Meet Kristin Vance of Gluten Free in the 303

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristin Vance

Hi Kristin, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Well, I have always had a passion for baking since I was a kid. I can remember making Christmas cookies for all of our neighbors with my mom and going around and delivering them. It was so special and I think that was the beginning of my love for being in the kitchen.
I moved to Colorado to go to Culinary school and studied baking and pastry arts and worked at a small bakery while I went thru school. Once I finished school, I continued to work at that bakery until I got diagnosed with a wheat allergy. That’s when I realized I needed to stop being around wheat flour and find a new way for me to keep doing what I really loved to do. I then got the opportunity to work with a really amazing lady who owned a gluten free bakery until she retired and sold the bakery. I learned a lot from her and am grateful that I got that opportunity.

In 2016, I started experimenting and working on my personal recipes at home that I loved to try and make them gluten free and still taste good! I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with them other than make delicious gluten free food for our family so no one could tell that it was gluten free.

Tommy (my spouse) has always had the confidence in me and my recipes to be able to own our own gluten free bakery but I didn’t have the confidence in myself for years. It’s crazy how hard we can be on ourselves but the ones that love us can see our potential and what we are capable more than us. I’m thankful that he has always had the confidence in us to be able to do it.

We had our daughter in 2020 and shortly after realized that she was reacting to dairy. I decided to cut dairy out of our diets and saw a drastic difference. So then started the journey of not only making the recipes that I once loved gluten free, I also needed to work on the dairy free part too. And let me tell you, making things gluten free is a lot easier than making things dairy free. I am still learning about the different dairy free substitutes and wow, it’s amazing how many more awesome products are being added to the market! I really feel like my daughter isn’t missing out on anything.
And that’s what started Gluten Free in the 303 is my love and passion for creating delicious gluten and dairy free products and the fact that I don’t think anyone should have to miss out on delicious products just because they can’t eat gluten and dairy.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Nothing is ever a smooth road.
Getting diagnosed with a wheat allergy was a really big thing, having to change and work on all my recipes to make them gluten free and also dairy free has been hard. Not everything always turns out but it is a fun experience being able to experiment.

Now starting my own gluten and dairy free bakery is a whole new experience. Working at a bakery for someone is a lot different than working for yourself. Some things are tough But the joy on the faces of the customers that are getting allergy friendly products from me from my own kitchen and my own recipes just makes my heart happy. I thoroughly enjoy baking and decorating and most of all being able to provide for the gluten free community as well as the dairy free community.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Gluten Free in the 303 is a gluten free and dairy free bakery. Production happens in Aurora, Colorado but we can deliver all around the Denver metro area as well as shipping some of our products in Colorado.

You can find us at different pop ups and vendor events around town. Check out our social media or website to see where you can find us next. Or you can always place an order on our website, texting or emailing us.

We specialize in making gluten and dairy free baked goods; mini cookies, breakfast breads, dessert bars, decorated cookies, custom cakes, etc.

What are your plans for the future?
We have lots of plans for the future to grow our offerings.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.glutenfreeinthe303.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glutenfreeinthe303bakery
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glutenfreeinthe303