Living the Sweet Life at Cake Works

Cake Works is getting in the spirit of Valentine’s Day and has whipped up a number of sweet treats just for the occasion.

Its cake of the month for February is Raspberry Decadence ($24), a rich chocolate cake layered with raspberry jam and chocolate ganache, and topped with a shiny ganache and raspberries. During February, the cake will be heart-shaped and topped with a heart-shaped red-velvet macaroon.

For a tasty twist on the standard rose, Long-stemmed Chocolate Covered Strawberries ($4 each) make a great gift. These decadent strawberries are available in white chocolate, dark chocolate and marbled, and adorned with heart sprinkles or edible glitter. As a nice complement to these “roses,” Decorated Sugar Cookies include conversation heart cookies with loving sayings for your sweetheart ($10 for a bag of 10 or $3.25 for an individually packaged cookie).

As another holiday special, Cake Works also is offering a twist on its popular French Macaroons with Heart-Shaped French Macaroons ($3 each), which feature four flavors — red velvet, very berry, chocolate raspberry and strawberry guava.

“The French Macaroons are a big seller,” owner Abigail Langlas says. “We sell a lot of those, and do a lot of street events with them, including Night Market. And also, we wholesale them, and we sell a lot here at the store.”

Plus, the French macaroons are gluten-free — one of a growing number of gluten-free options that the shop offers.

In addition to these holiday specials, Cake Works also carries an array of wedding cakes, birthday cakes, scones, assorted cookies, cupcakes and lemon bars.

One popular option is the Housemade Marshmallows ($6.50 per bag), which feature various flavors including strawberry, lilikoi, coconut, melano and mango.

For all of Cake Works Valentine’s Day specials, there will be a special gift waiting with purchase for those who pre-order by Feb. 7.

On the Side

Cake Works has been making life a little sweeter since 2008. Owner Abigail Langlas honed her craft at a local coffee shop, whipping up breakfast pastries and desserts. In her spare time, she had a side business making wedding cakes.

But eventually, Langlas wanted to strike out on her own, and Cake Works was born.

Langlas, who grew up on the Big Island, has been baking since as long as she can remember. Her parents cooked and baked a lot, and she picked up skills along the way. By age 8, she already had mastered chocolate chip cookies.

One of Cake Works recent ventures has been to add more gluten-free items to the menu in response to customer demand.

“We have two varieties of cupcakes daily that are gluten free,” Langlas says. “We have had a lot of people asking for gluten-free items for a long time — and they should be able to get them.”

Contact Christina O’Connor at diningout@staradvertiser.com

Cake Works

2820 S. King St., Honolulu
946-4333
Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sundays, 9 a.m.-6 p.m