When asked about his latest dinner, Janusz confesses it was a “dirty kebab” devoured after a late-night painting session. He’s mid-way through turning his home into an Instagram-ready, cake-inspired wonderland. “My living room will be a giant slice of cake, in a nutshell,” he explains, describing yellow walls, sprinkles and a pink ceiling “dripping” down – proof that his joyful, colourful aesthetic extends far beyond the plate.
But, that enviable kitchen you see on his social media? “Nobody knows, it’s not my kitchen,” Janusz laughs. “It is my in-laws’ kitchen. They’ve got a beautiful kitchen, but it’s completely not my style… If I’m going to have a kitchen, it’s going to be a Polly Pocket-style kitchen – pastel colours, plenty of little things.”
Tears, triumph and time pressure
Janusz’s Bake Off journey began with a surprise. “My partner did the application form for me,” he reveals. “The phone call was the first time I found out.” He admits he never believed it was possible to create those showstopping cakes in such tight timeframes – “in my head, I thought, ‘this is unachievable’” – but says that with stress, a bit of corner-cutting and “trashing your kitchen”, it can be done.
The emotional high point? “The first time you walk into the tent. It’s such a surreal experience… I started crying. Every single year, somebody does and my year, it was me.” He reflects on the chaos of baking in a tent, in a field, with wind blowing flour everywhere and hosts popping by for a chat mid-bake.
Practice for the Bake Off tent with these 30 classic bakes you need to try. Then, read Nadiya Hussain’s insider knowledge on How to win The Great British Bake Off.
A cookbook with heart
Since his Bake Off days, Janusz has channelled his energy into his debut cookbook, Baking with Pride. “I straightaway knew I wanted to have a Pride book,” he says. But, he was adamant it wouldn’t just be “rainbow bakes with no meaning behind them.” Instead, each recipe tells a story, like his semi-naked flower cake with lavender sponges, honey buttercream and sharp lemon curd, inspired by the secret language of flowers used by queer people in darker times. “This cake represents a dark time in queer history, but it’s a beautiful cake to represent.”
Janusz’s book is a celebration of identity, history and home pride. “You should be proud of who you are, proud of where you are from,” he shares, noting that the book also features Polish family recipes and British classics, alongside playful treats like ‘unicorn poop’ and ‘bear buns’.
Polish roots
Food, for Janusz, is inseparable from family and heritage. Raised in Poland, he recalls Saturday mornings spent baking with his mother: cheesecakes, apple pies and sponges topped with jelly. “When I moved to university with my best friend, we carried on the tradition. We used to bake every Saturday afternoon… sometimes very painfully, if we were hungover!”
His ultimate comfort food? Dumplings – specifically Polish pierogi stuffed with curd cheese, potato and fried onion. “If I make them at home, I’ll probably make around 200… Serve some for me and my boyfriend, and freeze the rest.” Every culture, he says, has its own dumpling. “If I had to choose one food, it’s dumplings.” Check out our dumpling recipes for inspiration from all around the world.
Feeling inspired to try something new? Try some of our Polish recipes.
Kitchen disasters and guilty pleasures
Even the most seasoned bakers have their disasters. Janusz winces as he recalls a birthday cake that melted in a sweltering car: “I had to get a bottle of spirits, put it on my credit card, get the cake together and start re-icing it with my credit card,” he laughs. “I don’t remember being that stressed in my life. Bake Off never topped it.”
And, his guilty pleasure? “A buffet – or as we call it, ‘British tapas’. All the selection of beige food: scotch eggs, chicken nuggets, quiche… especially during summer.”
Dive into our British recipes to find further ‘British tapas’ inspiration.
A taste of home
Janusz’s food philosophy is simple: good food is cooked at home, with love, from ingredients you know and trust. He champions buying local – Brighton honey from the market, strawberries from the greengrocer – and making use of every scrap. “In my home, there was never wasted food. Stock is the easiest thing to make, and you can use the leftover vegetables for a Russian salad or vegetable pâté.”
And, on his birthday? “I always have a cake that I’ve made myself, for myself. As a cake maker, you do not often eat your own cake… On my birthday, my treat is having my own slice.”
