If you watched “Holiday Wars” last year on Food Network, then you know that Haverhill cake connoisseur Erin Erler was on the winning team, Rebels Without a Claus.
It was her first time competing against fellow Haverhill cake artist Christine Barton, who served as her teammate on two previous Food Network competitions, “Winner Cake All” and “The Big Bake Halloween.”
Barton’s “Holiday Wars” team, Yule- igans, also made it to the finale.
What Erler’s teammates and the audience did not know is that she had suffered a stroke on St. Patrick’s Day in 2020.
“I didn’t want it to be a thing,” she says.
Because it happened at the beginning of the pandemic, not many people knew about Erler’s condition.
“The world had no idea that I had a stroke and was in the hospital for a week,” she says.
She had to be discharged early due to COVID-19 precautions and relearn how to walk, talk, write and sculpt. There was no physical therapy, says Erler, who took a few months to get back to the bakery.
Although she says she is still not 100%, she’s convinced that art never left her.
“Winning ‘Holiday Wars’ was a huge redemption,” she says. “I’m still doing what I love. I am still going the distance.”
Barton and Erler were back on the same side for their latest TV appearance, a champions edition of “The Big Bake Halloween,” which premiered in September on Food Network Canada.
A self-taught cake artist, Erler started out making treats that her son, Zachary, who has severe food allergies, could eat. She launched her nut-free bake shop, Cakes by Erin, on Kenoza Avenue in 2010 before moving to a larger space at 800 Broadway in 2018.
Since then, she has been on a dozen Food Network shows; created cakes for A-list celebrities like Adam Sandler, Seth MacFarlane and Kenny Chesney; and become a go-to cake artist for sports teams. The Red Sox commissioned her to create a confection when they won the World Series in 2013, as did the Bruins for their Stanley Cup victory in 2011.
Erler stepped away from the storefront when she had her stroke, which she learned was brought on by a COVID-19 infection.
“At some point, I had to put myself first, so I was not doing day-to-day baking,” she says.
Making cakes for celebrations was the balm that healed her soul.
“Creating cakes is very therapeutic for me,” she says. “Actually, creating art in any form is therapeutic. I love it. I live it.”
Her first foray into baking after her stroke was a pocketbook cake. She says that one of her team members helped her and it was a struggle.
“A lot of people watched me,” she says. “Over time, I have gotten better.”
That is an understatement given her performance on “Holiday Wars,” which was filmed at the beginning of 2022 in Utah.
“‘Holiday Wars’ is an episode show; you don’t know how many episodes you’re going to be on,” she says. “It was the first time I was back on TV, and it was exhausting.”
She had no idea if she was going to feel fatigued, if her hands would fail, or if she would get confused.
“I just pushed through it,” she says. “It was very uplifting, a very happy situation.”
One of the biggest joys that came from owning a bake shop was seeing kids with nut allergies come in.
“Seeing a child’s face light up when they see their first birthday cake is the best,” she says. “Knowing the kids and their families had a safe place made me so happy.
“I’ve been doing this for so long, I’ve watched kids grow up,” she says. “I’ve seen them go from childhood to high school and college and watched some get married. It’s so cool to be embraced by families.”
She’s already enjoying the festive season.
“I love the warmth of the holidays,” she says.
Her grandmother’s apple and pumpkin pies top her list of favorite desserts.
Erler closed the doors to her store this past spring but continues to create custom cakes from the private studio in her Haverhill home. She will also have pop-ups in places like Welcome to Floristry, is developing a podcast series and is working on a cookbook.
Finding balance and joy are the foundation of her life, as are her three children, Zachary, Allie and Kerry.
The frosting?
Cakes and creative ventures.