Let them eat cake

One of my favorite parts of any holiday is the fun, decorated treats and desserts. But why wait for a special occasion? Sometimes you just need to fill those sweet cravings no matter what day of the year it is.

At Cake Works, customers will drool over col-orful French macarons ($2 each) available daily in many different flavors, as well as custom decorated ones that are sure to make you smile. Decorated mac-arons ($4 for the round ones, $5 for shaped ones) vary, but during a recent visit, we found Minions, Monster Minions, Kuromi and Rilakkuma. Closer to Easter, there will be bunnies, baby chicks and Easter eggs as well.

“We try to keep Hello Kitty in stock but those go fast,” notes chef/owner Abi-gail Langlas. “Our macarons are gluten-free, and handmade from scratch using the most natural ingredi ents we can get, and local when possible. We use Wa-ialua chocolate, Kona coffee, and local guava and lilikoi when we can. We also try to come up with new flavors for the holidays.

Cake Works’ macarons are prepared using the Ital-ian meringue method, and made mostly with a dark chocolate or white chocolate base for the filling instead of plain butter cream, so it’s a bit richer. Choose from up to 24 flavors, with the most popular being Hawaiian Salt Caramel, Strawberry Guava, Red Velvet and Cookies and Cream (only flavor that has gluten).

As for cakes, the special flavor for March is Strawberry Cheesecake ($23.75 for 7-inch, $38 for 9-inch) featuring a traditional New York-style cheesecake with a layer of lilikoi curd on top and covered with fresh strawberries. The gluten-free flavor of the month is Mint Chocolate Chip Grasshopper Cake ($18.95 for 6-inch, $30 for 8-inch), a chocolate butter cake with mint chocolate chip filling and frosting.

Conveniently located in Moilili across from Hawaiian Humane Society, Cake Works opened for business in 2008, and has since become a local favorite for its custom cakes and gourmet desserts, including cupcakes, decorated cookies and scones.

There also is a location in the NEX food court at Pearl Harbor, which serves mini cupcakes, French macarons and six-inch cakes. And Cake Works will wholesale some baked items to local cafes, including Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Mocha Java and Nordstrom e-bar.

Cake Works

2820 S. King St.
946-4333
Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sunday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
Cake Works also is located in the NEX food court at Pearl Harbor. Hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Call 778-2920.