Baking Industry Awards 2025: Babka bags the win in New Bakery Product of the Year

Thanks to our category sponsor

Innovation is the name of the game in New Bakery Product of the Year category which seeks out delicious baked goods that meet the changing needs and demands of consumers.

Winner: Dirty Chai, Chocolate & Pistachio Babka, Patisserie Mark Bennett

The “perfect coffee shop treat” is how the judges described the Dirty Chai, Chocolate & Pistachio Babka from Patisserie Mark Bennett.

Coincidentally, that is exactly what it was designed for as Mark Bennett sought to give a ‘very old recipe’ a new lease of life with on-trend flavours that complement a cup of tea or coffee.

The babka is made with the bakery’s house brioche dough (also used for its cinnamon buns). The ‘tried and tested’ dough recipe is infused with cinnamon, black pepper, clove, cardamom, and ginger before being rolled up with a chocolate filling to prove and then bake. It is then topped with a coffee icing and sprinkled with roasted chopped pistachios for added colour and texture.

Not only did it win over the Baking Industry Awards judges who complimented its “incredible aroma and lovely bake” as well as the quality of base and use of innovative flavours, it has also won over Patisserie Mark Bennett’s customers. “The product is very popular with the afternoon tea and coffee drinkers, they love a slice of it,” he said.

The Dorset-based bakery’s product prowess has shone through at the 2025 awards as it also took home the trophy in the Speciality Bread Product of the Year category for its French Onion Soup Loaf.

Finalist: Brookie Dough Cookie, Blondies Kitchen

Blondies Kitchen sought to take the ‘humble cookie to the next level’ to create a five-strong range of ‘never been seen’ patisserie-style topped cookies for the Harrods patisserie counter.

Following the launch in December 2024, the Brookie Dough Cookie fast became the bestseller. The base is a mix of vanilla and brownie batter flavoured cookie, topped with raw edible cookie dough (made with heat treated flour). This is then finished with chunks of brookie (a layered cookie dough and brownie invention) and finally sprinkled with a scattering of milk and white crispearls. They’re sold for £5.50 a cookie.

A “fantastic looking product with every element meticulously placed”, said the judges who noted they “hadn’t seen anything like it”. “It feels familiar yet exciting,” they added.

Finalist: Ham Hock & Mature Cornish Cheddar Toastie, Jason’s Sourdough

Jason’s Sourdough believes in ‘doing things properly’ – an attitude it embraced when developing its range of toasties with food-to-go supplier Around Noon. The range was designed to extend the rapidly growing brand into the foodservice market, utilising its popular Ciabattin loaves.

‘No additives, no preservatives, just proper bread and bold, flavour-packed British ingredients that stand out in the food-to-go sector’, is how the brand describes the offering.

The range comprises four toasties, but it was the Ham Hock & Mature Cornish Cheddar that Jason’s put forward for the judging. It contains slow cooked ham hock with Cornish mature cheddar and grape mustard on Jason’s white sourdough Ciabattin.

“Generous and delicious fillings” were among the comments offered by the judging panel, who were also impressed by the crisp texture of the sourdough. “An excellent extension of the brand into a new market,” they added.

Finalist: Meadow, Seven Seeded

A bread that tells a story, from field to flour to loaf – that’s how London-based bakery Seven Seeded describes its Meadow sourdough.

Created for Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant The Fat Duck, it aimed to balance depth of flavour with digestibility and sustainability (particularly regeneratively farmed grains and ones which encourage biodiversity). Following a lot of research, the loaf is made using the bakery’s organic rye starter and 17-year-old mother levain, combined with Canadian flour and Wildfarmed T130 wholemeal flour. The ‘meadow blend’ – a mix of seeds (including flax, buckwheat, and linseed), potato flakes, and edible flowers such as marigold, rose, and nettle – is also added.

The judges were enticed by the story behind the loaf’s development and commended the focus on ingredients used. They were won over by the “beautiful, blistered crust”, “lovely aroma”, “impressive crumb”, and “balanced flavours”.

Finalist: Spinach & Feta Filo Rolls, Odysea

Spotting a gap in the market, Odysea sought to bring branded innovation to the hot food-to-go fixture in the form of these handy Spinach & Feta Rolls. Derived from the Greek dish spanakopita, the rolls feature flaky filo pastry filled with feta, spinach, leeks, and seasoning.

Designed for grab-and-go consumption, they’re sold hot in packs of two with packaging that allows them space to breath and remain crisp while also holding temperature.

The product is made by one of Greece’s largest bakeries before being delivered frozen to the UK. Priced at £1.60 or available as a ‘snack’ in a meal deal, the launch has proved so successful, it has been rolled out to more stores

The judges praised Odysea for bringing a “new and innovative” format to the hot food-to-go fixture while keeping the flavours familiar enough to entice consumers. The packaging was well thought out, and the panel liked that it had a window to show off the golden pastry.

Finalist: Strawberry Matcha Loaf, Starbucks Ireland

The Strawberry Matcha Loaf, available in Starbucks across Ireland and Northern Ireland for £3, features a marbled strawberry and matcha sponge cake with cream cheese strawberry frosting and matcha topping, with a sprinkling of freeze-dried raspberries on top.

The idea was sparked by the development chef after she sampled an on-trend iced strawberry matcha on a trip to London and wanted to bring the ‘fresh and colourful’ combination to Starbucks for the summer. The challenge, according to the coffee company, was balancing the matcha and strawberry flavours, allowing each to shine without overpowering the other.

“Beautiful”, “lovely fruity aroma”, and “nice moist sponge” were some of the compliments given by the judging panel who also praised the balance of flavours and the effort that goes into production with the marbling of the batters done by hand.