All Things Lovely Cheesecakes

Meet Melissa Abraham, the Baker Behind All Things Lovely Cheesecakes in North Bay

When you order from All Things Lovely Cheesecakes, Melissa Abraham is the one who answers your message, writes your order in her book, bakes your cheesecake, and hands it to you at pickup. She has lived in North Bay almost her whole life, since she was an infant. Her husband's family is here too. In her words, it is just home.

She has always been the dessert girl. At family holidays and dinners, she was the one asked to bring dessert, and the dessert she always wanted to bring was cheesecake, because it is something you do not eat that often.

From Esthetician to Home Cheesecake Baker

Melissa is an esthetician by trade and worked at salons and spas around town for years. After COVID she wanted a change and took a job at an insurance company, with the pension, benefits and paid holidays she had never had. Six months in a cubicle told her it was not for her. She is a people person who likes to work with her hands.

She quit that December and signed up to go back to school in the spring. She wanted a small side gig to bring in some money while she studied. Scrolling social media, she came across a home baker who made cheesecakes and thought, I could do this. Her husband thought she was out of her mind. A friend helped her set up a Facebook page, she started baking a little, and it took off far faster than she expected. She never went to school.

That was three and a half years ago. Her first cheesecakes for paying customers were a Skor and a lemon blueberry, and she laughs at the photos now. Melissa still keeps her hand in esthetics one day a week, on Mondays.

Why the Name All Things Lovely

The name came from the plan to offer esthetics and cheesecake under one roof. The two stayed separate in the end, but the name stuck for a second reason. Melissa wanted to go beyond the traditional New York cherry cheesecake. In her mind, everything and anything can be a cheesecake.

New Mini Cheesecake Flavours Every Week

Every week brings a new lineup of mini cheesecakes. A recent week was Oreo, Brown Sugar Vanilla, White Chocolate Raspberry and Cinnamon Roll. For Thanksgiving it was Brown Butter Vanilla, Chai Latte, Pumpkin Spice, Pumpkin Pecan, Hot Chocolate and Apple Blondie. Pumpkin sold out first. Brown Butter Vanilla is the one people come back for.

The staples always come around, and changing the flavours keeps it fun for her and for you. People message to ask what is coming this week. If you have your heart set on a flavour that is not in the rotation, a Reese peanut butter for example, you can place a special order.

Each flavour is the flavour all the way through, not a plain cheesecake with a topping. Melissa uses only Philadelphia cream cheese, with cream and sour cream, and makes everything from scratch. Her mom made the family birthday cakes with a star tip when Melissa was a kid, and that is where the love of decorating started.

Ask her for a favourite and she will not give you one, because she wants every one of them to be amazing. She will give you her least favourite: maple bacon, which she makes once a year for Father's Day.

Full Cheesecakes, Weekly Minis and Custom Orders in North Bay

Full cheesecakes come in three sizes, 6, 8 and 9 inch rounds. One batch of minis makes up to fourteen. With the weekly minis you can mix and match the flavours in any quantity you like. Custom flavour orders of minis are by the dozen per flavour, because every flavour is its own batch from start to finish.

What to Know Before You Order a Cheesecake

Give her time. A week's notice is ideal. She has squeezed in last minute orders, but she needs at least 24 hours to two days, because a full cheesecake takes about an hour to make, three hours to bake, two to three hours to cool, then it sets in the fridge overnight and gets decorated the next day.

And keep it in the fridge. It sounds obvious, but a cheesecake has to stay cold until you serve it.

What makes a great cheesecake, in her words? Love.

Where to Find All Things Lovely Cheesecakes

You can find her cheesecakes at The Noble Steed in Callander on Saturdays. She also brings them to the Makers Market night markets, the winter markets, and a few markets that only come around once a year, and more and more markets are reaching out to invite her. She has made cheesecakes for weddings, too.

A Pleasant Experience, Start to Finish

What Melissa wants a customer to say is that dealing with her was a pleasure, from the first message to the moment you pick up your order. She likes knowing her customers one on one, and most of her conversations happen right on Facebook.

All Things Lovely stays small on purpose. Melissa is a perfectionist, she likes to work on her own, and her two girls are at the age where they need their mom at home. Outside the kitchen she lifts weights, spends every minute she can outside, and gets out on Trout Lake in the boat when she and her husband are not both working Saturdays.

How to Order From All Things Lovely Cheesecakes

Send Melissa a message on Facebook or Instagram, or text her at 705 978 1544. Tell her your date and what you have in mind. She confirms your order and takes payment ahead of time by e transfer. Orders are pickup in North Bay.