By Taylor McCarthy –
- Media Credit: Taylor McCarthy
Seventeen years ago, Eva Ruth Flynn had to completely change the way she ate and thought about food after being diagnosed with Celiac Sprue Disease. This condition forces people such as Flynn to cut all things that contain wheat or gluten out of their diet. For her, this meant a huge lifestyle change in a society that, at the time, did not support her gluten-free needs.
The absence of delectable deserts and tasty baked goods led to the opening of Eva Ruth’s in 2009. Flynn’s wheat-free and gluten-free bakery in Middletown, RI sells a multitude of products that cater to the needs of people with intolerance for wheat and gluten. Even people who don’t have an allergy will still find these treats utterly irresistible; just ask the CEO, herself, about her pumpkin muffins. I did when I sat down with her. I also inquired about the importance of a healthy living through her products. Here’s what the gluten-free guru had to say:
Eva Ruth’s carries everything from croutons to vegan brownies. What’s your favorite treat that you sell?
I would say the pumpkin muffin and pumpkin cake is the best; although, I love my vegan items. My pumpkin isn’t seasonal. It’s here year-round. Everybody wants it all year ‘round. It’s hysterical! I think it’s a myth what people think that it’s supposed to go away because it’s a “seasonal” thing, it’s not. The pumpkin and the chocolate chip cookies are what launched the business.
Really, the one chocolate chip cookie?
Well, it was actually a tub of frozen chocolate chip cookie dough. That’s how it started and business has evolved since then. Then it went into the pumpkin muffin.
I saw on your Website that the idea to open your bakery came to you after your diagnosis with Celiac Disease. How did your lifestyle and ways of eating change after the diagnosis?
It’s a life altering diet change and there can be no wheat in your diet at all. There’s no medication that you can take that will substitute being a wheat-free, gluten-free individual. You can’t have any cross-contamination in your diet, so all the old food [in your house] has to be thrown out. It’s very costly. All of the products in my house had to be thrown out and redone and labeled.
So that’s where the bakery idea came from. Did you want to get other people involved in a gluten-free lifestyle as well?
Not just that, I think that I wanted people who had a wheat-free/gluten-free sensitivity, intolerance or allergy – all meaning different things – to be able to get a good tasting treat and not be compromised by [their illness].
What is the best-selling item at Eva Ruth?
My pumpkin muffins! Isn’t it amazing how it doesn’t go with the trend? People believe that pumpkin is seasonal and it’s a lie. All through the summer I sell out and when you taste it, you’re going to say, ‘I know why.’
How challenging was it and still is it to find recipes without wheat or gluten in it? Did you have to do some experimenting?
Well, today it’s a lot easier to find recipes versus 18 years ago. When I was diagnosed, there was nothing; but, I still alter all of my recipes and use my own flour combinations.
What is the difference between your gluten and wheat-free bakery compared to the bakery and pastry shops that sell products that contain gluten and wheat?
There’s a huge difference, great question. A bakery that says that they have a gluten-free product and they’re a “regular” bakery means that the product is not safe because it has cross-contamination. Bakeries carry dust, in the form of flour; so that “gluten-free” or “wheat-free” muffin or cookie made in a regular bakery could be cross-contaminated. [The bakery] cannot claim that products are 100% gluten-free; whereas, my facility is 100% gluten-free, meaning there’s no wheat or nuts. By law, any institution that wants to become gluten-free would need to take five years to clean the air to make sure there’s no gluten.
There seems to have been a movement in the past decade for gluten-free and wheat-free products. Do you think that it’ll eventually become the norm for pastry and bakery shops to be free from these substances? Is that what you hope for?
I think there will always be a “normal” bakery because some things are very difficult to do “gluten-free,” like puff pastries – which I would eventually like to make. If you look at the statistics on allergies, they’re increasing. More people are becoming sensitive to soy, wheat, gluten, dairy, or nuts. The traditional bakery will still be around, but this bakery is not going away.
I saw on your Facebook page that you were recently at a farmer’s market in Pawtucket. How important is it for your emphasis on living a healthy lifestyle to support farmers’ markets and other local events?
It’s very important to me. It’s important to support the small business person. We use local honey, syrups, and other items. We are in Pawtucket until either April or May and then we are going to Hope St. in Providence. We’re also going to be at Copley Plaza in Boston starting Apr. 15.
So, that’s what’s in the future for Eva Ruth’s?
Yes, the farmer’s market in Boston and we’ll probably be going to Whole Foods. I’m also thinking about researching and developing a mobile cart in downtown Newport that would sell vegan and gluten-free.
That would do well in the summertime!
Yes, it’s just a thought that’ll hopefully be in the works for summertime.
