HAMDEN — Luca Esposito, 12, had so much time during the pandemic to perfect his cake making/decorating skills that the seventh-grader now has started a business and is saving for college.
“I mean all it really takes is practice and starting at a young age,” said Luca, a student at Hamden Middle School. “I like when I’m happy with the finished product and they rave about it.”
Luca’s mother, Robin Esposito, a nurse at Smilow Cancer Hospital Care Center in North Haven, said the two have been baking together since Luca was young — before his earliest memory of the activity at age 4.
Luca Esposito whips up one of his special cakes.
Contributed photoThey come from an Italian family where “food is love, cooking is love,” Robin Esposito said, and so they spent many hours together cooking, making treats — some of them experimental and baking all kinds of products — cakes, cookies, bar treats, doughnuts.
Luca baked all the pies for last year’s Thanksgiving.
Then, “Social media during the pandemic changed things,” and brought her son’s skills to a new level, Robin Esposito said.
Luca couldn’t hang out with his friends, so he started watching cake-making videos and, lots of flour, sugar, buttercream and experimenting later, got the look and tastes so perfected that guests who saw his cakes at family gatherings started to order.
Luca Esposito and one of his artistic cakes.
Contributed photoHe then established Lucas_Creative_ Cakes on Instagram — there is no apostrophe in Luca because Instagram doesn’t allow the characters in user names.
“I got farther along because of the pandemic than I would have been if I had been seeing friends,” Luca said.
One of his cakes goes for about $20 and to his mom’s surprise, he’s saving the money for college. It’s all profit because mom doesn’t charge for ingredients.
Luca, who is considering a future as a drummer or scientist, said he sees baking as a hobby in his adult life, rather than a career, although sometimes he thinks about owning a bakery.
Robin Esposito and her son Luca Esposito often spend time baking in the kitchen together.
Contributed photoSuzanne McCurry-Scull of West Haven is friends with Luca’s grandfather and, when she saw Luca’s cakes in a Facebook post, ordered one for her 54th birthday party.
“I thought, ‘The kid is starting a business, let’s give it a whirl,”’ she said. “It’s so nice to see a young kid with a passion like that who wants to do something about it.”
McCurry-Scull is glad she did.
Luca made her a chocolate cake with salted caramel buttercream and a chocolate ganache drip. He decorated the cake with rosettes of buttercream with a salted caramel in the center of each.
“As good as (his cakes) look, they taste 10 times better,” McCurry-Scull said. “It was amazing — the flavors and the decorations. It’s amazing that a 12-year-old kid is doing this.”
A cake baked by Luca Esposito of Hamden.
Contributed photoShe said a lot of her family doesn’t like cakes and sweets, but in the case of Luca’s cake, “they were raving about how great it was.”
Luca makes his cakes from scratch — he keeps recipes in a Baby Yoda notebook. As for cake flavors, he does a chocolate, a vanilla, a hot water chocolate, almond vanilla, sour cream vanilla and, recently, developed a strawberry that was tricky because of having to boil down the fruit.
Depending on the order, he can make the inside of the cake a color or many colored layers. He works with fresh strawberries and raspberries, lemon curd, buttercream, ganache and even fondant.
His piping bags are important tools. Luca’s creative side comes out when he’s baking.
Luca Esposito’s cakes are even fancy inside.
Contributed photoLisa Hamasian of North Haven ordered a cake for a 2-year-old’s birthday party and all she told Luca was that she wanted a Mickey Mouse theme.
“He took it to the moon. He made the cake perfect for photos when we cut the cake being yellow, black and red Mickey colors,” she said.
“I love how absolutely gorgeous the cakes are but also how they taste,” Hamasian said. “Everything is homemade and tasted as though he’s been baking for 20 years.”
A cake baked by Luca Esposito of Hamden.
Contributed photoHamasian said people asked after the party what bakery she got the cake from.
Word of mouth and those who have experienced Luca’s cakes are his best advertisements. Robin Esposito said she brought a Luca cake to work and a coworker wants a taco-themed cake.
When people order, “I emphasize it’s still a kid making a cake,” she said.
Luca Esposito pays attention to every little detail in his baking, including the inside.
Contributed photoRobin Esposito said it was wonderful they could find happiness during the pandemic.
Luca Esposito and one of his creatively-decorated cakes.
Contributed photo“We love doing things together. There are certainly moments where we’re frustrated,” she said. “It’s something fun to do together and you can’t go wrong with the final product.”
Luca’s father, Frankie Esposito, is the taste-tester.
Robin Esposito said even if Luca doesn’t become a professional baker she hopes he’ll carry on the tradition with his kids of doing special things together.
“With kids these days, anything that builds his confidence or gives him a skill,” she said. “If nothing else, he’ll have a very happy wife someday.”
A cake baked by Luca Esposito of Hamden.
Contributed photoShe said Luca “doesn’t necessarily like competitive sports,” so when someone says, ‘“Your son made that cake?’ It definitely makes me proud.”
A cake baked by Luca Esposito of Hamden.
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November 02, 2021 at 05:05PM
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How a 12-year-old Hamden boy launched a cake-making business that's helping him save for college - New Haven Register
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