Just in time for your holiday sugar fix without the calories, Netflix will premiere Sugar Rush – Christmas the day after Thanksgiving for your bingeing pleasure. The best part about this is that local Coronado baker Roanna Canete will be a contestant on the show. “It has always been a dream of mine to be on Cupcake Wars or a similar show, but I am more of a baker than a decorator, so I didn’t think it would ever become a reality. When my dear friend and wildly talented decorator, Lisa Altfest, was asked to participate and wanted me as her baker, I jumped at the chance,” comments Canete. Canete shared a few secrets such as: there was a cupcake round, a pastry round and a cake round. The acclaimed judges were Candice Nelson of Sprinkles, Adriano Zumbo, Australian Patissier, and guest judge Amirah Kassem of Flour Shop, and Canete reports that they were all super positive about their creations. “You will notice that we wore green headbands and suspenders with small pins denoting Celiac awareness to bring attention because while there have been other gluten free bakers, Lisa is the first celiac baker to compete in a baking show.”
Watch the Sugar Rush – Christmas trailer here.
Family allergies lead Canete to start Coronado’s Gluten Free Pantry when her military family moved back to Coronado after being stationed in Rome, Italy. Starting from creating allergy free baked goods for her friends, she has now grown to owning a 2400 square foot production kitchen. She boasts 36 wholesale accounts all over San Diego County, from the Elegant Dessert Kiosk at gate 36 at the San Diego airport to the iconic Holy Matcha. One of her most recent accounts is Café 1134, right here in Coronado, which offers a large selection of gluten free, dairy free and vegan offerings including bagels, cookies and other desserts. “I love working with Kristen at Café 1134, as she obviously cares about her clients and is attentive to meeting their dietary restrictions.” Her latest expansion comes with a new name for her growing company, which will now be called The Gluten Free Baking Co. Check out the new website at www.TheGFBakingCo.com. This new name is more encompassing of her expanding line of gluten free, dairy free and vegan products.
The GF Baking Co. is currently offering special holiday items like pies, stuffing, dinner rolls, gingerbread and sugar cookies, lemon bars and cheesecakes. “We find that often people will order a large gluten free pumpkin pie along with several small vegan pies to accommodate all their holiday guests,” says Canete. Currently, orders are processed on the website under Thanksgiving Menu. Pickups are in Coronado or the Clairemont/Bay Ho area.
Future expansion plans are in the works for an online marketplace and a retail location. Check out their amazing creations on Facebook and Instagram @thegfbakingco
