The Reston gourmet bakery is going full steam creating the Patti Cakes Gourmet Foods Christmas baking that has become renowned and requested.
Connie McQuiston and her team have been cooking plum puddings, sauces, and baking fruit cakes since mid-August to be ready for the winter holiday rush. Dark fruitcakes must be baked ahead to give them time to ripen. “The darks, we like to have them at least two weeks old,” says the gourmet baker. Dark fruitcake keeps a very long time.
Light fruitcake doesn’t require the long aging, so after two weeks the light cakes are put into cold storage.
Besides the regular light and dark Christmas cakes, Patti Cakes offers a Chocolate Cherry cake, with pecans, cherries and sherry baked into it. But that’s not enough!
Some of those chocolate cakes are available with perks! “We inject them with cherry whisky, some with black cherry rum and some with kalua, after they’re cooked.” With sherry already cooked into the batter, these are rich cakes.
Patti Cakes founder, Patti Marcq, originated the liquor infused cakes. When McQuiston bought the business she took that idea and ran with it. “It’s a new twist,” says Connie. She says it’s a way to introduce fruitcake to a new generation.
In addition to the Chocolate Cherry cake, there are dark fruitcakes with rum or whiskey infusion, or choose a light fruitcake infused with amaretto, coconut rum or apricot brandy.
McQuiston has tried some other new products that are finding favour as well.
“Last week we made our first batch of gluten free (dark cakes) and we sold every one that we made.”
To ensure there would be no contamination with regular flour (which contains gluten) the bakery sets a day apart to bake only gluten free product. New pans, scoops and other utensils were purchased and dedicated to the gluten free side.
At her booth in the craft shows, Connie offers samples. Customers reported the gluten-free cake was “quite tasty”, hence the strong sales.
Patti Cakes also bakes a fruitcake with no added sugar or sweeteners of any kind. The raisins and cherries within the cakes provide all the sweetening for these and they’ve been well received too. “When we do samples at the shows, customers are surprised at how tasty it actually is.”
But what about the icing?
Dark and light cakes are almond iced. A lemon icing is also available on some light fruit cakes.
Winter craft and trade shows are great opportunities to pick up these gourmet treats. “We’re really busy with the big sales,” says McQuiston. Patti Cakes Gourmet Foods products are making the rounds of major shows including Winnipeg and Regina.
Locally, McQuiston will also sell her wares in Virden trade shows in November and in December. Patti Cakes products can be purchased at Highway Grocery and several other places within Virden.
Reston area residents can pick up delicacies directly from Patti Cakes bakery in Reston.
The Brandon area Heritage Co-op stores, The Green Spot and Food Rescue Grocery carry Patti Cakes Gourmet Foods.
For Souris residents, Lagasse's Studio of Fine Arts has Patti Cakes products. Along with these, there are some stores in Winnipeg carry Patti Cakes Gourmet Foods.
Connie McQuiston’s team includes her husband Bob, their three daughters, Alisha Davidson, Samantha Clark and Jordan Lobreau, as well as employee Leishe Shindak. They will be stirring up and delivering Patti Cakes Gourmet Foods products until about Dec. 20.
To see the selection of products and to shop online go to www.facebook.com/PattiCakesGourmet.
