Bakery triumphs at vanilla slice comp

THE latest creation from Emma’s Bakery has taken home third prize in the innovative category at The Great Australian Vanilla Slice Triumph Merbein.

The bakery’s owner Emma Conroy said it “brought tears to my eyes” to crack the top three after seven years of entering.

“It’s such a big thing in the baking industry and very well-recognised so it’s kind of like winning a crown,” she said.

“They really get down to a fine-tooth comb with each category from pastry to custard to icing so you really have to understand what it takes to get a good vanilla slice.

“With this one in the innovative category, you’ve got to make sure it’s the right flavour, not too sweet and not too plain, a little bit fancy and a little bit different.

“It took a few years but we’ve finally done it so this is massive. Probably our biggest achievement since we’ve had a bakery.”

The competition took place in its namesake of Merbein in August, with each slice judged out of 10 categories by a panel of six judges.

The award-winning creation is a Biscoff-flavoured slice, with layers of puff pastry, Biscoff toffee, dark chocolate and two types of custards.

The slice was introduced to customers immediately after the competition, and Ms Conroy said it’s already attracting attention for the store.

“We had one lady last week who bought six. She’d driven from two hours away just to try it,” she said.

“It’s been really good publicity for the bakery. I knew it would be good for us but it really has been exceptional.”

Emma’s Bakery also secured fourth place for their traditional vanilla slice.