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Claire Ptak

Claire Ptak is the California-born baker, cookbook author and food stylist behind London’s Violet Cakes, sharing seasonal bakes that bring together her Californian roots and British baking traditions.

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Claire’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.

Known for

Overview

From: Northern California
Based in: London, England
Work: Baker, cookbook author and food stylist
Violet began: A Broadway Market stall in 2005; the Wilton Way bakery opened in 2010.
Breakout: Chosen to make Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding cake in 2018.

Mini bio

How it started.

Claire grew up in Northern California, making pies with fruit from the family’s backyard. She worked as a pastry chef at Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse before moving to London in 2005. Violet began as a Broadway Market stall that year and moved into its Wilton Way bakery in 2010.

The Violet approach.

Her baking brings California’s seasonal ingredients into conversation with British traditions. Alongside running Violet, she built a career in food writing and styling, including work with Ottolenghi and Jamie Oliver. The Violet Bakery Cookbook brought the bakery’s recipes to home kitchens in 2015; Love Is a Pink Cake followed in 2023, drawing on her two homes.

A cake seen around the world.

In 2018, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle chose Claire to make their wedding cake. Her lemon and elderflower creation became a defining commission. She continues to share recipes and bakery stories through her newsletter, and in 2026 returned to Sicily for her third annual culinary retreat. Violet marked twenty years in 2025 with her Violet Times newsletter series.

Creditschronological, newest first

Quotes

That’s the home I want to live in, where guests are comfortable to enjoy themselves and a slice of cake.Claire Ptak, “Madeira Cake,” Claire Ptak’s Substack

In April 2026, Claire recalled being pleased when a visiting friend helped themselves to cake.

Trivia

Her grandmother’s handwritten red velvet cake recipe hangs beside the counter at Violet.
She keeps scoops of chocolate chip cookie dough in her freezer so she can bake the cookies warm.
Her Sicily course gained a blueberry muffin recipe after a student asked how to make a really good one.