No Gluten, No Problem

Dora’s Bakery is Uniquely Gluten Free

By J.P. Faber

October 2019

One of today’s diet fads is the avoidance of gluten, a protein found in grains like wheat, barley and rye. Advocates of a gluten-free diet say it reduces chronic inflammation, increases energy, sharpens cognition, and above all, improves digestion. If you are a victim of celiac disease, you don’t have a choice but to avoid it, or face havoc with your intestines and immune system.

Such was the case for Dora, the Uruguayan great grandmother of Alex Sosadias (above), who now runs the family bakery on Le Jeune Road just south of Havana Harry’s. She suffered from celiac, and consequently developed her own recipes for gluten-free bread and pasta. Those recipes are now the mainstay of the tiny bakery, which bakes everything from chocolate chip cookies to cinnamon buns, all gluten free.

Opponents of gluten-free food say it doesn’t taste as good. That is where Dora’s recipes come in. “We eat everything here, and if we don’t like it, we don’t put it out,” says Sosadias. “We’re going for good food that happens to be gluten free.” For us, their standout is a serrano ham croqueta with gluten-free bread crumb crusts. A guilty pleasure with just a little less guilt.