Hello hungry peoples,

Canberra has a thriving dessert market, a thing that I am constantly thankful for. A new addition to the scene, La Dolci Cups, is the brainchild of Andrea and Chantelle, with a focus on creating dessert feasts comprising a multitude of single serve portions. You get to try all the things! This is a concept I can get behind. They currently offer 24 different varieties of dessert cups but are always happy to experiment to customise a dessert just for you. If you order enough they will even deliver it straight to your door.

Andrea and Chantelle are long time friends who think of each other more as sisters. They even call each other ‘sestra’ (sister in Croatian). They have both always had a passion for baking and would spend hours together discussing concepts and techniques. They both come from very food focused families. Chantelle’s Italian Nonna taught her traditional methods of cooking and combining flavours that she still finds invaluable. Andrea has Croatian heritage and both girls help out at her family’s restaurant (Maestral Seafood Restaurant in Weston Creek). As she describes it “Growing up in a Croatian family, I was always surrounded by talented, self-taught bakers who have all taught me the successes in doing what you love and that is to bake.” The two of them together are quite the baking team, bringing different skills and strengths to their baking. Working together became a natural extension of the friendship and fun they share in the kitchen.

The concept of La Dolci cups draws on Chantelle’s Italian heritage, directly translating into ‘the sweet cups’. The word ‘dolci’ in Italian also refers to desserts, cakes, sweets and treats. Andrea and Chantelle take advantage of this broad banner, making a wide variety of desserts. The girls are passionate about fresh good quality ingredients and the care they take is obvious in the perfectly executed elements of their dishes.

Their desserts are complex little treasures, with layers of textures and flavours that are meant to be together. In fact I would describe their dishes as very considered. A red velvet cake is perfectly paired with fresh marshmallow, whipped cream cheese and a raspberry coulis injection, just to finish it off. One of the girls favourites is a layered watermelon, strawberries and pistachio cake. They also offer a variety of flavoured pannacotta such as blackberry with blackberry jelly and mango with white chocolate. For the choco-holics you can indulge in a malteser chocolate mousse or a nutella cheesecake. The sheer variety on offer means their is something for everyone to enjoy and seriously…these are some damn fine desserts. Get one in your belly!

La Dolci offers catering for events, as well as hosting local pop-ups
For more information check out the La Dolci Cups Facebook page or on Instagram. Email enquiries can be sent to ladolcicups@gmail.com.