From our kitchens: Make sure everyone gets a cut of the cake

For years, I’ve held the belief that everyone deserves a piece of cake. When I developed a gluten allergy in 2020, it only further strengthened this belief.

I’ve had an entrepreneurial spark in me for longer than I can remember. Growing up, my parents had a rule for my older brother and I: if we wanted a car when we turned 16, we had to purchase it ourselves.

I watched my brother turn his hobbies into profit and I knew there was a way to make this happen with my love of baking.

When I was in the fourth grade, I started Chloe’s Sweets, a baking business featuring sour cream pound cakes, chocolate chip cookies and brownies. I marketed my sweet treats to everyone, including school teachers and gymnastics coaches. I even went door to door at downtown businesses in my hometown of Ocilla.

I kept baking throughout elementary and middle school, and by my freshmen year of high school I decided I wanted to take my business more seriously.

I had just received my very own KitchenAid mixer for Christmas and I wanted to venture into selling decorated cakes. I posted a time lapse video on Instagram of me decorating a cake — from there, Cake it with Chloe began.

One year after launching Cake it with Chloe, I became very ill but didn’t know the cause of the issue. I discovered that I had developed a severe gluten allergy, which meant I couldn’t eat cake. As ironic as it is though, it only further developed my belief that everyone deserves a slice of cake.

Six years later, I am now a student at Mercer University and I have recently shifted my business to focus on gluten-free cake mixes.

My passion lies with helping people enjoy cake, especially those who aren’t always able to do so.

Coming from a rural, two-redlight town in South Georgia, I knew I wanted to create a simpler way for people to make their own delicious cakes and share with the people they love.

The gluten-free world can be overwhelming and hard to navigate, but that shouldn’t keep loved ones from gathering around the table. This is the ultimate inspiration behind my gluten-free cake mix.

My dear friend, Mallory Green, came up with this idea when she was making pumpkin muffins for a gluten-free friend. She picked up her pantry staple, a Cake it with Chloe gluten-free vanilla cake mix, and wondered how she could turn this recipe into pumpkin cupcakes.

On the back of your bag of Cake it with Chloe cake mix, you will find instructions and ingredients, as well as substitutions to make the recipe vegan-friendly. In this recipe, pumpkin makes a great substitute for eggs.

Pumpkin cupcakes

— 1 package of Cake it with Chloe’s Gluten-Free Homemade Style Vanilla Cake Mix.

— 1 cup of milk (or use 1 cup of an alternative milk for a dairy-free option).

— 1 cup of melted butter (or use 3/4 cup of vegetable oil for a dairy-free option).

— 1 cup of pumpkin puree (replaces the four eggs the cake mix calls for).

— One-half teaspoon (or 3/4 teaspoon) pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon.

You’ll mix the ingredients together and bake according to the package instructions. You can expect to get around 24 cupcakes from this recipe. Top with your favorite frosting. We chose a maple cream cheese frosting, and it paired beautifully with these pumpkin cupcakes.To watch a video tutorial, check us out on Instagram and Facebook at Cake it with Chloe. To find your own bag of Cake it with Chloe cake mix, you can check out cakeitwithchloe.com or find it locally at Village Marketplace in Ingleside Village. Happy baking!