Family of bakers take the biscuit

Barry Haworth, owner of Cissy Green's Bakery, in Haslingden, will be visiting Rossendale's Twin Town of Bocholt on Friday to take part in the festival for the first time.

Barry, 46, will be accompanied by his wife Julie when they show off the Rossendale Cake - made famous by the pair when they came up with the mouth-watering delight last year.

The cake is made using a mixture of dried fruit and cherries encased in a pastry envelope and is now popular with tourists to Rossendale from all over the world.

The pair are already well known in Bocholt after their unique recipe was shown being made on a national German TV show.

Bakers from Bocholt visited Cissy Green's; Cordeys, of Waterfoot, and Cheadles, of Stacksteads, during the summer as part of an educational tour of local craft bakers.

Barry said: "We don't really know a lot about what we are going to be doing.

"We had the recipe for the Rossendale Cakes published and featured in a national magazine, which is probably why the German's are so interested in it.

"People visiting Rossendale are the ones who tend to try the cake and really like it. We thought of the idea after seeing the success of the Chorley cake. We thought if Chorley can have their own cake, then why can't Rossendale."

Tim Nuttall, of Rossendale Tourist Information Centre, added: "We think it's great that somebody from Rossendale will be representing the valley at the international Festival of Bakers. During the summer, students from Germany visited some Rossendale bakers to get an experience of working in a craft bakers rather than working in a large factory which they enjoyed.

"This is just another aspect of the things that go on behind the scenes on regularly with our twinning town."

The Haworths will fly out on Friday afternoon for a trip to several local bakeries before attending an official dinner in Bocholt and presentation ceremony on Saturday.