Allergen-free is the name of the sweet (and savory) game at Sweet Elizabeth’s | Food & Drink

5 a long time in the past, a thing exclusive opened in Colorado Springs: Sweet Elizabeth’s Organics. Motivated by her very own overall health requires and her daughter’s very simple ask for for a birthday handle, Elizabeth Durham designed a gluten- and allergy-free coffee cake that turned her very first dry-mix merchandise … and in the end launched a bakery and café.

Following a few productive yrs, Durham and her spouse Scott decided to return to their former home point out of Florida, open a next spot and deal with the two cross-place. Then COVID hit. They shut the Springs spot, when the Florida enterprise struggled on, with possible closure on the horizon. But Elizabeth and her relatives are just a bit also established to permit something like a pandemic cease them. They came back again to the Springs previous yr and reopened on the Westside quickly following. Sweet (and savory) audio to my ears!

Developed out of necessity, the mission of the allergen-totally free bakery is to provide dwelling-cooked goodness to all, no matter of allergy symptoms. That is great information for vegan diners due to the fact no animal goods are utilised in any of the baking mixes for sale right here or well prepared eats and treats for dine-in or to-go. You will almost normally find Elizabeth and Scott — with a person or two of their little ones supporting out — on-site. Hope a helpful greeting in the vibrant, open up room, followed by professional assistance by the menu to aid you make a decision on breakfast or lunch (or dinner, if you acquire just one of their par-baked pizzas to go).

Not only are all goods gluten- and allergen-cost-free and vegan, but households divided into sweet or savory camps can all love a meal, way too. For a sugary breakfast, start with waffles, cinnamon rolls, turnovers or espresso cake. Or opt for a saltier bite with a veggie bowl or biscuits and gravy. To keep away from repeating myself, let us just get this out of the way: Regular gluten-totally free baked items usually bring to head dry and crumbly textures. Not so right here. I indicate not 1 little bit. The texture you’d expect from any baked superior is there, and dare I say, normally far better?

Choose for instance the cherry turnover. A magnificent dough — significantly from dense, nearly gentle — embraces dark, tart cherries. Lightly drizzled with frosting, flaky soon after flaky chunk gives convincing proof that gluten-totally free does not suggest flavor-cost-free. The similarly satisfying cinnamon rolls are a little bit denser, but not owing to the gluten-much less flour. The thick pillows of dough are wealthy and moist. Large-handed with the cinnamon, each and every morsel warms and satisfies. And the coffee cake — the OG of SE — chews moist and packed with large chunks of clean apple. The biscuits and gravy are not to be missed. How on Earth are all those little rounds so tall and flaky? I requested Scott, who replies, “I could explain to you but then I’d have to…” Ok, Ok. Retain it a mystery, but preserve ’em coming. The biscuits swim in a coconut-milk gravy that is fragrant with refreshing herbs and thick with refreshing mushrooms. Significant and filling, for sure, it is tantalizing to the tongue, too.

Relocating on to lunch: With indoor and out of doors seating, there’s house for a leisurely midday food even if the counter’s bustling with to-go orders. For any person who loves dining out, but also wishes there have been “healthier” possibilities, Sweet Elizabeth’s matches the bill. Veggie bowls, clean vegetable sandwiches on housemade focaccia, salads and soup populate the day-to-day menu. I are inclined to go for the lunch special: For $18.50, decide on two products from the café menu. A soup and sandwich are my go-to. On my most recent go to, the vivid and veggie-crammed creamy soup starred crimson lentils, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, carrots and turmeric all topped off with crunchy, housemade croutons. The sandwich — pickled veggies (household coleslaw), avocado and leafy greens pressed concerning two generous parts of rosemary- and garlic-infused focaccia — displays considerable in dimensions and flavor. Pickling is a strategy that brings out the umami (savory) essence of vegetables, making this meatless handheld meaty. As does the slender but impactful layer of parsley pesto

lightly distribute on the two sides of the focaccia.

Both of those the parsley pesto (starring roasted pumpkin seeds, garlic and olive oil, in addition to the leafy herb) and the focaccia show up yet again in the type of pizza, for $19. Also available to delight in in the café, I like to get it par-baked to make at residence, as this quickly serves two, and my partner, who eats a minor considerably less “whole foods” than I, can add vegan meat to his portion. The ’za will come with marinara or parsley pesto (I purchase 50 % and 50 %) and is heaping with contemporary vegetables, including leafy greens and mushrooms. As soon as dwelling, bake it for 10 to 15 minutes and dig into a healthful, nevertheless even now so comforting food. In addition to well prepared mixes, baked foods and new, full-meals meals, Sweet Elizabeth’s takes distinctive orders that incorporate cakes (birthday, marriage, graduation) which are best for handling a group devoid of a worry for particular person allergies.

Welcome home, Durham household! It’s like you never ever still left. 

Bunzys and ’za

Talking of a little something for absolutely everyone: B&B’s – Bunzy’s & Booze (bunzysandbooze.com) opened lately and they are crushing the vegan recreation. I have been a enthusiast since finding them last calendar year at Switchbacks FC matches as the lone vegan alternative in the stadium. The brick-and-mortar menu of bunzys (stuffed yeast dough pockets) and pizza offers plenty of plant-primarily based solutions. Two vegan bunzys — the Veg-Head and the Philly — and five plant-primarily based pizzas are readily available. (I’m partial to the Veg-Head and the olive.) B&B’s is a great go-to when multivore eating get-togethers are hunting for that one particular location that serves everyone well. Pair your pizza or a comforting bunzy with a craft (or crap) beer, and hit up that jukebox!