Two Bend-based startups are capitalizing on America’s eternal obsession with sugar, one using a whimsical, novelty approach to luring its customers, the other taking a
more old-fashioned, comfort food take on classic desserts, proving cake and pie never go out of style.
CAKE POPS-A HOT ITEM
Robin Leonardo started Pop Goes The Cake Ball in January after first seeing the idea in a dessert book called Cake Pops.
“I used to own Leonardo’s Cafe and Bakery in town and did cookie bouquets and big sculpted cakes,” she said. “We sold our restaurant in 2006. After that, I worked as a cake decorator at Safeway and people were always asking for small cakes. When I opened the book I thought they were brilliant and told my husband I was going to make and sell them.”
With her husband out of town one weekend, Leonardo whipped up a couple hundred Cake Pops and took them down to the old Bend Indoor Market and sold almost all of them.
“Everyone immediately loved them,” she said. “They’re really cute and so much fun to eat.”
Anyone who have been tempted by the colorful fields of Cake Pops at fairs, festivals and farmer’s markets can attest to their addictive qualities. These bite-size, bakery treats are designed by hand and guaranteed to be a delicious topic of conversation at your next birthday, anniversary or office party. Morsels of moist, delicious cake are formed on a stick and dipped in melted candy. They can be decorated into almost any design and are perfect for party favors or as a creative alternative to a cake or cupcakes. Imagination is the only limit and Leonardo has created hundreds of circus clowns, ice cream cones, peeps, jack-o-lanterns, monsters and balloons.
She offers them with your choice of candy accompaniments and sprinkles in four delicious varieties of cake: Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, Vanilla with Buttercream Frosting, Banana/Cream Cheese Frosting and Lemon with Cream Cheese Frosting.
“I had this one woman who collected them and thought they were too cute to eat and kept them in a vase on her table,” Leonardo said. “I told her no, just dig right into them. They’re super tasty, especially when they’re all decked out in icing and candy.”
Cake Pops are currently available in locations in Bend and Sunriver including Newport Market. Leonardo hopes to expand into Sisters and Redmond soon for the holidays.
For more information visit Leonardo online at www.popgoesthecakeball.com or 541-550-0686.
THE HONEY POT ATTRACTS SWARMS OF PIE-LOVERS
Operating on the more traditional dessert front, The Honey Pot’s sweet, savory kitchen serves up homebaked pies from a powder blue mobile van. Owners Mary Casanave Sheridan and Lisa Capicchioni of Bend cooked up the idea after seeing the swelling demand for specialty baked goods and sweets like chocolates, cupcakes and the comforting delights of warm pie.
“I have a degree in baking and pastry arts from the Culinary Institute Of America in New York,” said founder and chief baker Sheridan. “I’ve had a lot of jobs in restaurants and catering and bakeries and have had the idea for a pie truck these last few years, long before the food cart revolution hit Bend.”
As time marched on, Sheridan kept the dream alive but never really acted on it.
“This year when all the outdoor food carts and wagons exploded across the country, it coincided with pie becoming a favored fad dessert,” she explained. “I thought I’d better do it now before someone else does. I eventually partnered up with Lisa and we bought a 1975 GMC step van. It was an old Snap-On Tools truck owned by a mechanic in Sandy. Lisa’s husband did all the paint work and conversion inside and we opened up for business in May.”
Initially, The Honey Pot did daily service from an empty lot on Franklin Street in downtown Bend and sold slices at several summertime events and festivals throughout Central Oregon including the Sisters Folk Festival. They recently found a permanent site on Lava between Colorado and Arizona Streets, right beside The Horned Hand
art gallery.
Pies are available for weddings, birthdays, holidays and special occasions. Anytime is the right time for pie. Signature recipes are available on a rotating basis, depending on the seasonal offerings. Some of their trademark selections are “The Gorge-ous,” with fresh Marion berry and apple, “The Ginger,” a brown sugar custard pie with grated ginger and walnuts and “The Honey Pie,” with crème fraiche and honey mousse layered with harvest fruit.
“It’s been a really fun summer being outside and meeting great people. Everyone loves the truck and wants to try our pie,” said Capicchioni. “We have a lot of return customers and are starting to get our name out there. The Gorge-ous is one of the favorites, and the peach coconut “One Nutty Summer, along with the traditional apple or blueberry pies.”
Now at their new spot on Colorado, The Honey Pot times are under consideration but will include weekday lunch service and evening events like concerts, comedy shows and movie nights. Slices start at $3.50. Whole pies are $20.
“My favorite type of pie is whatever is in season.,” said Sheridan. “We bake around 50 pies a week. I love them all.”
The Honey Pot uses fresh local ingredients and organic items when available. For street times and holiday orders visit them on Facebook, online at www.thehoneypotbakery.com or 541-317-2951.
