Fun with Vegan Bakery Sticky Fingers

The Vegan Bakery Showdown is coming your way in the pages of our marvelous May+June issue, but since you might have to wait all the way to the end of this week to get your copy, we decided to give you a little extra sugar. Here’s some super sweet talk from Sticky Fingers’ co-founder Kirsten Rosenberg, on owning a vegan bakery, the sugar highs and lows, and her dreamiest dream dessert.

VegNews: What’s your personal favorite dessert on your menu?
Kirsten Rosenberg: OK, it’s 9am and my favorite thing is a sticky cinnamon bun fresh out of the oven … 20 minutes later, I’d have to say definitely a chocolate-chip cookie, then, three chocolate-chip cookies later, my favorite has got to be one of our brownies. After a chocolate overload (and I’m feeling a little woozy), I’m craving that blueberry muffin, yes, that’s definitely my favorite, oh, wait, I think I smell some oatmeal Cowvin Cookie sheets coming out of the oven. Get the picture?

VN: What’s your favorite vegan bakery, other than your own?
KR: Aha! A trick question! Well, I think it’s a good thing to be able to say, in all honesty, that I’ve had some really fabulous vegan desserts from other bakeries in the past couple of years—from West Coast to East Coast. I definitely prefer things that taste really rich and sweet, like their traditional counterparts. What I’m eating may be healthier, but I sure don’t want it to taste that way! So, I really don’t have one single favorite bakery besides my own, but my hat is off to all the folks who are turning out some kick-ass vegan baked goods!

VN: What’s your favorite non-dessert dish?
KR: Hmmm, well, you’re talking to someone who can exist solely on dessert three (plus) times a day, but I really love our chicken(free) salad, and our mac ‘n’ cheese, oh, but can’t forget about our lasagna, too—do I have to pick just one dish?

VN: What’s the best thing about running a vegan bakery? The worst?
KR: The best thing is being surrounded by the yummiest, richest sweets all day long. The worst thing is being surrounded by the yummiest, richest sweets all day long! Actually, one of the best aspects is turning people on to delicious vegan food and showing them that veganism is a positive thing! A downer is when the occasional person comes into the shop and asks (with a sneer), “does this stuff really taste good?” But then that’s an opportunity to change someone’s perceptions about veganism—turn the nonbelievers into holy vegan rollers!

VN: What’s your dream menu item that you don’t currently offer?
KR: An éclair that’s fat-free, sugar-free, and guaranteed to make you lose 10 pounds or your money back—that also tastes exactly like a traditional éclair!