Michelle Fuller, an avid cook, often taught
cooking classes. One day, a student asked if she might be
interested in cooking for a friend who had a toddler with an
intolerance to wheat and gluten. She agreed and soon began
learning all about cooking gluten-free meals and baked goods. She used special mixes from gluten-free food companies and also
began developing her own recipes.
Before long, Fuller also
began taking orders from members of the Detroit area Tri-County
Celiac Support Group. Because she was getting all the business
and orders she could handle while working out of her home, she
decided she must either "move on or go for it." So,
she opened the Celiac Specialties Bakery & Coffee House on June 3,
2003.
Fuller uses her own gluten-free baking base.
She blends rice, potato starch, and tapioca starch along with
ingredients such as xanthan gum and guar gum to improve texture and
elasticity. She also developed her own special baking
techniques to handle the gluten-free mixtures which behave very
differently from wheat flour doughs and batters.
