Tea party with vintage porcelain and home-made cakes. In that wonderful time, just before Christmas, we meet Ljubka Atanasova, the beautiful blue-eyed girl behind the glass cake domes at the Bric-a-Brac Tea party event and the LUbakery concept. We have seen wonderful photographs of her sweet temptations in social media and were looking for the girl who turns the pumpkin into a cake, chestnuts into melting cream and biscuits into delicious “herbariums”. We have been convinced that these are irresistible desserts, baked in intriguing shapes, with flavours that excite all senses.

The “Nuts” cookies with cream were almost sold out. Juicy chocolate pastries, sprinkled with golden dust and colourful flower petals were inviting connoisseurs from a vintage silver tray. And her Christmas cookies were real objects of design. Sliding down the chocolate ridges of her beautiful cakes in which she had hidden juicy cherries, we already know what would make an inveterate cake-o-phobe an addicted “lubaker”.

With Ljuba we talk about the concept of LUbakery and the story behind her passion. It all started a long time ago, when she was a child. She got inspired by her mother as a little girl. Today Ljuba still uses some of her favourite family recipes. In time, she got some interesting cake forms and a bunch of kitchen supplies and began to make her own master pastries. Following culinary blogs, reading books and interpreting classic recipes through her own sense of aesthetics and taste. Her inspiration comes during the best part of the day. When everything gets quite outside, Ljuba puts her apron on.

“The taste is the most important thing”, she says. For her, it has the leading role in the process of making a pastry. Then she creates the plot choosing a recipe and shape and adds the details. Ljuba works in an architectural studio. In everything she creates, we recognise her love for minimalism and special attitude to details. For the pastries, she draws inspiration from architecture. Her favourite kitchen utensil is a set of stamps made of olive tree by a greek design studio. We find their marks on her Christmas cookies, dipped in black chocolate, sprinkled with pistachio.

She does everything by herself and puts her love and soul into it. She is happy to create special moments for the people who taste her cakes. The best desserts she makes when her clients trust her completely. The simple “Luba, just do something for me” is the strongest motivation for her to create a cake that surprises and touches.
In her recipes she uses only quality products, without substitutes. She believes that when the senses crave for real taste and sweetness, they can not be “cheated” with low-fat or low-calorie substitutes. “A nice dessert should be celebrated as something special that we do not have so often. That’s why it must be real and enjoyed without guilt”, she says. We agreed that a piece of her divine “Garash” cake could be “redeemed” with some sport and a healthy lifestyle.

Ljuba does not plan to expand her project as that would change its concept. Or at least not for now! She thinks that special things should be taken in small doses, everything should happen easily, without excessive effort. She has many ideas that are waiting for the right moment. Now she prepares pastries for specific events and personal occasions. Orders are usually accepted through the LUbakery profile in Facebook. She likes to do things for people who want to taste something special, be surprised with flavour and shape. Apart from the special events in which she participates, Ljuba takes part in culinary courses organised by Food Connection. This is a particularly emotional experience and a challenge for her. There she has prepared her favourite Tuscan desserts, muffins, cheesecakes, and “Garash” cake. Soon in Food Connection’s kitchen, Ljuba will show us how she “hides” cherries in her wonderful bundt – cakes. At the moment, she is preparing her winter boxes “Winter treats”. We are ready for Christmas trees – cookies with chestnut, chocolate and pistachio cream, chocolate pastries with plum jam and marzipan and … yes, those “Nuts” with cream that will melt us again in the best memories of our childhood.

Blissful days are coming …

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The article has been written for: http://www.ues.bg/en/blog/213-lubakery-the-sweet-shape-of-taste