When Valencia resident Trisha Del Rosso went vegan, she was certain her sweet tooth would suffer.
“I was pretty new to the options I had, and really had no clue what food to buy or even where to get it,” she said. “Sweets are my absolute favorite, but I figured there wouldn’t be many ways to make vegan desserts.”
Del Rosso soon found herself pleasantly surprised that her plant-based lifestyle lent itself to the creation of unique treats that would more than satisfy that sweet tooth of hers.
“It’s incredible the amount of options there actually are, with all-natural ingredients that aren’t difficult to find in-store,” she added.
Whether vegan, vegetarian, gluten free or on a diet, there’s actually plenty of baked good options from bakeries right here in the Santa Clarita Valley or even to make at home.
“I’ve noticed lately there are a lot of a lot more options out there in the community now,” added Kerry-Ann Miranda, owner of Madison Rose Bakery, a local gluten-free bake shop.
The shop offers cookies, cakes, brownies, donuts, chocolates and just about any other sweet treat you could imagine — all with allergies-friendly diets in mind.
For Miranda, living gluten-free and vegan wasn’t a lifestyle choice, but really not a choice at all once she found out her kids had celiac disease and were allergic to gluten, among a number of other things.
“I started the bakery in 2015, and I didn’t start it because I wanted to,” she said. “To be very honest, I was never into baking. My natural love is just for food in general.”
Miranda named the bakery after her daughter, who had the most severe allergies at the time, and was struggling the most with the diet change.
“I remember she would cry so terribly all the time … when she wanted something sweet, and back then, there weren’t as many options as there are today,” she said, adding that her heart ached for her.
Soon, Miranda, who knew nothing about the dietary restrictions, began researching and testing recipes, which was slow going at first, in need of lots of trial and error.
Miranda recalled a time when the cake she’d made was just not right: “When the knife went in and was lifted out, the whole cake came off the counter with it. … And I just broke into tears. I was devastated, but from that day forward, I said, ‘I am going to figure this out.’”
With her family in mind, Miranda kept trying, and soon found herself making tasty treats that any of her kids could eat — which is how the bakery was born.
Now, she bakes everything custom made to order, with special care for each customer’s dietary needs.
“My aim is that if you look online and see (a special dessert) somewhere, you should be able to call me and say you want that,” she added. “Once I have all the details, usually my answer is ‘Yes,’ and if I can’t, I’ll tell you why.”
Since Miranda began baking gluten-free and vegan goodies, the market for such desserts has grown tremendously, as plant-based desserts take center stage as a great alternative to the less-healthy norms.
Even some of the most popular name-brands have begun offering vegan and gluten-free options, like Oreos.
Locally, a number of bakeries have similar options, including Dangling Carrot Confections in Canyon Country, who are bringing back their Friday gluten-free days, with the shop serving gluten-free cupcakes every Friday in a variety of flavors, including chocolate-based, red velvet and churro.
“During the pandemic, we weren’t getting as many requests for it, and we did have to shrink down our menu, but we’re definitely bringing gluten-free Fridays back again because now we’re getting more requests, especially this year,” co-owner Marlene Garcia said.
In addition, the shop makes both cakes and cupcakes gluten-free or vegan made to order for any occasion.
Kupcake Kitchen also began offering gluten-free, vegan and gluten-free/vegan options for customers at their Santa Clarita bakery after owner and chef Melissa Thomas purchased it last February.
“I’m a pastry chef, so part of my repertoire is just a lot of vegan, gluten-free and dietary restriction treats … so I brought that menu to the bakery when I bought it,” Thomas said. “Just about everything we have on the menu, we have an alternative menu for those dietary restrictions.”
Each day, customers can purchase vegan and gluten-free cupcakes, and sometimes brownies, depending on the season, along with the cakes and cupcakes available to custom order, while a special menu is also typically available for those restrictions during each holiday.
For more information on Madison Rose Bakery, visit instagram.com/_madisonrosebakery_ or call/text 661-373-7484. Dangling Carrot Confections is located at 18836 Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country, and for more information, visit danglingcarrotconfections.com or call 661-523-7037. Kupcake Kitchen is located at 27737 Bouquet Canyon Road, Suite 120, in Saugus, and for more information, visit kupcakekitchen.com or call 661-296-4758.
