If you liked ‘Is It Cake?’ you’ll love this TikToker who creates cakes that look like other food

There are some memes that briefly peak and then disappear into the abyss, and then there are others that become integral to a social-media world’s zeitgeist.

We can all agree that the humble Is It Cake? meme is the latter.

You’ll likely remember the pictures of hyper-realistic cakes popping up on your phone screen back in 2020 – burgers that were actually cakes, toilet rolls that were actually cakes, and even pets that were actually cakes. They still haunt our nightmares.

Then, in 2021, musician Slowthai became a cake (naturally). And in 2022? They only went and made a Netflix competition show based around the concept.

Cake memes have become an integral part of social media (Credit: Netflix)

Now, super-realistic cakes have become so adored by social media users that TikTokers have turned their hand to the Is It Cake? concept, too.

Bakers are taking to the app to show off their most realistic cakes-that-don’t-look-like-cakes – and we might just have found our fave one yet.

Being a food brand, and all, it’s no surprise we’re fans of user @joifilleddelights‘ work. She creates cakes that look like other food items, and we could honestly watch her videos all day.

Carving cakes into everything from bananas to boxes of button mushrooms, 25-year-old Joi Kyles, from South Carolina, USA, makes videos that inexplicably surprise us every time, even though we know very well we’re watching for a cake reveal.

Just check out her work for yourself if you don’t believe us: 

@joifilleddelights

Delicious and nutritious #fyp #hyperrealisticcake #cake #isitcake #FindYourEdge

♬ Jiggle Jiggle – Duke & Jones & Louis Theroux

We mean…those bananas literally couldn’t look more realistic! There’s no denying her talent.

Joi blew up on TikTok thanks to videos of cakes that look like pizzas, waffles and fried chicken, which people found intriguing and traumatising in equal measure.

Check out some of our faves below: 

Yep, it’s a salad cake (Credit: joifilleddelights)

Fried chicken cake, anyone? (Credit:
joifilleddelights)

And how about a box of mushrooms that’s actually a cake? (Credit: joifilleddelights)

“This really trips me out,” wrote one person in the comments.

Whilst another penned: “I can’t trust anything any more”.

The most mental video might be the sandwich Joi made which – you guessed it – is actually cake.

https://www.tiktok.com/@joifilleddelights/video/6860485083397164293?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1

How does she do it?!

“I have always had a passion for baking, and art,” Joi tells us. “Watching cake artists like the Cake Boss,on TV has truly inspired me.

“I knew then that I could combine my passion for baking and art together, to create edible art.”

Joi Kyles is a master of hyper-realistic cakes (Credit:
joifilleddelights)

Alongside baking, Joi is a stay-at-home mum, and she says that she never expected her baking page to blow up the way it did.

“I’ve received so much love and encouraging comments from tens of thousands of people across the world.

“It’s so surreal,” she says. “And it makes me so happy that people enjoy my art.

“I think people love [the cakes] so much because of how realistic they look. You think you’re looking at a salad until I cut into it, and you see it’s a cake.”

You guessed it… it’s not corn (Credit:
joifilleddelights)

Discussing what advice she’d give to others who are keen to start making lifelike cakes like her, she says: “As cliche as it sounds, practice makes perfect. Don’t be afraid of failure, there will be a lot of trail and error.

“Keep going, keep practicing, take classes, watch tutorials, don’t give up on yourself. Hyper-realistic cakes can be a challenge, but the outcome is so rewarding!”

Joi says she thinks her Cheez-it cake is her favourite, although it’s a tough choice.

Those aren’t Cheez-its… (Credit:
joifilleddelights)

“I really love my cheez-it’s cake because of the edible plastic bag,” she says. “It’s so different than any cake I’ve done [before].”

As for what’s next? The baker hopes we’ll see her on a competition show, soon.

“There will be a lot more cake content coming in the future, of food and more,” she teases.

Series two of Is It Cake, perhaps? In the meantime, you can watch Joi’s TikTok videos here.