On a recent visit to Panne Rizo, the bakery's shelves were bursting with sugar cookies, pecan shortbread, rum balls, cinnamon dots – wee scrolls of cinnamon and sugar – and much more. A table by the door boasted seasonal goodies such as fruitcake and pfeffernüsse (a kind of German cookie often covered in sugar), and the front counter beckoned with muffins and squares.
And all of it is gluten-free. Nestled on a strip of Cornwall Avenue, the bakery and café was established in 1989 – decades before the current gluten-free trend. Despite its name, Panne Rizo is more than a rice bakery. "We're using higher quality flours like amaranth, sorghum, and almond. Flours that have more nutrition and flavour," says owner Steve Tsonev. An employee since 2008, he bought the shop in 2011. "Gluten-free has always been seen as lower quality than regular baking in texture and flavour. Over the past two years, we've created 20 to 30 new items and we've improved 50 per cent of the items."
Similarly, Arlene Kennedy is "bringing a second generation of gluten-free baking to Vancouver." The owner of My Goodness! Gluten and Wheat-free Kitchen, Kennedy opened her shop near Main and Broadway in June 2011. The retail shop is only open on Fridays and Saturdays. The rest of the week, Kennedy focuses on her wholesale business and teaches baking classes.
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