MasterChef genius Reece Hignell launches Cakeboi desserts cookbook

In the days before computation, such was the method of preserving perfected recipes, hand-written heirlooms filed in kitchen drawers.

For many families their grandmother's spells remain in the circle of trust, but Reece Hignell is sharing his beloved Nan's culinary secrets with the world.

They're too good not to.

"They were written in this horrible running writing that you cannot understand," Hignell laughs. "All faded and smudged because they got butter on them. The paper's brown. It was hard to translate them. Everything was in pounds and ounces."

After winning hearts around the country as a two-time MasterChef Australia contestant, sharing his love of traditional cakes and pastries, Hignell opened his own café, Cakeboi, in Hamilton, Newcastle in February 2021.

Now comes a cookbook, Cakeboi: A Collection of Classic Bakes, which features the famous recipes of his grandmother and culinary inspiration, former Warners Bay resident Heather Bates.

While MasterChef viewers will be aware Hignell is vegan, and he champions plant-based cooking on his popular Instagram profile, the collection includes all manner of sinful comfort: traditional, vegan and gluten-free.

"At the shop we have a motto that no one should be deprived or cake," he says. "So we have a cake to suit everyone."

Rather than focus on himself, the Mayfield resident wants to celebrate what has made Cakeboi a success - the cakes, the loyal team and ethos of dietary inclusivity.

"This book is based on my shop," he explains. "All the treats you see in our shop, there's tips and tricks about how you can create them at home. Obviously a lot of them take skill, but we put info in there to help people recreate them as best they can. Reluctantly, I've given away our best recipes."

Some of his staff have contributed to the collection, such as the Cypriot dish Lucy's Loukoumades: donut balls drizzled in honey syrup.

There's Elva's Blow-Away Chocolate Sponge with Whipped Cream, Ganache and Raspberry Jam, a recipe received from "a lovely lady named Elva", who runs a tennis club Hignell joined in 2018.

The Spiced Rum Baba, an alcohol-soaked yeast cake of French origin, was adored by MasterChef guest Katy Perry, the popstar unforgettably declaring, "You're the tits, Reece."

And it wouldn't be a Cakeboi cookbook without the signature lemon tart and his Nan's sponge cake, both featured on MasterChef.

The latter, which Hignell cooked in season 12's "Memories Mystery Box" episode with passionfruit butter, vanilla orange cream and strawberries macerated in rosé, elicited an emotional response from judge Jock Zonfrillo.

"Eating that reminds me of being in Scotland having a cup of tea with my grandmother ... thank you, it's delicious, I loved it," the celebrity chef tearfully enthused.

Hignell couldn't wait to tell his Nan that her sponge cake had wowed the judges.

"When I was away at MasterChef, Nan would call me every day and coach me on a few different cakes," Hignell says. "I made her sponge on the show and Nan was really excited to see it but she passed away on the very last day of filming."

The timing was cruel.

"I'd spoken to Nan the day before," he says. "She asked me when that episode was coming out and I said this Tuesday. Nan passed away on the Saturday. She missed it by just a few days, but she knew about it."

A tendency that pervades modern baking is to be cutting-edge.

But Hignell views retro cake-making as old-world class, the crème de la crème.

Growing up, his interest in Nan's baking centred mostly on sampling the goods.

"I was a very big tryer, I tried a lot," chuckles Hignell. "Nan had a market stall in Warners Bay and I worked there a lot when I was younger. I helped serve and would go to her house and package her cakes as she was making them. I baked a lot with Nan."

But age brought a change of perspective, and the burgeoning baker realised his grandmother possessed a wealth of information about a fading art.

"It wasn't until I was older that I started to really appreciate a more traditional style of cooking," he recalls. "I find with cookery that it's really cool to be trendy and innovative. It's not always typical to be traditional. But I found the glamour in that. I'd look at something like a sponge and think, "that's old Hollywood glamour." Or look at a lemon tart and think of a classic Ferrari. That's what I'm thinking when I look at these cakes - they're the premium product."

Hignell is grateful that he was able to sponge advice from his Nan before she died.

"I realised, 'This is all I want to know.' So I got on the phone and hassled Nan, telling her, 'You need to teach me, you need to teach me!' That's when it started."

Now the keen apprentice has a platform and is spreading the good word: cakes make us happy.

As MasterChef judge and food writer Melissa Leong states in the foreword of Cakeboi: "Pastry can be difficult, but it can also be comforting, creative and, as Reece likes to say, "cute". So when you're looking for things to make that are the culinary equivalent of a hug, wave or a little soothing balm for the woes of the world, you could do worse than to start right here."

And while the ink's barely dry on his debut publication, the popularity of Cakeboi's vegan offerings has Hignell planning a book of plant-based dessert recipes.

"I'm super proud of our vegan cakes, because I don't think people know some of our most popular cakes are vegan," he says. "Our vegan customers know what's vegan, but I'm not necessarily sure everybody else does."

Nearly two years into his Cakeboi journey, Hignell admits he was nave to the work required to run a brick-and-mortar food business.

But he's learned on the job, aided by diligent staff and a team of bakers who share the rigors of making fresh cakes every day.

"When running a business, especially a hospitality venue that has on-site production and makes everything from scratch, it's really hard to keep consistency in quality over all areas at all times. You do stretch yourself, but it's also something to be proud of. Although things do slip through the cracks and can be frustrating, we must be doing something right because we're still growing - each month we're doing better and better, so we're impressing people, some way, somehow."

The cafe has a loyal customer base, which is evident when you drop in for a cuppa.

Hignell, ever-present, is on a first-name basis with regulars.

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"On the busy days, I'm always there," he says. "I try to work Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, so I can meet people and have a chat."

Cakeboi is, of course, a regular destination for MasterChef fans, who travel from out of town just to meet the crowd favourite, many of whom request a selfie.

"That's pretty consistent," he chuckles. "On a Saturday, about 30 per cent of our customers are from out of Newcastle. Randoms coming from Sydney. We always push the fact we're about 15 minutes from the Hexham turn-off. We get a lot of commuters and people on holidays - a lot of out-of-towners."

But it's not just humans that drop by.

Followers of the Cakeboi story will be pleased to know that the cafe's resident magpie, Swoopy, or "Swoopyboi", returned last week after an absence.

The wild bird appeared when the store first opened, a visitation that Hignell took as a good omen - his Nan had always kept the magpies in her yard well-fed.

"He came in yesterday!" Hignell exclaims. "Swoopy had been away for a while but he's back. He had the house-made focaccia."

Cakeboi: A Collection of Classic Bakes is available through its website and can be ordered through all book retailers. Visit cakeboi.com.au for more info.

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