Outrageous Baking: Gluten-Free Baked Goods & Treats

Welcome to this week’s Rafflecopter Brand Showcase. Last week, you were introduced to the folks at Aloette Cosmetics. This week, we’re really excited to introduce you to a local favorite of ours: Outrageous Baking.

Gluten-Free Treats From Boulder, Colorado

Outrageous Baking is a company in our hometown that prides itself on some of the best-tasting gluten-free baked goods you’ll ever set your eyes on. As a startup in downtown Boulder, it’s tough not to notice their presence around all the coffee shops on Pearl Street, and especially in the local 24-hour market just down the block.

A Trip To The Boulder County Farmers’ Market

A typical Saturday morning for a Boulder resident consists of doing something outside (hiking, mountain biking, climbing, etc) and then straight towards the Boulder County Farmers’ Market. Hundreds of vendors set up each Saturday starting at 8am, selling fresh produce, baked goods, some arts & crafts, and more.

In town visiting? Don’t. Miss. It. Boulder is a foodie town (don’t believe me?) and the farmer’s market is guaranteed not to disappoint. Plus, it’ll give you a chance to swing by Outrageous Baking’s tent and sample some of their fresh-baked bread.

An Array Of Tastes And Flavors

We didn’t leave the farmer’s market empty-handed. We were sent home with five flavors of bread that they offer on their site, which includes:

• Pumpkin Bread
• Chocolate Zucchini Bread
• Lemon Poppy Seed (psst… my favorite!)
• Cinnamon Coffee Cake
• Cranberry Orange
• … and even some brownies (yup – gluten-free!)

Our reaction to the first bite of each flavor? Holy cow :)

We aren’t the first (nor will we be the last) to check out Outrageous Baking, either… so don’t just take it just from us! Check out reviews and other testimonials from Grace at Grace(full) Plate, Caroline at The G-Spot Revolution, and Jolene at Healthy Discoveries.

We’re thrilled to introduce you to Pamela, the founder and owner of Outrageous Baking in this week’s brand showcase. Read on to learn about their roots as a company, how they use social media, and a chance to win some Outrageous Baking goodness for yourself.

Hey Pamela – Tell Us A Bit About Outrageous Baking!

Outrageous Baking is a gluten and dairy free bakery based in Boulder, Colorado that was started 6 years ago. We’re committed to using quality ingredients to create delicious gluten-free baked goods that are so good no one knows they are gluten-free. Our products are available online, at the Boulder County Farmer’s Markets and at coffee shops around the country.

How Did The Business Come To Life? Why Gluten & Dairy-Free?

Outrageous Baking was actually born out of a need to make gluten and dairy-free treats for my daughter, Grace, who had eczema as a baby. My family and I really wanted to avoid traditional medical intervention, so we relied on determining which foods created the manifestation of the eczema. It turned out that eliminating gluten and dairy eliminated the eczema.

I always loved baking and eating healthy sweet treats so I got to work in the kitchen. I experimented with gluten-free banana bread for about 6 months with little success but I kept at it. After much trial and error, I was able to surprise my family with my “Aunt Kay’s Famous Coffee Cake” with a twist: it was gluten-free. Everyone loved it!

With the encouragement of my family and friends I started to share this wonderful cake. Since 1 in 133 people have a gluten-intolerance, this cake was whole-heartedly welcomed in over 2-dozen coffee shops in Boulder, Louisville and Longmont, Colorado. Since then, we have expanded the Outrageous Baking product line to include several sweet breads and an awesome all-purpose gluten-free flour mix.

Tell Us About Your Products! What Makes Them Special?

We currently make five different sweet breads all of which are created to appeal to both gluten free and non-gluten free palates alike. We offer the original cinnamon coffee cake, which started it all, as well as chocolate zucchini, lemon poppy seed, pumpkin spice and our newest flavor-cranberry orange.

We are constantly experimenting with new flavor combinations and have recently partnered with Glacier Ice Cream who is using our breads in some of their ice cream flavors. My favorite combo was the chai ice cream with pieces of our pumpkin bread. It was delicious!

We use the most pure ingredients to make our moist and delicious treats and you wouldn’t know that they are gluten and dairy free. We also have a wonderful all-purpose gluten-free flour mix that works amazingly well as a one to one substitution for wheat flour in your favorite recipes.

How Has Outrageous Baking Benefitted From Social Media? What About Blogging?

We have only recently started engaging in social media activities. We’ve also started blogging about gluten-free and healthy living issues and have really enjoyed connecting with people from all over the country about gluten-free concerns. There is a huge benefit to being able to share what’s happening in the gluten-free community as well as getting our product in front of people we might never be able to reach otherwise.

Blog outreach is fast becoming an important part of our marketing strategy. I can tell you all day how delicious our breads are and that the flavor and texture is just as good as sweet breads made with gluten, but until you either try them for yourself or read a review from someone you know and trust, there is often hesitation to order something online.

As a small company, we don’t have the huge marketing and advertising budgets of larger competitors so we need to be creative about how we connect to and engage with our customers in order to provide them with the most positive experience. Bloggers provide their honest opinions and provide really valuable feedback for us when we look at ways to both improve and expand our product line and to also enhance the customer experience.

What Are You Looking For When You Decide To Partner With A Blogger?

The ideal blogger for us is knowledgeable and passionate about gluten-free and healthy living.  We also like working with foodie bloggers, bakers and mom/parenting bloggers who are looking for gluten-free alternatives to share with their readers.

How Has Rafflecopter Helped With That Process?

As I mentioned before, small businesses can be at a real disadvantage when it comes to increasing awareness of a brand. Rafflecopter enables us to reach folks we might not otherwise reach, interact with others who share an interest in what we do, and potentially increase our market in a cost-effective and relatively easy manner. There aren’t many options out there for small businesses, especially when you have a staff of three, two of whom are baking full time!

Now To The Fun Part – What Are You Giving Away?

We’re here to promote gluten-free that tastes great! We are giving away a 2-pound loaf of one of our sweet breads (your choice of flavor) and a 1.5-pound bag of gluten-free flour mix to five winners. Shipping is included! Due to shipping restrictions though, we can only ship in the lower 48 states.

Enter the giveaway below by letting us know what flavor you’d like if you’re selected as a winner. You can also follow us on Twitter, tweet a message,  Like us on Facebook, or subscribing to our RSS feed for extra entries. Because of shipping restrictions, this giveaway is open to lower 48 US States..

Thanks to Pamela and the rest of the team @ Outrageous Baking for the opportunity. In full disclosure, Pamela was nice enough to supply us with several different flavors of bread. And it was awesome. All opinions we’ve expressed are our own. We’re disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Below is a giveaway that is open to folks in the lower 48 states of the US. Giveaway ends on Thursday, 7/12 at 12:01am. Five winners will be chosen and shipped a 2-lb loaf of bread and a 1.5-pound bag of gluten-free flour mix via Outrageous Baking.

Enter The Giveaway Below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Are you a passionate business owner, brand manager, or social media rockstar that enjoys your products as much as Pamela and the team @ Outrageous Baking? Want to see your brand featured in an upcoming Rafflecopter Brand Showcase? Fill out this form here or shoot us an email at info@rafflecopter.com.

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