What
if I told you that there was this pretty little bakery in downtown
Burlington, Ontario where you could indulge, guilt-free, in the most
delicious cupcakes, cookies, brownies and other sweet treats, and...
that they were all gluten-free and vegan? Not to mention they are
baked using natural, fair trade and organic ingredients (think flower
petals, agave, essential oils) and are peanut-free too. And did I
mention, absolutely delicious? You'd likely scoff and say something
like, “Pfffttt...there's no way gluten-free and vegan desserts can
be that good”. Oh yes they can, I say. Yes. They. Can!
Kelly's
Bake Shoppe is owned by sensational mother-daughter team Kelly
Childs and Erinn Weatherbie. These two are the brains and faces (and
beautiful faces, I might add!) behind this oh-so-pretty little slice
of heaven on Brant Street. The popularity of the desserts at their vegan restaurant (Lettuce Love
Cafe, also located in Burlington), prompted the duo to open a
bakery to satisfy the demand for guilt-free desserts of their sweet
tooth customers. The bakery took off and is now award-winning,
including accolades such as Best Bakery in Burlington, a few times
over.
Everything
about the bakery is pretty – from the mural on the outside wall, to
the décor inside where you can enjoy a Skinny Cookie (so hearty and
yummy!) with a Balzac's coffee, to the pretty pink packaging that the
treats come in. I'm a sucker for all things pink and this place makes
my heart happy. You may also spot Kelly's Cupcake Bus around
Burlington and Hamilton – I saw it just this week! (Insider tip:
if you snap a photo of the bus and post it to Instagram or Twitter
using hashtags #kellyscupcakebus and #kellystribe, you'll get a FREE
cupcake next time you stop by the bakery!)
The
menu at Kelly's includes
beautiful and decadent cupcakes, donuts, cookies, brownies and so
much more. They also offer vegan soft serve to eat in or take home.
There are standard cupcake flavours available every day as well as
daily and monthly features such as Black Magic, Lemon Raspberry, Pina
Colada, Salted Caramel and Rootbeer Float, to name a few. Kelly's will also bake you a custom cake for any occasion, including weddings.
In
exchange for this blog post, I was given some treats by Kelly's to
try. And try I did. The Snickerdoodle cookie barely made it home in
the car. I didn't even know I liked Snickerdoodles! I brought the
cupcakes and Mile-High Brownie to share at a family birthday party
and when I went to take them out of the box at dessert time, there
were only crumbs left from the brownie (you know who you are...)! I can
only assume that means it was scrumptious. I was already a fan and
customer of Kelly's before this opportunity arose, though, and had one of their triple-layer, red velvet cakes for my birthday in
April. It was to-die for.
 |
| My birthday Instagram post |
The
cupcakes from Kelly's are hands-down the best I have ever had. The
absence of preservatives and artificial ingredients along with the
abundance of flavour, sky-high icing and toppings are what make these
beauties so incredible. Having dabbled in vegan and/or gluten-free
baking myself (with very limited success), I can attest that it is
not easy to make delicious desserts that don't taste like they are
missing something (“cake-free cake” as my husband has called some
of my experiments). Kelly's has perfected this.
Next
time you're in charming downtown Burlington, why not stop in at
Kelly's for a treat while browsing the unique shops or taking a
stroll in Spencer Smith Park on Lake Ontario? You won't regret it.
Not going to be in the area? Fear not! Kelly's Bake Shoppe will
deliver anywhere in the GTA for a $15 flat fee.
Keep
doing what you're doing, Kelly and Erinn. Your passion, enthusiasm
and incredible desserts are appreciated and loved by many!
