From the Source: Baked In Details with Tasty Bakery

Introduction

How many Hallmark movies have you watched where bakeries were in some sort of peril?

I’m talking about the small-town bakeries battling corporate buyouts. I’m talking about the struggling artisan who saves the family bakery just in time for Christmas. The big-city professional who trades power suits for pastries and finds love in the process. The underdog pastry chef who must win a high-stakes baking competition to keep the ovens running.

The "bakery in peril" trope is practically its own genre. But how much of it reflects real life? And, if you’re writing about a bakery, how do you separate sweet fiction from the daily grind?

You get it from the source!

I reached out to area bakers and requested an email interview. Julie and Ran Rabinovitz of Tasty Bakery in Ann Arbor were very gracious to say yes and very generous to answer my questions.

But first, what is Tasty Bakery?

Tasty Bakery Owners Julie and Ran | photo by Tyra Overby — Tasty Bakery Owners Julie and Ran | **photo by Tyra Overby**

According to their About Me page on their website, "Tasty Bakery is a dedicated gluten-free establishment in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Their mission is to offer products that can be enjoyed by everyone whether they are gluten intolerant or not. All of their products are gluten-free, soy-free, and corn-free. They also offer grain-free, dairy-free, vegan, and low-glycemic options. Their high-quality artisan baked goods are indiscernible from any traditional glutinous baked goods."

With this in mind and, after researching Tasty Bakery to get all of the googleable questions out of the way—let's remember the lesson from my Tattoo Artist Interview—I asked the following questions:

Interview Questions:

1. Your gluten-free bakery started at a local farmer’s market before growing into a brick-and-mortar shop. If a writer were crafting a character with this journey, what key struggles or triumphs should they highlight?

First of all, it was really difficult finding a commercial kitchen. My circumstances were also different than most bakers, as I couldn’t really share a kitchen with someone unless they were not using gluten.

Another struggle was finding our brick-and-mortar location. We were looking into various locations that would have required building out a kitchen which would have been a huge expense. We were lucky to have a friend from the farmers’ market who knew we were looking. She was ready to stop using her commercial kitchen full time and had us pick up her lease. It’s the location we are in now.

I think the biggest obstacle though is finding employees. When I first started, people I met at the farmers’ market came to me asking for a job, or I found someone from a friend or acquaintance. Covid made that much more difficult; finding employees was very competitive. We want people who appreciate what we’re doing for our community and want to learn about it and be empathetic to our customers.

2. What are some key differences between baking at home and baking professionally in a bakery?

Space!!! I LOVE our kitchen. We have all the ingredients easily accessible in big bins, we have big pans, all the equipment and tools, and I don’t mind doing dishes because we have a three-compartment sink which is very efficient, way better than doing dishes at home.

3. Many fictional bakers have “secret recipes.” In real life, what goes into developing a truly unique gluten-free recipe, and how long does it take to perfect one? Are they ever truly "perfect"?

My goal when I started 16 years ago was to provide products that were indiscernible from anything with gluten. That wasn’t so difficult because I found a gluten-free flour that I really liked. Adding tasty vegan to the gluten-free repertoire has been trickier. We try to use only “clean” ingredients which also changes things. I often rely on researching those who have already done the work. I just tweak the recipes to make them exactly how I want them.

I really try to only introduce products that get a good response from testing, otherwise it won’t be in our inventory.

4. What are the physical and mental demands of baking that writers should be aware of when creating a baker character?

Our bakery is a bit different in that we are very laid back, and we have fun. I’ve heard of people who have had things thrown at them from the chef when they were mad. That is not us. We know how valuable our employees are, and we know everyone makes mistakes, including us. Other than the winter months, we are consistently busy. We pretty much work from the minute we get in the door, to cleaning up at the end of the day. It is pretty exhausting, especially for me since I will soon be 60.

5. In fiction, bakers often work solo, but in reality, how much of baking is a team effort? What roles do different people play in a professional kitchen?

Our staff performs all the roles that I do at the bakery: opening the store, baking, waiting on customers, wrapping & labeling product and getting it ready for the store or to go to our wholesale accounts, stocking, washing dishes, and cleaning up. (They are better at some of those things than I am!) I have one day a week that I get to work by myself, (and maybe with my husband). That is the day I try and experiment with a new recipe if I have time.

6. Are there any unusual baking terms, traditions, or superstitions that writers might find interesting?

I cannot think of anything, except one that I just learned: for instance, someone saying “we are out of eggs” and the person needs to say back “heard” so it’s understood. However, that’s probably pretty basic. lol

7. With your start at the farmer's market, your crowdfunding success, and nearly ten (woohoo!) years of operating the bakery, what does it mean to you to be embraced by your community? Do you feel you’re able to return that embrace?

Our bakery business isn’t super profitable. However, the love that I/we get from people who appreciate what we do is priceless. I feel honored that we can provide treats, or cakes + catering for events, for those who cannot just go anywhere and get a treat due to their food allergies, or beliefs (vegan).

8. What resources do you use that writers could utilize for their research? (For example: websites, textbooks, industry journals, professional organizations, or official guidelines.)

Here are some of my favorite cookbooks and websites in the order that I started:

Original recipes that I already had and converted to gluten free
The BabyCakes cookbooks by Erin McKenna
Flying Apron's Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book by Jennifer Katzinger
Minimalist Baker, an online community at www.minimalistbaker.com
The Unconventional Baker, operated by baker, blogger, and author Audrey Snowe at www.unconventionalbaker.com
Smitten Kitchen operated by Deb Perelman at www.smittenkitchen.com (converted to Gluten-Free)
The Loopy Whisk run by recipe developer, writer, and science nerd, Katarina Cermelj at www.theloopywhisk.com

The Bakery Visit

I have a massive sweet tooth and have a second stomach for desserts, so the idea of visiting Tasty Bakery was in the forefront of my mind when conducting this interview. Now, I’m not gluten-free myself, but, in my experience, the work of bakers that are gluten-free ABSOLUTELY shows in their creations. Tasty Bakery has 76 five-star reviews on Google that would agree.

But can I rely on secondary sources for my research? Not when there are sweets and savories involved! I had to get the primary sources myself, you see.

I asked Julie, “Any personal favorites or bestsellers you’d recommend for a first-time visitor?”

She responded: “Our berry bars are our best sellers. However, I’m more of a chocolate chip cookie or brownie person myself. ;))”

With that directive in mind, I drove myself and my boyfriend to Ann Arbor to visit Tasty Bakery at 416 W Huron St #24, Ann Arbor, MI 48103. They're tucked into a cute nook that I imagine would be even cuter once the flora comes alive. But once inside...!

I've been to bakeries before, but this bakery held an intangible feeling to it. Everything about it was handled with care and love. You walk in and feel cozy with the handmade décor. There's a corner for kiddos to color and you bet they hang the creations on the wall. Artwork was either in thanks of making such tasty sweets or in promotion of the "Anti-Gluten Club."

We were warmly greeted by Ran, co-owner and husband to Julie. He first asked if we had any allergies (damn Cinnamon), and gladly explained their process of creation.

I paid attention to the best of my abilities but, dear readers, when there is a case full of sweets and savories, my mind is prone to wander. The long and the short of it is that they carefully source their materials from reputable places like Golden Prairie Oats and Mindo Chocolate that guarantee no cross contamination. Their entire kitchen is carefully prepared for baking the goods so that any treat can be the treat for you.

I think I blacked out while ordering because we left with a bag of three Berry Bars, an Intense Fudge Brownie, a Lemon Cloud cookie, and a bag of Sea Salt Rosemary Crackers.

Here's the descriptive breakdown:

Intense Fudge Brownie:

Boyfriend and I ate it in silence. It was that good. Best brownie I’ve had in recent years, gluten-free or not. It had the “Girl Scout Cookie Thin Mint Effect” where you could keep eating it and not get sick of the decadence. The way the flavor developed as you were chewing it had me regretting only getting one. I pulled off the chocolate "shell" on the top and didn't let the boyfriend have any. Sorry not sorry.

Lemon Cloud Cookie:

A burst of lemon in the best way. This cookie was a bright taste of spring. And the way it was both crispy and chewy? It was an artful bite. The glaze was the cherry on top. I'd gladly eat just that off of a spoon.

Berry Bars:

Are best sellers for a reason! The boyfriend dubbed them with a tagline of "berry good!" It was the right amount of sweet but not too sweet. The first bite was great but the second was better and the third was better than that and the fourth, well, if you didn't eat the bars in only four bites, you've got far more self-discipline than me.

Do yourself a favor and get the bag of three. It's the perfect breakfast bar, the perfect snack bar, the perfect dessert bar, the perfect midnight snack bar...

Sea Salt Rosemary Crackers:

A third of the crackers were gone before I finished reading the luscious list of ingredients. They had the right crisp to them but still kept their substance. The (Michigan sourced!) rosemary was full of flavor but didn't overpower. It was a bite of summer. My only regret with these is not getting three bags.

While you have to have baked goods to be a bakery, not all bakeries have that intangible something that make it a community pillar like Tasty Bakery. My interaction with Ran wasn't that of a big box store that just wants you to get your stuff and get out. Ran was full of conversation for us. He asked what we like, made more recommendations (that you bet we took!), and took it a step further to suggest local places for my boyfriend and I to visit while we were in town.

These are people that care. They care about their creations. They care about who is eating the creations. They care about the bigger picture of inclusion and the communion of eating sweets that are mindfully made.

These details are the things worth writing about. And you need to go to the source to get them.

Find Out More About Tasty Bakery

Website: https://www.tastysansgluten.com

Instagram: @tastybakerya2

Facebook: facebook.com/TastyBakeryA2

Stop in! If you're in the area, treat yourself with a visit to this cozy spot. Even if you're not in the area, make a trip out like I did! You won't regret it. It's the spot for folk with dietary restrictions and it's the spot for folk that want to be mindful about what they're eating.

Conclusion

Be mindful with the details of research like Julie and Ran are mindful with their baked goods.

They carefully source their materials for baking like writers could carefully source their information for stories. They test recipes and get feedback like writers should experiment with drafts and get critiques. They look into other cooking resources like writers should look into other writing sources (like this one!).

They think about every detail from conception to the last bite like writers should think about every detail from conception to the last page. And it makes all the difference in the experience.

The details is where it gets sweet,

Katherine Arkady