Manikins Cupcakes: Divine desserts and more!

  By Shannine Daniel 

Hailing from a family that has been one of the pioneers in the food industry of Sri Lanka, Maneesha Wijesiriwardena has had a flair for baking from a very young age. At just 17 she launched her own brand of cupcakes known as ‘Manikins’ by chance, after receiving praise for a bulk order of cupcakes ordered by one of her brothers’ friends for the annual Royal-Thomian Water Polo Encounter. Three years later, she made quite a name for herself among the cupcake lovers of Colombo. 

Inspired by her father, who currently runs Bake House Ltd. at Maradana which has been in their family for a long time, Maneesha and her two older brothers were encouraged to cook, bake and experiment in the family kitchen from the time they were kids. 

“Since we were little our mother and father would allow us to make our own desserts at home; they never restrained or discouraged us thinking that we would make a mess or damage anything in the kitchen,” she revealed.

Maneesha wanted to learn and get involved in baking and cooking because she knew that someday her father would pass on the family business to herself and her brothers and from then onwards it became her passion. 

She first started Manikins with its trademark cupcakes and three years later after constant experimenting Maneesha proudly claimed that she has finally come up with her best recipe for a speciality chocolate cupcake. 

As of now she bakes up a distinct variety of cakes, brownies and éclairs along with an assortment of cupcakes and even does desserts such as Pavlova, chocolate mousse and caramel.

Elaborating further, she went on to say that she has two ranges for her cupcakes with regard to the quality of the ingredients used. The first is the reasonably priced Delicious range that has six different flavours and second is the slightly more expensive Heavenly range that comes in a diverse assortment of flavours, toppings and even fillings from the usual vanilla and chocolate to choices such as salted caramel, Oreo, chocolate mud and cheesecake. 

According to Maneesha, Manikins’ authentic chocolate fudge cupcakes and red velvet cakes and cupcakes are the customers’ favourites, and so is the Pavlova. 

“The office crowd are the customers who usually order the Pavlova because a lot of people can eat it at once, and it’s quite reasonable because they can pool in and order plus its very light and full of cream and fruits which is why many people like it,” she noted. 

In contrast her chocolate fudge cupcakes are rich and chocolaty with their fudge filled centres and fudge topping, and it was a memorable dessert that anyone could enjoy and indulge in. I myself not being a very big fan of cupcakes was blown away with it, especially loving the chocolate fudge topping and filling. 

Her chocolate éclairs are made in the standard way, with chocolate ganache on top and chocolate butter cream in the centre whereas the butterscotch éclairs are Maneesha’s very own twist on the classic fave, with a caramel like butterscotch sauce on top, and a creamy, flavourful filling. Éclairs being one of my favourite sweet treats, what I liked best about Maneesha’s eclairs was the fact that the cream filling was very light, and sweet yet not overly so, and her choux pastry was on point. 

As of now Manikins has several regular clients and some of them get orders done from Maneesha every month and she confidently revealed that these customers only purchase baked goodies from Manikins.

Other than desserts and bakes Manikins has presently branched into catering orders of short eats and savouries as well as the desserts and bakes for events and functions, mainly weddings, birthday parties and corporate events. Lamprais and rice packets are also available, but only on the weekends and Maneesha’s mum, being a great caterer herself, plays the main role in cooking and making sure that the orders are ready on time. Maneesha has also decided to take on event planning as she is currently working in a PR agency and manages events. 

In Maneesha’s own words, what makes her own brand unique is not just the twists that she creates with traditional recipes, it is the effort that she puts into everything. Being a second year law student and a part time employee at a PR agency takes up most of her time, yet she explained that every order that is undertaken by her is carefully handled and taken care of by her alone, and she only requires her mother’s help on the weekends to take care of the lamprais and rice and curries.

“The key is in learning how to balance things. Since my lectures and work tasks take up most of the day, I spend mostly my nights baking. I’m happy that I can mix up and bake a whole order of cupcakes or brownies in a span of one-and-a-half to two hours,” she stated when asked how she manages to balance her work, studies and her business, and all three in completely different spheres. 

“It gets a bit hectic here and there, but on the other hand it’s not that stressful, and if you love what you do then you don’t have to work a day in your life,” she said, speaking about her love for baking. 

Maneesha’s baking business is based at her home down Balapokuna road in Nugegoda. Asked if she had any idea of opening up her own shop, she revealed that she did have plans to do so in future, maybe after getting her law degree. 

“Someday once my father retires and my brothers and I have to take up the responsibility, I might even merge Manikins cupcakes with Bake House,” she added.

Pix by Gitika Talukdar

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