FARGO – Today, most people recognize the abbreviation “GF” on foods to mean “gluten-free.”
But Ebony Kunkle could probably label her baked goods “GFGF,” as in “gluten-free goes chic.”
The Fargo woman has not only taught herself gluten-free baking, but has also mastered the difficult art of French pastry making. Her small bakery, The Colorful Cookie, sells pain au chocolat, éclairs and gourmet gluten-free treats that could rival any Great British Baking Show finalist.
Her macarons, in a rainbow of colors and flavors, would fit in a French patisserie. Her tarte aux fruits frais (fruit tarts) are made from a gluten-free tart base filled with vanilla cream, fresh fruit and a glaze. Her napoleons are made from puff pastry covered in homemade vanilla cream and topped with a glossy vanilla glaze and perfectly feathered chocolate details.
Article / The colorful cookie
“Gluten-free doesn’t just mean bread or gross muffins,” Kunkle said, rolling out puff pastry in her tidy south Fargo kitchen. “In the Fargo-Moorhead area, you see a lot of gluten-free rolls (or) bread, but no pastries. That’s why I specifically went in that direction.”
Although Kunkle has only been baking gluten-free for about a year, “business is actually really good,” she said. She keeps herself busy with word of mouth, vendor markets and the odd backyard wedding.
Unlike many gluten-free bakers, Kunkle didn’t start baking because she or someone in her family had an allergy. Instead, she started making macarons, which paved the way for more gluten-free sweets.
“I didn’t realize how important this was because the celiac community is pretty quiet,” Kunkle said. “You don’t realize how many people there are in the Fargo-Moorhead area until you get there and become part of this community. It’s a huge trend.”
From military mother to macaron expert
Kunkel grew up in Detroit and later Cedar Falls, Iowa, and joined the U.S. Army right out of high school. During her eight years of service, she expanded her culinary horizons while stationed in places like South Korea. When she was discharged in 2017, she didn’t know what to do next.
“For eight years you are told who to be, where to be and how to be, and then you are on your own,” she said.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
At about the same time, she was surfing the Internet and discovered macarons – the elaborate French treat with a sweet filling between meringue cookies.
“I like challenges,” she said. “It was about, ‘What can I do that no one else can do, and how can I perfect it?'”
Although her first attempts failed, she finally got the tricky cookies right.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
By 2019, Kunkle, now divorced, and her son Kaleb had moved from Madison Heights, Michigan, to the Fargo area for her job. By that point, she was a master macaron maker, bringing them to parties where people would pester her to sell them.
“Nope,” she replied. “Nobody will buy them.”
But finally, she listened to her friends and decided to give it a try. In May 2023, she turned to a moms’ group on Facebook and asked if anyone wanted to try her macarons.
“I gave away over 100 boxes of cookies over Mother’s Day weekend,” she recalls. “That’s where it all started. And it just kept going from there.”
Chris Flynn / The Forum
To expand her gluten-free offerings, Kunkle attended educational meetings with the Gluten Intolerance Group and other gluten-free groups on Facebook. She learned gluten-free baking from books and YouTube.
Going gluten-free is a serious and expensive change. She threw away her plastic bowls because plastic is porous and absorbs tiny amounts of gluten. She needed cutlery and appliances that had never come into contact with gluten. To this day, she lives in a gluten-free apartment.
“We go out to eat often. We eat a lot of rice anyway, so it wasn’t difficult for us,” she said.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Kunkle’s next step was to learn how to make gluten-free Napoleons, éclairs and croissants using a flour blend of rice flour, tapioca starch, arrowroot starch, sorghum flour and xanthan gum. It was a tricky substitute because the gluten protein in wheat flour gives the finished product its structure, chewy texture and leavening power. Many of her early attempts ended up in the trash.
“The first three months were just a disaster,” said Kunkle. “I was lucky because the people who bought my products were super nice.”
In February, she made major breakthroughs when she discovered the peculiarities of gluten-free dough.
“If we can send people to the moon, we can figure out how to make gluten-free dough,” she said with a smile.
“Fargo was so good to me”
Kunkle has received support from members of the local gluten-free community. One of her customers, Melissa Callens of Fargo, said she couldn’t eat an eclair for nearly 20 years until she discovered The Colorful Cookie.
“It’s a real treat to be able to eat baked goods again,” Callens said. “It’s really difficult to make gluten-free products that aren’t crumbly or have an aftertaste. Ebony has perfected her craft; her products are moist and full of flavor.”
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Support also comes from other local bakers. When Kunkle needs advice, she turns to people like Jason Aamodt of Fargo’s Breadsmith or Shelby Hubach, another gluten-free baker and owner of Hubach Haven + Harvest in Hawley, Minnesota. Kunkle keeps a small supply of Hubach’s flavored granola and delivers it to a pickup location when local customers order it. In addition, the two entrepreneurs sometimes market their products together on their Facebook pages.
“I don’t want to fight for attention,” Kunkle said. “I just want to see how we can all work together.”
Kunkle’s products are also available at the seasonal Blue Eagle Market in Barnesville, Minnesota, and at Barnesville Potato Days on August 23 and 24.
If there isn’t a special occasion, Kunkle takes special orders. Her prices range from $2.50 per macaron (minimum order of six) to $3.75 for a piece of Napoleon. She also sells mixed boxes that start at $25.
“About 70% of my business comes from word of mouth,” she said. “That’s really the majority, especially in Fargo, because everyone trusts everyone. Fargo has always been so good to me.”
Find The Colorful Cookie on Facebook.
