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Kyra Bussanich (right) as she prepared to go on Food Network's Cupcake Wars. Pictured with Jackie, her lovely assistant on the show, and a manager at Kyra's Bake Shop..
BY KYRA BUSSANICH, Author of "Sweet Cravings: 50 Seductive Desserts for the Gluten-Free Lifestyle"
5:48am My alarm goes off with its insistent buzzing and it takes me time to shake off the grogginess enough to realize that I have to wake up. I hit the off switch and roll out of bed. My dogs jump up with me and run to the patio door to be let outside.
6:15am I'm showered and dressed, the dogs have been fed, and I pour myself a giant cup of coffee (merely my first for the day). I add one packet of stevia and a hefty dollop of heavy whipping cream to it, because that's how I roll. Cream, like bacon, makes everything better! I head into the bathroom to layer on makeup—I'm soon heading to do a segment on the local ABC affiliate so I need to apply it just a little heavier than usual to accommodate the studio lights.
7:04am I back into a parking space in front of the bake shop and open the rear doors. I will be making Creamsicle Cupcakes from my book (page 88) on air and need to have all my ingredients, as well as cupcakes in various stages of "doneness" for the camera. I load up a milk crate with bowls, spatulas, a whisk, mascarpone, eggs, orange juice and a box of our dry cake mix. I only have 7 minutes in the segment, so I am taking every shortcut I can. In addition to the cupcake ingredients, I have breakfast for the cast and crew (gooey cinnamon rolls, scones, and Everything bagels).
7:45am Traffic was extremely heavy getting across town but I'm a little early so I swing by the local coffee shop that is 2 blocks from the studio and grab another cup of coffee.
Here's the segment!
9:18am The sound technician removes my mike, tells me how much fun my segment was, and thanks me for bringing in the extra treats. She informs me that the production booth is going crazy for the cinnamon rolls and that no one can believe they're gluten-free!
10:30am Back to the shop, I drop off the dirty dishes from the news segment and pick up the ingredients for my next event, a book signing and baking demonstration at Williams Sonoma. The girls are making biscotti (also from the cookbook) and it smells good. I snag the end pieces as they’re slicing the cookies. At times like this, I am SO thankful for the awesome team I have at the bake shop helping me prepare for all the events!
11:12am I park in the lot beneath the Williams Sonoma and start carting my supplies upstairs to the demo floor. In addition to the ingredients and equipment I will need for the mini S'Mores tartlets, I have a pack of brand new gold and silver sharpies for book signing.
2:20pm The past several hours have been a blur with people watching me bake, tasting my samples, buying books and BUY THE COOKBOOK!asking me questions on a deeper level about gluten-free baking. I love my job! Driving back to the shop, I return my travel planner friend's call. She's left me a message about an upcoming gluten-free cruise I'm doing, and I have time to chat and answer her questions while I head back to Lake Oswego.
3:00pm Lunch time! I keep a stash of healthy treats in the staff fridge at the bake shop and pull out some slices of pepper turkey, a few string cheeses, a packet of Justin's Nutbutter (maple almond), and an avocado, which I dice and drizzle with 25 year aged balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper. This, along with a big bottle of fizzy water, will (mostly) tide me over for the next few hours.
3:29pm The phone rings with my afternoon interview for Delight Gluten-Free magazine. Kristin and I have a lovely discussion about my experiences learning to bake gluten-free. She asks me, if I could have anyone over to dinner, who would I have and what would I make. I think about this for a minute and ask if I can invite more than one person. "Sure!" Kristin responds. The invitation part is easy: Oprah, Dr. Oz, Martha Stewart, Ina Garten, Rachael Ray, Giada de Laurentiis, and my mentor Laura Byrne Russell. The hard part is figuring out what I would make for these heavy hitting idols of mine. I settle on garlic roasted chicken, rosemary whipped parsnips, lemony kale salad with parmesan and slivered almonds, and for dessert: Chocolate Mousse Meringue Pie and Lilikoi (passionfruit) Chiffon Pie. An occasion like this calls for (at least) 2 desserts!
4:45pm I've spent the last hour answering emails and in discussion with Jackie and Jen, managers at my shop making plans for next week's events, and it's time to head to my next class: a baking class for the Portland Culinary Alliance, I'll be demo-ing in a space I'm not accustomed to, so I don't know how the ovens will run, or how clean the kitchen will be.
5:39pm Lauren, the class coordinator, offers me something to eat before I begin the class, since it will be 4 hours before I can really eat dinner. I eat a millet burger, some kalamata olives and more fizzy water, and then tie my hair up and wash my hands in preparation for the class. My contacts are starting to bother me, so I have switched to glasses for this class. I look like I''m pretending to be a grownup.
8:52pm The class wraps up and there is a line of people waiting to have a few words with me and ask me to personalize their copy of my book. One woman tells me she has been afraid to try baking since she went gluten-free, but the tips and tricks I have shared during the class have inspired her to buy some gluten-free flours and start playing in the kitchen. I am humbled and honored.
9:16pm I pull into my driveway. My puppies are waiting at the door for me, wagging their tails so hard, their little bodies are curving into jelly beans. My husband is lounging on the couch and I grab an apple and plop down next to him to watch an episode of one of our shows (currently, it's House of Cards).
10:02pm The show is over, so we take the dogs out, then brush our teeth, I wash my face, and crawl into bed and get ready to do it all again tomorrow. Lights out. Sweet dreams.
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop (now Kyra's Bake Shop), and the first gluten-free winner of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra graduated with honors from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu patisserie program, which gave her a solid foundation of knowledge about classical French baking techniques which she was able to apply toward baking gluten-free. Kyra was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder when she was 20 years old. Part of staying healthy meant switching to a gluten-free diet, avoiding all wheat and overly processed foods. Whenever possible, she uses local ingredients, and serves customers with multiple allergies, as well.
SEPTEMBER 17, 2013!: If you are near Portland, OR (Lake Oswego), stop by for the book release party for Tender Foodie Guest Blogger, Kyra Bussanich! Congratulations, Kyra on this next super sweet milestone in your career, and in our baking nirvana!
The Oilerie Lake Oswego will be hosting a book signing for local Lake Oswego pastry chef Kyra Bussanich in honor of her newly released cookbook, Sweet Cravings: 50 Seductive Desserts for a Gluten-Free Lifestyle on September 17th, 2013, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The Oilerie Lake Oswego is located downtown Lake Oswego, 438 1st Street, between A& B Avenue, 503-675-6457.
Join Kyra for a toast and some treats showcasing some of the recipes in her new cookbook. Kyra will also be signing copies of Sweet Cravings: 50 Seductive Desserts for a Gluten-Free Lifestyle.
Following a severe battle for her health, and a conversion to eating gluten-free, Kyra Bussanich graduated with honors from Le Cordon Bleu and opened her award-winning bakery “Kyra’s Bake Shop” (formerly called Crave Bake Shop) in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Her specialty is "gluten-free, deliciously"- and she quickly became a sensation and picked up national media attention as a “must see when you visit Portland.”
Kyra is a two-time winner of The Food Network’s hit show “Cupcake Wars.” She won even though her recipes are exclusively gluten-free (beating “regular” bakers), with glowing reviews from judges believing it impossible to get such flavor with this “handicap.”
While she started out making award-winning pastries, she's branched beyond desserts to other goods in order to help those similarly with celiac or other autoimmune diseases enjoy delicious items while still adhering to eating gluten-free. With gluten-free quickly becoming a lasting and commonly accepted lifestyle, everyone is searching for “the winning secret formula.” Kyra is delivering it.
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop, and the first gluten-free winner and two-time champion of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra's new cookbook, "Sweet Cravings" is due to be published in September, 2013.
I had always dreamed of one day writing a book. Of course, when I was younger, long before I became a pastry chef, I thought I would simply turn one of my vividly crazy dreams into a suspense novel. I even sketched an outline and wrote a few pages for the particular dream I had in mind (a case of identical twins, and a horrible accident that left one dead and the other to unwittingly claim his brother's identity), but life got in the way and I was too busy with my hobbies, and then dating my now-husband to put my effort into the novel.
After I became a pastry cheThe cookbook manuscript!f and opened my gluten-free bake shop, putting together a cookbook seemed like a no-brainer. Afterall, each of my recipes is original, and when I develop them, I also compile them alphabetically in order to find and recreate them for my shop. Plus, based upon my lackluster experiences with the gluten-free pastries available on the market (when I first went gluten-free eight years ago and before I started baking), it seemed that there was definitely a need for a cookbook full of gluten-free desserts that you could proudly serve to gluten-eaters.
So much of what was on the market was dry, crumbly, and tasted like overly-sweetened sawdust (which is probably why gluten-eaters are still hesitant to taste gluten-free pastries for the first time). But this didn't really become my focus until I wowed the judges on "Cupcake Wars."
The Gift of Cupcake Wars
Award Winning African Yam Cupcakes - got the win on Cupcake Wars!When I first appeared on the Food Network's "Cupcake Wars" in 2010, I was the first gluten-free baker they had ever had on the show. I had been told by many people that my cupcakes were better than anything else out there (gluten-free or NOT), so I was hopeful that the judges on the show would feel the same way. And once Candace Nelson and Florian Bellanger raved about the "moist, light, tender crumb" and the "flawlessly executed flavor," the phone started ringing off the hook. Ten minutes into the east coast premiere of the show.
By the time the show had aired on the west coast, I had more than a thousand emails in my inbox. Some people just wanted to thank me for showing the world that gluten-free can be absolutely delicious. Some folks wanted to share their story about their diagnosis or their struggle to find delicious gluten-free pastries. Most wanted to place an order for cupcakes or cinnamon rolls, and overnight, I had to figure out how to adequately ship! It was a steep learning curve (and I realized that no matter how many bright orange "FRAGILE" stickers you slap on a box, the ungentle hands of the delivery system don't necessarily heed them).
Four days after the show aired for the first time, I received a phone call from an editor at "Gluten-Free Living" magazine. Kendall told me that she usually catches a few minutes of whatever is on the Food Network as she's unwinding from her day. She often falls asleep to the station. This particular day, however, she heard mention of "gluten-free cupcakes" and sat up straight. Kendall told me it was the first full episode she had seen, and even though I ultimately came in runner up (losing to Brenda's very sleek and elegant sleigh display in the final round), Kendall was impressed. In our phone call, she mentioned that I had inspired the idea of an article called "Cupcakes Coast to Coast," and asked if I would be willing to be interviewed. I welcomed the idea, mostly because I have long felt like an ambassador for the gluten-free world, wanting to show people a little that gluten-free can be delicious. And it can be the start of a vibrant and healthy life.
More than Cupcakes, Just Awesome Gluten-free Desserts
HanantaschenI happened to be featured in the article next to some very well-known and high-profile gluten-free bakers. In particular, Elana Amsterdam (from Elana's Kitchen and author of "The Almond Flour Cookbook") and Erin McKenna (owner of Babycakes Bakery in NYC and LA), both of whom have cookbooks published by Ten Speed Press (an imprint of Random House). In the article, I mentioned that I was compiling a cookbook of gluten-free desserts, not just cupcakes, but also including tiramisu, cannoli, muffins, scones, cakes, pies, tarts and cookies. My cookbook isn't vegan, and it isn't grain-free/paleo/primal. It is simply awesome desserts and pastries that just happen to be made with gluten-free ingredients. Apparently, my Ten Speed editor Lisa Westmoreland was following up on the two published authors and liked what I had to say in my interview. She sent me an email, opening the dialog to begin working together.
Decisions, Luck, & More Decisions
Raspberry Linzertorte Bars (Chapter 4)
Now, let me be frank. I hadn't considered trying to hook up with an established publishing house, mostly because, from what I hear, editors don't really look at authors unless those authors have an agent. At the time, I was still agentless. And agents prefer to only take on clients who have a proven track record for being able to make things happen. So it's difficult to land an agent without already having published, and it's difficult to get interest from an editor unless you have an agent. I happened to get lucky and be in the right place at the right time. But Lisa was very nice, and walked me through the process of writing a proposal (54 pages long!) about exactly what my book would cover. And my mentor Laura B Russell (another Ten Speed author) has published many books and coached me on what to include in my proposal.
The Hard Work to Make it Easy - for Everyone
Classic Cream PuffsIt took me 3 months to write and polish that proposal (submitted July 4th, 2011), and even though I had most of the recipes written at that point, it took me another 11 months to write the manuscript and have non-pastry chefs (teenagers, men, and cooks who adamantly stay away from baking) repeatedly test out each recipe. I wanted them to be as straightforward as possible, making it as easy to replicate my results as can be. Each recipe of the 7 chapters is marked according to ease of preparation ("Easy" for the things ANYONE could follow, even if they only skim over the directions; "Intermediate" for the recipes that have a few more steps and require you to slow down a bit; "Advanced" for techniques that are very familiar to professional pastry chefs but may be a little more intimidating for home bakers). Mostly, I want this book to be accessible. It can be intimidating to bake gluten-free, especially if you're new to the different flours and ingredients. I wanted to simplify this as much as possible. Each recipe is given in the traditional volume measurements that most home bakers are familiar with (such as 1/3 cup, 2 tablespoons), but since it is always more accurate to measure by weight, I also give the weights in grams. This way, someone in Australia who is used to the metric system could still use these recipes. A home baker here in the States who happens to be allergic to millet flour would know exactly how much of an alternative ingredient to substitute (because a cup of say, tapioca starch or sweet white right flour does NOT equal a cup of millet flour).
Final Manuscript & Book Tour!
I turned in the "final" version of my manuscript on June 30th, 2012 (just days after my fourth appearance on "Cupcake Wars"). There is still some fine-tuning and polishing that I'm doing, and just last week, we re-shot a few of the photos for recipes in the book. I am very visual, and I only buy cookbooks with gorgeous photography of edible and delectable looking dishes, so I want the photos in my book to look as inviting as possible. I am very proud to say that "Sweet Cravings" will come out on September 10th, and though I don't yet know details, there WILL be a book tour!
Can You Do it All?
My Gluten-free Sisters!
I've often been asked how in the world I managed to compete on Cupcake Wars so many times (with 2 wins!), run the bake shop, write the cookbook AND still have a personal life. The honest answer is that I haven't. My personal life was the first to go: I have let many friendships lapse, and date nights with my husband have gone by the wayside.
I have an amazing team of staff who keep the bake shop humming along (in particular, my managers Jackie Eizik, who was my assistant on Cupcake Wars, Jen Petersmark, Lisa Horness and Carly Sullivan). We bake 17 hours a day, beginning with a midnight shift, and thank goodness I no longer need to be present the entire time the shop is open. And the conferences are things that I probably shouldn't have time for, but I really enjoy. I have made some friends who feel like family and these expos are the only time we see eachother. It's a lot like summer camp friends who actually stay in touch. We bond over good food (and food we can ALL eat, as each and every one of us is gluten-intolerant), and email, text and talk during the months in between conferences. And though the show hours are long and grueling, knowing that I'll be having dinner with my sisters makes it all worth it.
Secrets: Almost Losing it All
Being passionate about what you're doing makes it all worth it, but there are indeed sacrifices along the way. Most people don't know this, but in the very early days, before I had my retail location, my husband Jason was out of work and looking for his place to land. We couldn't keep the mortgage with the paycheck from my restaurant job and we wiped out our savings and my 401K trying. Eventually, we decided to put what little money we had left into the bake shop and while we were building the brick and mortar storefront, we lost the house that we had owned for 8 years, and had to move into Jason's dad's house. Every penny I earned from the business went back into the business.
Things Get Better!
My New Mixes!Along the way, Jason found a great job, and eventually bought the practice. The bake shop was immediately busy and I scrambled to hire the right employees. I went back on "Cupcake Wars" (and again and again). My new line of gluten-free cake and cupcake mixes has come out, too! The mixes use the actual recipes that I won "Cupcake Wars" with: The Vanilla mix was used for the Spicy Peach Bellini, NY Cheesecake and the Coffee & Doughnuts cupcakes; the Snickerdoodle mix was used for the Chai Spice and Apple Fritter cupcakes; the Chocolate mix for Chocolate Hazelnut, the Dark Chocolate Delight and the Ding Dong cupcakes). And now my book!
I do have regrets along the way (if only I knew then what I know now!), but my job is never one of them. Everything that has happened has been for the best, and I am truly excited to see where things go from here!
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop, and the first gluten-free winner of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra graduated with honors from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu patisserie program, which gave her a solid foundation of knowledge about classical French baking techniques which she was able to apply toward baking gluten-free. Kyra was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder when she was 20 years old. Part of staying healthy meant switching to a gluten-free diet, avoiding all wheat and overly processed foods. Whenever possible, she uses local ingredients, and serves customers with multiple allergies, as well.
Kyra's winning smile on Food Network's "Cupcake Wars"
Last year, I had the privilege of conducting my first interview with Kyra Bussanich, pastry chef, owner of Crave Bake Shop, and the first gluten-free winner of Food Network's famous Cupcake Wars. She then won a SECOND time in May, 2012, when she was invited back to compete in Cupcake Champions. Then, in the Champions Finale she took second place out of 16 other champions. All of her competitors used traditional flours. Gluten-free can't be good, right? Right.
Having an auto-immune disease hasn't stopped her one bit, in fact, if fuels her passion to do what she loves - and boy does she do it well! One thing that struck me during our first conversation is how she doesn't settle for pastries unless they meet very high standards. Thank heaven for those standards as they have given us the best brownie on the planet, and it has helped raise the bar for gluten-free bakers everywhere.
Since then, Kyra has been a guest blogger for the Tender Foodie, sharing her delicious Truffle Brownie Recipe (gluten-, dairy-, soy-free) and her fabulous Paleo Brownies for those who are completely grain-free. I asked her if she was ready to chat about her experiences behind the scenes at Cupcake Wars, and lucky for us, she is. We corresponded over email for this interview.
TF: How did “Cupcake Wars” first contact you? And what was that like (how did you feel, what went through your head, etc.)
Kyra: I was sitting on the couch relaxing one evening and watching Cupcake Wars with my husband. I don’t recall what the secret ingredient or the taste challenge was, but I do remember that one of the contestants hid the special ingredient behind 5 or 6 other flavors and I was yelling at the TV at the oversight. Instead of burying the secret ingredients, s/he should have been highlighting it! My husband Jason nudged me and said I should go on the show but I initially declined because I don’t love competitions. They stress me out and make it more likely I’ll get over exerted and run-down.
After goading me for 20 or so minutes, I stomped and said, “FINE! I’ll apply if you leave me alone!” And I sent off a short paragraph about why I thought I would be good on the show, how I was different (baking entirely gluten-free, which they had never had before), and a few photos of myself and press clippings. Then I decided I didn’t actually want to participate, even if they did invite me, and it probably wouldn’t happen since I was still running my bakery as a custom-order business and didn’t even have a storefront yet.
TF: What were all of the steps that you had to go through before you actually appeared on the first show?
Kyra: Within an hour of sending off the application paragraph, the casting director called me. I was still on the couch watching TV! Jessica told me she thought I was “super cute” and wanted to know if I could send her a short (2-minute) application video to show what I was like on-camera. By the following day. GULP! Luckily, my husband went to journalism school, specializing in videography so we put together a short, playful video, which you can view here:
After I sent in the application, it was a few weeks before I heard back from them, during which time I had decided I DEFINITELY did not want to go. What if I choked? Anyone who has baked gluten-free knows that it can be finicky, and I worried that I would be reinforcing the negative connotations of gluten-free desserts if I had a bad baking day, or didn’t correctly judge the ovens and overbaked my cupcakes, or failed to finish in the allotted time. My assistant Jackie (now my bakery manager) was ecstatic about the possibility of going and her collectedness really steadied my resolve. I did it for her as much as anything else.
TF: Was this a dream of yours? To be the first gluten-free winner of Cupcake Wars? Or a challenge you didn’t expect?
Kyra: I think it’s a little of both: I had always dreamed of appearing on the Food Network, and when I started baking gluten-free, I felt like it was my role to champion delicious-tasting gluten-free pastries. I hadn’t really thought seriously about Cupcake Wars until they invited me to compete.
New York Cheesecake Cupcakes w/ Ginger Cookie crust, vanilla cake, filled with raspberry compote, topped with cream cheese frosting and raspberry coulis. Florian LOVED this one!
TF: How did you handle the time off from Crave Bake Shop? Did you have to close ? or was your staff able to handle it without you?
Kyra: The first time I went to Cupcake Wars, I didn’t even have a storefront, so I simply closed down the schedule and didn’t take any orders for a short time. By the time my subsequent visits to Cupcake Wars came about, I had a full staff I could rely on to open and close the bakery without me there. That said, it still made me nervous to leave my baby (the bake shop) in someone else’s hands.
TF: Describe your feelings when you first walked onto the set. Who did you meet? Anybody that made you toungue tied? Did you have an out-of-body experience? ?
Kyra: Being on the set of Cupcake Wars was very surreal. The kitchen is a whole lot larger than it appears on TV, and when you’re running cupcake batter to the ovens to get them baking in a short time frame, that means it’s a whole lot farther than you’re actually running. Jackie and I ran drills before going, where we selected odd ingredients for ourselves (like avocado and jalapeno peppers) and practiced getting batches of cupcakes mixed, baked and decorated in less than 45 minutes. Let me tell you, we were a whole lot faster in our home kitchen than on set!
Jackie & Kyra in the dressing room for the first time
TF: How did the first taping go? Is it like we see it on TV?
Kyra: It’s very much like you see on TV, only there is a lot more standing around and checking microphones and camera angles before everything begins. It’s a long day of taping. I think they picked us up at our hotel at 6 am and we stood around for 2 hours drinking coffee and diet coke before anything started. Needless to say, we were pretty amped up by the time the cameras were on us and we were baking!
TF: Did you just LOVE the Christmas / Holiday theme in the first show? Or was that tough?
Kyra: Christmas is my all time favorite holiday, so I was thrilled when Justin revealed the inspiration challenge. And because dinner rolls and stuffing and gravy were on the inspiration table, I automatically knew that they would be filled with gluten and I couldn’t use those ingredients. I think this actually helped me, rather than hindered because it narrowed down my list of options for me.
Ultimately I selected the apple cider and the cranberry as inspirations and made a Cranberry AppleCider cupcake.
TF: What was your competition like, and how did you handle them?
Kyra: Honestly, I was so focused on what I was doing that I didn’t pay much attention to our competitors. I kept my head down and just worried about doing the best job I could.
TF: Was there a lot of trash talk? (Anybody you want to “out” as sneaky :)) or was everyone professional? Or even supportive?
Kyra: I have experienced supportive competitors, as well as those who were trying to get in my head, or worse, sabotage my baking. I’d say the majority were very sweet and professional though. There’s a reason we all became pastry chefs and bakers: we like to sweeten the day of those around us!
TF: OK. The judges. Was there anyone that you thought you had to particularly win over?
Kyra: Yeah- all of them!
TF: Anyone extra tough on you?
Kyra: I don’t know that I’d call it extra tough on me, but Florian is a very well-respected French pastry chef and easily recognized when I mistakenly overcooked my sugar (TWICE!) while making Italian Meringue the first time I appeared. I figured I wouldn’t point out my mistakes to the judges, but if they asked me about it, I would fess up. He said to me, “This meringue…it tastes like it’s not cooked right?” and I grinned and nodded. He smiled back and that was that.
TF: Did you learn from their advice as they gave it? and were you able to apply it under pressure like that?
Kyra: I’m fortunate that my strengths include thinking quickly on my feet, and creating dynamic and memorable flavor combinations—two things that have served me well during my four appearances on Cupcake Wars. And of course, every time one of the judges gave me something to work on, I made sure to incorporate their suggestions, regardless of whether I personally agreed with them. After all, they’re the judges. And they decide who wins.
African Yam Cakes
TF: Describe the pressure. I can’t imagine. Don’t even know what to ask here.
Kyra: I don’t know what to say. "E:LIHWLIUEGOAGSBD" is what comes to mind. It’s crazy intense. The nerves prevented us from getting much sleep so we were a little ragged on set. And the first time I competed, I was fresh out of the hospital not 3 hours before I hopped on the plane. I hadn’t eaten solid food in almost 6 days, and I figured that just staying on my feet was a win, regardless of the outcome. But it’s also fun, and creates lasting memories.
People ask me every day at the bake shop if Cupcake Wars is really as crazy and stressful as it appears on TV and I always shake my head. No, it's not as crazy as it seems: it's at least 20 times more intense. You have to remember that they are filming everything in one day, which equates to roughly 16 hours of tape time PER CONTESTANT. And there are four teams. So they have to condense all that footage into 42 minutes (plus commercials), which means that a lot of it ends up on the cutting room floor.
TF: Wait. You were in the HOSPITAL just before the first competition? What happened? Kyra: I'm not sure what I was sick with. Perhaps the flu? Perhaps food poisoning? I hadn't been able to keep ANYTHING down for 3 days when my husband took me to the emergency room, worried about dehydration. They kept me there for an additional 2 days, and then I immediately hopped on a plane and went to LA (Jason was scared sick and mad at me for not putting my health first).
TF: What was it like when you got back home?
Kyra: There is a small time lapse between when you film and when the show airs, and because I had signed a non-disclosure agreement, I couldn’t TELL anyone what happened, or even that I was involved. So it was really anti-climactic.
TF: When it was over, exactly how exhausted were you? Was it different after each competition?
I slept for 15 hours a day for the following 4 days after the first show!
NOW. Let’s talk about the 2nd show.
TF: OK. Let's! Describe your second experience and how it differed from the first. Kyra: Well, for starters I WON the second time (came in runner up in the Holiday Tree Lighting the first time!) That was pretty spectacular. And since I had been on before, I already knew that the judges loved my cupcakes as much or more than “regular” cupcakes, so that was a load of pressure off.
TF: Kyra Sedgewick, who happens to be a personal favorite of mine, and the team from “The Closer” were your end “client” for the 2nd show. When did you get to meet them?
Kyra: We met them on-stage on the set of The Closer right after the competition (in December 2011).
TF: Did you interact with them much? And how did that go?
Kyra: There was less interaction than I would have liked, but I did get to wander the set of the police station while we were waiting for the cast and crew to wrap filming. And GW Bailey (the guest judge from my episode, and Lt. Provenza on The Closer) kept popping his head in to taste test our cupcakes and chat with us.
Jackie, Kyra Bussanich, & Kyra Sedgewick
TF: What was Kyra Sedgewick like?
Kyra: She’s beautiful, and warm, and funny and sweet, and at the same time, whip-smart. She’s also teeny tiny! I love her oversized smile and the way she talked to everyone (cast and crew and strangers like me). I’ve always been a fan of hers, at first because we have the same name (spelling and pronunciation and all), and then later because I admired her work ethic and from what I’d read about her in interviews, she seemed really positive and down to earth and playful. In person, all of those are true of her!
TF: She must be teeny tiny - because you are teeny tiny!
Kyra: Oh, I love you!
TF: Did anything funny happen with the crew?
Kyra: Tony Denison, who plays Lt Andy Flynn on the show, came from a scene where they were filming the crime scene. He was wearing booties and gloves and kept them on while he ate cupcakes. It was pretty comical, and Jackie didn’t at first put two and two together -- she thought he was a germaphobe!
Rifling through Brenda Leigh Johnson’s candy drawer was also a hoot! There were Twizzlers and Reese’s PB Cups and DingDongs and Sixlets in there!
Kyra & Jackie with the cast of The Closer. And Tony Dennison's gloves..
TF: Oh, I adore that drawer! What went through your head and your heart when you won? Kyra: Holy MOLY! I just beat traditional gluten-filled cupcakes! WOW! Huge coup for gluten-free people everywhere!
TF: What was the FUNNIEST thing that happened on Cupcake Wars?
Kyra: Jackie is pretty hilarious under pressure, and we just kept a rolling banter going. One of her great quotes, “Kyra- I am sweating in places I should NOT be sweating!”
I think Jackie and I were at our most entertaining in the Madagascar 3 Cupcake Champions Episode. Neither of us had slept a wink the previous night and we were all hopped up on caffeine so the remarks flying out of our mouths were mostly nonsensical, but we were so deliciously tired that we thought it was all hysterical.
Jackie told me that she felt really behind and wanted to cry, to which I responded "I know, me too, but we don't have time. Start making some decorations. You can cry later." And she did!
TF: Were there any twists in the Champions Episodes?
Kyra: They had sprung a last minute twist on us partway through round 2: not only were we going to have to make the judge's cupcakes, but we would ALSO have to make an extra 8 dozen cupcakes and a 2 foot by 2 foot cupcake mosaic in the Madagascar 3 theme. I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying something inappropriate on camera! ARGH! And we finished the round with our judges cupcakes to taste and the mosaic completed, but it certainly wasn't something pretty, or that I was proud. And Jackie, being the perfectionist artist that she is burst into tears. It's really hard to present something for judging that you'd rather just throw on the floor and jump on, and she sobbed that she was sorry she lost it for us, and that it was okay if I fired her. I hugged her and said, "You did the best you could and that was a mean trick to throw at us, and I am glad to be done and we can just go home and eat M&Ms." (Side note: I don't even like M&Ms all that much! No idea why I said that)
As it happened, the judges appreciated our artistic take on the hand painted Alex the Lion, rather than a bunch of fondant shapes cut out with cookie cutters, and we went on to win the episode!
Jackie, Kyra, and Cedric the Entertainer after the Champions Win!
TF: What was the SCARIEST thing that happened?
Kyra: Just being there the very first time and not knowing if the judges were going to spit out their cupcakes and tell me that it TASTED like it was gluten-free.
TF: What was the most MADDENING thing that happened?
Kyra: My very first time on, I was decorating a sheet pan of cupcakes right before we loaded them on the display in round 3: I spun the sheetpan and dropped the ENTIRE tray of 250 cupcakes on the floor. And I knew I was on camera, so I had to remind myself not to say a swear word and not to cry!
TF: What was your FAVORITE moment of the entire experience?
Kyra: WINNING! And then Winning again!
TF: Did you make lasting relationships from the show?
Kyra: I still keep in touch with one of my producers (from the 3rd and 4th times I was on the show), and the gentleman who ultimately beat me in the all-star version, Cupcake Champions!
TF: Who was the MOST interesting person you met on all 4 shows?
Kyra: Candace Nelson fascinates me because she is such a smart business woman. And Florian is a giant teddybear (although I think he likes that people are a little afraid of his gruff exterior). And Kevin Vanderaa (the guy who edged me out of the competition during Champions) is a sweetheart and a gem.
TF: You are a great competitor. You came in 2nd on Cupcake Wars Champions after being first - TWICE. That is pretty amazing. Put that in perspective for us – from your point of view.
Kyra: My first time on Cupcake Wars, I was the runner up, after just getting out of the hospital, and after a long day of the judges raving about my baking. It was bittersweet to lose, but my competitor on the Holiday tree Lighting had a very elegant display that better suited what the judges were looking for.
My second appearance went much more smoothly, because I had a better idea of what the judges were looking for, and so I was better able to give it to them. That was The Closer episode, and I just kept on honing in on what the judges wanted to see to bring victory home on my 3rd appearance.
TF: How did it feel when the judges loved your cupcakes?
Kyra: Incredibly validating! Especially since they have eaten thousands cupcakes, and I was competing against traditional all-purpose gluteny flour cupcakes!
TF: What was the BEST compliment you received from the judges?
Kyra: Florian said of my Dark Chocolate Delight cupcake “This cupcake is the perfect chocolate cupcake. I have eaten the whole thing!” (It was a dark chocolate cake filled with dark chocolate mousse, topped with dark chocolate Italian Meringue buttercream and a ganache drizzle)
Candace told me, “I think you’re a very inspirational It-Girl for gluten-free baking. These are just delicious!”
What could be better than that?
TF: What was the worst thing the judges said?
Kyra: Well, I mentioned how Florian called me out on my overcooked Italian meringue on the Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcake: Candace didn’t think the ginger cream cheese frosting on the Chai Spice cupcake tasted gingery enough, but that’s a simple fix!
Europe's Most Wanted Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes
TF: How did the judging/judges for the Cupcake Champions Finale differ from the first show?
Kyra: By my 3rd and 4th appearance for Cupcake Champions, the judges acknowledged that as we were the best of the best, they were going to be more exacting and looking to be dazzled. I knew I had to pull out all the stops with both, my cupcake flavors AND the decorations, and so I filled every cupcake and layered the flavors and components and made all edible decorations for each cupcake.
I was told that no one had attempted such complicated components and pulled it off successfully—until me!
TF: That is pretty incredible, Kyra. Tell us something else that nobody knows about behind the scenes at Cupcake wars… that you are allowed to, anyway!
Kyra: Some of the assistants have never baked before! That was a mini-challenge to hurdle.
TF: Seriously! That must have been a challenge, indeed! How has your life changed since this has happened?
Kyra: Well, because of my first appearance on Cupcake Wars, I was interviewed for “Gluten-Free Living” Magazine, where I was featured alongside two gluten-free bakers who have written cookbooks for TenSpeed Press (an imprint of Random House). The editor was following up on her authors and saw my portion of the interview and contacted me, so that’s how I got the book deal, without having to get an agent. And the outpouring of support from gluten-free people across the country and shipping orders all over gave me the momentum to open a retail store. I feel very blessed that I’ve been able to do what I love day in and day out, and I attribute a lot of that to Cupcake Wars.
TF: What’s next for you, Kyra? Anything new coming up?
Kyra: I’ve been finalizing edits of my cookbook, set to be released late next summer. I’m very excited to see it finished (I’ve been working on it for nearly 2 ½ years, testing and re-testing all the recipes to make sure they’re foolproof). I’m also working on a new website, where I’ll debut different sorts of recipes, all of them gluten-free and many dairy-free or grain-free, and I’m also working on getting a few of my gluten-free and dairy-free cupcake mixes packaged and to market!
TF: If you could some up your experience in one sentence – or one word – what would that be?
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop, and the first gluten-free winner of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra graduated with honors from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu patisserie program, which gave her a solid foundation of knowledge about classical French baking techniques which she was able to apply toward baking gluten-free. Kyra was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder when she was 20 years old. Part of staying healthy meant switching to a gluten-free diet, avoiding all wheat and overly processed foods. Whenever possible, she uses local ingredients, and serves customers with multiple allergies, as well.
About the Interviewer, Elisabeth Veltman
Writer, owner of Blue Pearl Strategies, and lover of all culinary delights, Elisabeth is a Tender Foodie. She started The Tender Palate, a website for foodies with food allergies where she consults with experts from every area of the Tender Foodie life. She believes that everyone should live deliciously and have a healthy seat at the table. Find her at www.tenderpalate.com.
Welcome to New guest blogger, Kyra Bussanich! Kyra is the first gluten-free winner EVER of the Food Network's Cupcakes Wars and owner of Crave Bake Shop in Portland Oregon. Once a month will be helping us with tips and tricks to allergen-free baking -- how lucky are we! Plus, she will be sharing some of her wonderful recipes. Thank you for jumping on the blog, Kyra, and for becoming part of the Tender Foodie community.
~ Elisabeth Veltman
The Three Legs of Baking
There are three legs to fantastic baking: gluten, eggs, and sugar.
Each contributes something to the texture and structure of the final product, and when you have already replaced one of the legs of the stool, it makes it more difficult to successfully swap out the remaining two legs without adversely affecting flavor or texture (or both). This is why gluten-free and egg-free baking present such a challenge.
So in this first post, I'm going to offer an overview of replacements for some of the common allergens in baking, offer my opinions on them, and help you understand how they react together. This kind of understanding is a first step in making some baking magic in the kitchen.
Egg Replacements
I personally am not a fan of egg-replacers in bread, or most baked goods that need structure. Sandwich bread, for instance, needs a lot of structure. That said, you can swap out things like ground flaxmeal for the eggs, but it WILL affect the flavor and the texture. That's not to say it can't be delicious; but it WILL be different.
Yeast Replacements (for Rising)
To replace yeast, I use mechanical leavening in the form of baking powder or baking soda.
If you use baking soda, there should be some sort of acid to enact the baking soda (vinegar, apple cider viegar, lemon juice). The trick is to get the bread to rise without tasting too tangy from the baking soda and acid.
My Favorite Gluten-Free Flours
I adore millet flour, sorghum, teff, quinoa (which is spendy) and sweet white rice flour (mochiko)! I prefer teff flour over buckwheat for that dark, almost nutty taste and texture!
Difference in Gluten-Free Flours
When formulating our products at Crave, I really went back to basics and studied the protein content of the different "gluteny" flours and how that affected the texture of the baked goods.
For instance:
Pastry flour: has a relatively low protein content of around 9% which helps make very light, flaky crusts and cookies.
Bagels: are made with "high-gluten" flour which has a protein content of 14% to make the bagels dense and chewy.
These differences in protein may not seem like much, but when you think about the finished product (like pie crust versus bagels) you see that the protein content of the flours results in completely different textures. I'm simplifying a lot here, but the point I'm making is that instead of using a one-stop "all purpose" mix for everything, I tailor each recipe according to the texture I want the finished product to have, and I select various gluten-free flours and starches based on their protein content.
So, when I'm making bagels, I want them to have a higher protein content than our cakes, so I use sorghum and millet flour (and sometimes teff), instead of starchier components. I realize this doesn't adequately answer this question, so let me retrace my steps...
The Protein Differences in Gluten-free Flours
Because gluten-free flours tend overall to be very refined and starchier than wheat flours, and because they are missing that vital protein for structure and elasticity, it is imperative to add extra protein or binders into gluten-free bread recipes.
Sometimes I simply add additional egg whites; sometimes I use xanthan gum, and sometimes I use psyllium seeds. I've heard of other places also using gelatin for stretch, but I don't prefer to go that route.
Xanthan Gum -- How it works & What to Replace it With
Xanthan gum is a binder, acting much in the way of gluten in terms of holding everything together. And just like gluten, the more you work it, the stronger it acts (so don't overmix your dough)! With xanthan gum, as with gluten, baked goods will shrink up after they're baked if you've played with the dough too long or too vigorously.
Other binding agents: guar gum, ground psyllium seeds, gelatin, agar agar...the list goes on!
Dairy Replacements
Rice milk, or almond milk, if you can tolerate nuts. Coconut milk if you're making a sweeter bread or for dinner rolls. Or, you could just use eggs and no milk at all, if you can tolerate the eggs!
No "One Size Fits All" Replacement Method
I find that there is no all-purpose formula for replacements (I know you don't like this answer!). A lot of it depends on the ratio of flours to hydration, what you're using to hydrate, and then the other ingredients that are present in the recipe. I'm sorry I can't be more help, but sometimes I find that I might need 1 tablespoon of xanthan per cup of flour or starch and other times that's just way too much and 1/4 teaspoon will do. See what I mean?
Hopefully this answers some of your "why's" and "wherefore's" of how allergen-free baking is different. I'll see you next month with more tips. If you have any questions, post them here! Or give the Tender Foodie an E-Jingle. I'll do my best to include answers to them in upcoming posts whenever possible!
About Kyra
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop, and the first gluten-free winner of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra graduated with honors from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu patisserie program, which gave her a solid foundation of knowledge about classical French baking techniques which she was able to apply toward baking gluten-free. Kyra was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder when she was 20 years old. Part of staying healthy meant switching to a gluten-free diet, avoiding all wheat and overly processed foods. Whenever possible, she uses local ingredients, and serves customers with multiple allergies, as well.
Thursday, September 26, 2013 at 1:57PM 
Kyra Bussanich (right) as she prepared to go on Food Network's Cupcake Wars. Pictured with Jackie, her lovely assistant on the show, and a manager at Kyra's Bake Shop..
BUY THE COOKBOOK!asking me questions on a deeper level about gluten-free baking. I love my job! Driving back to the shop, I return my travel planner friend's call. She's left me a message about an upcoming gluten-free cruise I'm doing, and I have time to chat and answer her questions while I head back to Lake Oswego.
Kyra Bussanich is the owner of Crave Bake Shop (now Kyra's Bake Shop), and the first gluten-free winner of the Food Network's Famed, "Cupcakes Wars". Kyra graduated with honors from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu patisserie program, which gave her a solid foundation of knowledge about classical French baking techniques which she was able to apply toward baking gluten-free. Kyra was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder when she was 20 years old. Part of staying healthy meant switching to a gluten-free diet, avoiding all wheat and overly processed foods. Whenever possible, she uses local ingredients, and serves customers with multiple allergies, as well.
