CakeLab

My husband and I tried their pecan pie bars and the lemon cheesecake bars at the 4^th St. fair last weekend. We bought several. Both delicious and the pecan pie bars are out of this world!!! Whether you can’t eat gluten or you can drink gluten, these bars are amazing! Can’t wait to try more of their baked goods.

Happy birthday to me!
This cake was a surprise, although I knew I was getting a gluten free one. I did not know it was going to be such a beautiful one, decorated with the main character from my webcomic.
Gluten free baked goods can be tricky, but this cake really stood up to scrutiny. It was very dense and chocolatey, almost like a brownie, extremely rich. There might have been a couple drier bites but overall it was moist and smooth.
The icing was a bit overwhelming. It was very light and fluffy but better suited to a kid’s cake than this sophisticated concoction. We were told it was buttercream but it didn’t taste very buttery to me, more like a vegetable oil.
It’s so rare that I eat a lot of cake, but this was an amazing one and I ate as much as I could.

It seems like more and more people that I know are gluten sensitive, so it’s really fantastic to me more gluten-​free friendly businesses the in the Old Pueblo– and it’s even better that some are 100% gluten-​free facilities, which totally eliminates the fear of cross contamination for folk with a serious gluten allergy, so kudos to CakeLab for providing a fear-​free and gluten-​free experience! So, that being said, I am not gluten sensitive, but I’m a lover all types of food, so why not try gluten-​free goodies? It’s hard to resist stopping by their booth at the farmers market– everything is so perfectly packaged and pretty! And yes, tasty too! While I don’t necessarily have a sweet tooth, I do gravitate towards tart and citrusy types of desserts and their lemon bars are a winner in my book. CakeLab makes all kinds of sweets from lemon bars to pecan bars, brownies, cakes, bread, bagels, pizza and seriously SO MUCH MORE.
Their store front and café is coming in 2015, but you can find their products all across the city at various farmers markets and retailers and coffee shops. Among some of them are:
St. Philips Farmers Market, UMC Farmers Market, Santa Cruz Farmers Market, Exo Coffee, Yellow Brick Coffee, Co-​Op, Blu Wine and Cheese.
They don’t have a proper website, so stay up to date on their facebook page!

As far as I can tell, the awesome staff at CakeLab have mastered the quasi-​mystical alchemy of gluten-​free baking.
Outrageously delicious cupcakes with incredible icing? Check. Fresh-​baked sandwich bread? Yes! Custom cakes of any description? Yup. (When you go in, check out the owner’s photo-​album of the decorated cakes she’s made. Pretty much anything’s possible, from formal wedding cakes to Monster High birthday cakes.)
Some of my personal favorites are the:
— Rosemary Infused Sandwich Loaf
— Pumpkin Pie (superior to all others I had this thanksgiving, gluten-​free or not)
— Apple Pie (once again superlative)
— cupcakes… oh my, the icing… not too sweet… creamy yet light…*ahem*
Anyway…Those with gluten allergies rejoice! Those who’ve chosen gluten-​free diets, do a little dance of happiness! Pretty much anyone who loves awesome food should swing by CakeLab. You’ll be happy with what they’re offering.

No, it’s not Coke Lab — the hip new coffee joint on 4^th… but, I can’t say enough great things about CakeLab.
One, the baked goods that they are crafting are ridiculously good. I can’t tell you how much will power it takes not to buy all of their fudge balls everytime I’m in. Everything I’ve had there is tasty, though. The best part is their bakery is a dedicated gluten free facility, so I never have to worry about eating something that will make me sick.
Secondly, the staff is the best. It’s easy to talk with the owners and you can tell they’re dedicated to creating an awesome product. I’m pretty sure there’s a renegade Keebler elf in the kitchen that’s making all their goods.
They might have a funny logo, but I’m looking forward to seeing how this business grows.

So I don’t eat gluten free but some of my best friends are celiac, and I know the owner of this bakery is also celiac, so I’m not afraid to recommend this place to folks with even the most serious gluten allergies. That said, it should be noted that this is not your average storefront. It’s basically operated out of the owner’s living room and kitchen, so it’s got a very DIY feel to the shop.
Since I *do* eat gluten, I can compare the bakery here to other non-​gf foods, and I’ll say that their bakery doesn’t taste like it’s made with gluten-​free flour — it’s just delicious. Even their sandwich bread is super tasty!
Things I have had here (and all were outstanding):
–CREAM CHEESE BROWNIES
–sweet potato cheesecake
–nutella banana bread
–mediterranean mango hummus sammies (mango hummus whaaaaat)
–brie apple walnut honey sammies
–PECAN BARS
–pumpkin bread w/​pumpkin buttercream
–maple soda
–vanilla sheet cake with decorative frosting
It’s all been excellent. i especially like the things in bold and the two kinds of sandwiches here, but I have yet to have something that didn’t taste amazing. Imaginative, beautiful, artsy and tasty, it’s Cakelab to the glutenly-​challenged rescue!