You might have met Christy Platt, owner of Simply Layered, at the Taste of Huntington Beach. For the last five years she’s won the coveted title of “Best Desserts” at this event.
From mini gluten-free vegan chocolate cakes to pear tarts with almond filling, Platt is always coming up with new recipes.
We caught up with the 41-year-old Huntington Beach resident to find out more:
Q: How did you get into the food business?
A: I moved to France one summer to work in tourism, food, beverage and hospitality. This experience gave me a good idea of the type of business I wanted to start. When I came back to Huntington Beach, I went to culinary school at Orange Coast College, and ended up starting Simply Layered.
Q: Was it a challenge in the beginning?
A: Yes! I started in my Huntington Beach apartment selling cakes and pastries to friends. Then, in 2006, I got into the Huntington Beach Farmer’s Market at the Pier, so I had to get a commercial kitchen. I rented at Deli-licious, and worked on the nights when they weren’t there. I had two other jobs at the time. One was at a raw foods kitchen. The concepts of this type of natural, clean food has helped me build the foundation of what we are today. Now, we’re in the Duke’s restaurants, Red Table, Mother’s Market & Kitchen, and many more.
Q: What is Simply Layered about today?
A: We continue to use high-quality ingredients, organic, no GMOs. It’s clean food. Our niche is gluten free and we’ve created the Simply Pure Gluten Free Baker’s Blend flour that is sold in all Mother’s Market & Kitchen stores, and on Amazon. This flour is used in all our gluten-free products. We’ve been making it and using it for more than eight years, but it just hit the retail market this year. Next, I’d like to expand to south Orange County for a dedicated gluten-free facility. I’ve built my business without any investments, growing slowly. All profits have been put back into the business to keep it growing.
Q: You’ve won the award of “Best Desserts” over and over again at Taste of Huntington Beach. What are some additional proud moments?
A: I baked a cake for Eva Longoria. And another cake I did was featured on the Discovery Channel. I was on the TLC “Ultimate Cake Off” and our team won the competition. On another episode of “Ultimate Cake Off,” called “Really Sweet 16,” we also won.
Q: What is your own favorite treat?
A: I like really simple, plain treats. When I do eat our goodies, I love the Blueberry Loaf, or a chocolate chip cookie. I love the art of food, and feeding people. The instant gratification of pure joy in people taking their first bite is priceless.
Find out more at simplylayered.com
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