Meet Kaitlin Kearby | Vegan & Gluten-Free Baker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kaitlin Kearby and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kaitlin, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
Baking has always been a part of my life. My mother was an avid home baker – gifting cookies & pies to friends and family for holidays, birthdays etc. She always believed that cooking for someone was the best way to show you care. It wasn’t until I went vegan in 2018 (and gluten-free a few years after) that I really considered baking professionally – mostly because vegan bakeries were so scarce. If I wanted vegan cake I would have to learn how to bake it myself. And I would need to go to culinary school. So I enrolled at LATTC to learn the basics of baking, graduated, and have since then been on a vegan & gluten-free baking journey. I spend my time experimenting with ingredients and recipes (the fun part!) The vegan baking community in Los Angeles is still quite small, and it’s rare to find someone that also does 100% gluten-free as well. It brings me joy to know that my desserts are available for those with dietary restrictions, like myself.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Everything I bake is 100% vegan & gluten-free. Most of the items I bake are also nut free. So there is nothing traditional about the ingredients I use. I make my own gluten-free flour blend, which is essential in creating the soft and moist texture of my desserts (nothing dry and hard like gluten-free treats of the past.) Unfortunately baking doesn’t pay all the bills, so I still wait tables full time at a restaurant in Los Feliz. Some days I’ll work a shift, come home to bake, and before I know it I’ve been standing on my feet for 12 hours. But I’m so grateful for this little life I’ve created. And I try to always have fun. I really enjoy testing out new recipes and playing around with seasonal ingredients. It’s never boring! I hope I never stop learning and growing in this industry. I hope I always continue to challenge myself – I’ve made 2 wedding cakes and it was absolutely terrifying to step out of my comfort zone. But so rewarding in the end. I bake out of my tiny apartment kitchen, and my ultimate dream is to have a storefront- which are harder to come by these days due to the rising prices of ingredients and rent in L.A. Opening a bakery is a huge risk, and I admire all the bakers who put themselves and their products out there.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I feel like my life revolves around food, and I’m always researching new vegan friendly restaurants/cafes to check out. So when friends & family come to visit, I take my job as foodie tour guide very seriously. I love to show off the vegan food scene in L.A. Millie’s in Silverlake does my favorite vegan breakfast. Followed by coffee & matcha from Maru in Los Feliz. Pop over to Beverly Hills for pastries from Chaumont Vegan. Take a drive up to Van Nuys for tacos from El Cocinero. If we end up by the ocean then Cafe Gratitude in Venice. For dinner it’s either Mexican at Gracias Madre or Italian at Pura Vita, both in West Hollywood. And dessert? Well if I didn’t feel like baking, then we’d probably get fruit paletas from Mateo’s on Pico.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I absolutely would not be where I am without my customers. They are the best part of my job. My regulars who order cakes every year for their birthday. Or the ones who heard about me from a friend of a friend. I’m forever grateful for anyone who takes a chance on a small time baker like myself, and trusts me to create delicious desserts for their special occasions.

Instagram: @kaitlin.kearby

Other: All orders are taken through Instagram. Check out the menus on my page and send me a friendly DM!