Bohemia Village Voice

By Sara Young, Dec 2011

Shelley Feldman & Kevin Young at Hastings Market

“Even if you’re making a vegan cake, it should taste like a cake!” This is certainly the case with Shelley Feldman and her assistant Kevin Young’s vegan-friendly creations, known as 1066 Cake Stand, which not only look like baking heaven, but taste like it too. Having tried both a Chocolate Cupcake and their signature Rose and Lemon Cake, (for the purposes of research of course) I can confirm that whether vegan, or not, there is something to tempt everyone.
Shelley has been vegan since University, a lifestyle choice that ‘crept up’ on her. “Being a vegan is not the weirdest thing you can do anymore!”
The nicest thing about 1066 Cake Stand is how flexible they are with their recipes; they work with customers, and that includes requests via Facebook, or one-to-one in person. Gluten-free, sugar-free, it’s all part of their ‘local and organic service’. Traditional Sussex recipes, such as Sussex Heavies (delicious scones made with fruit) and Sussex Black (scrumptious fruit cake made with with black treacle), line up beside everyday cakes for afternoon tea, celebration and wedding cakes.
All the baking takes place in Shelley’s kitchen. The cakes are then sold at Trinity Wholefoods, The Roomz, Penbuckles, and on their stall at Hastings Market every Thursday; 10 am till 3pm. Customers can place an order and collect from the stall, or make arrangements for delivery. Shelley is also Chairwoman of Hastings Market Traders. Hastings Council stepped back from running Hastings Market with the ultimatum that it either close down or the traders run it themselves. They chose to run it themselves and Shelley is very positive about its future. “The market is attracting an exciting and diverse range of traders. For example, The Visionary Soap Company launched here. Running the market feels like regeneration. Being autonomous gives the traders a say on the quality of the goods on offer. And I think that’s a good thing.”
o Interested in having a stall at Hastings Market? Feel free to contact Shelley at hastingstcm@yahoo.co.uk