East Bay Baker Mom Puts Healthy & Happy Back in Treats & Birthdays

Two years ago, Sharon McGinnis-Girdlestone of Orinda, a mom to two boys, one with food allergies, began to lament just exactly what it was she was serving to her family -- foods laden with preservatives, chemicals and dyes, particularly the sweets at celebrations and birthday parties.

So her tinkering with recipes, baking for friends and and her self-admitted obsession "with healthier versions" of just about everything has now morphed into a booming organic bakery business called Lovely Little Cakes -- with the motto: "What goes in our kids, matters!" 

"In this day and age, there are so many allergies and illnesses on the rise. And so many kids get left out at parties ... and can't eat the cake because of their allergies. It saddens me -- my son was one of them," she said. "I wanted to create a product that everyone can eat."

Her custom-order cakes, cupcakes, cookies, muffins and other sweets can be ordered free of gluten, dyes, casein and refined sugars. (She substitutes unrefined sugar, dates or organic coconut sugar for sweetening). And she even caters to those on vegan and "paleo" diets.

"Many of my customers are either allergic to gluten, deadly tree nuts, dairy or they are just plain avoiding preservatives and chemicals like synthetic food dyes," she said. "I specialize in cakes, macaroons, cupcakes and dessert tables  that fit everyone's needs."

To date since launching her baking business in 2012, she has sold to her East Bay clientele nearly 550 cakes, including one 3-foot tall Star Wars' character confection to a client in San Francisco.

"I'm very lucky that my customers come back time and time again," McGinnis-Girdlestone added. "One of my customers is on her tenth order."

Lovely Little Cakes is also committed to local charities, and donates a portion of proceeds to the Bay Area Crisis Nursery in Concord.
 
And on the side, McGinnis-Girdlestone is also growing her "healthy dinner" delivery service, called My Sustainable Table, which now has a dozen-plus families signed up. A web site and Facebook page will launch soon.

In the meantime, you can like and follow Lovely Little Cakes here on Facebook.