she started as a hobby 55 years ago, is still running successfully. With a scoop of love, passion and dedication Nancy’s legacy lives on.
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