When quarantine began last March and the entire world went on lockdown, Farah Mansouri occupied her time the same way most people did — by binge-watching shows on TV and picking up new hobbies. Except, for Farah, this little hobby turned into a business opportunity.
A sophomore in high school, Mansouri had been helping her grandmother create assortments of baked goods for years, and attributes this to where she gained her love for the kitchen.
During the lockdown, she began obsessively watching cake-decorating shows, paying close attention to the details, and decided to give it a go on her own.
The first decorated cake she made, she said, was not the best, but now Mansouri can create many dazzling cake designs with delicious flavors, such as Oreo with vanilla buttercream frosting and pistachio with cream cheese whipped frosting. Her favorite though — chocolate — makes an appearance in a variation of ways throughout her Instagram in the form of Nutella frostings, hot fudge drippings and full Oreo cookies.
She created an Instagram page to sell her cakes, now has more than 100 followers and has served many happy customers in the Northeast Florida area.
Recently, Mansouri started working with the Homeless Coalition of St. John’s County to donate some of her magically decorated cakes to children on their birthdays.
“I love decorating, and I have been active with the Homeless Coalition before, so it was something that I could use my skills to help with,” she said.
As Mansouri finishes up her classes for the day, she can work on any cake orders the moment she completes her work, which she makes entirely from scratch in her kitchen.
Although she is not sure how far this hobby will continue, she plans to open a Facebook Business page, where she can also sell/get word out about her cakes. For now, you can find her cake decorating business on Instagram at @sweetsbyfarah.
