Darling Clementine!

A vegan bakery just opened up in Bed-Stuy this past Sunday, Clementine Bakery, located at 299 Greene Avenue, near the corner of Classon Avenue (where Tigerlilly used to be).

To cook is one thing, but to bake is quite another, as instinct and precision go a long way in baking; the smallest deviations in an ingredient can change the rise, moisture and overall taste.

For a vegan, gluten-free baker, the challenge is even greater, since vegan food products are absent all of the baking staples: milk, eggs, butter, white sugar and thickening agents (also known as “dextrin”).

Clementine’s co-owner and head baker, Michelle Barton, moved to Bed-Stuy four years ago from California. As a vegan herself, she’s mastered the art of substitution well enough that her raspberry cream cheese muffins, savory broccoli and pepper biscuits and cinnamon buns are kicking the animal-based versions in the neck. Hi-yah!

Not only are Clementine’s baked goods healthier for you, you can hardly tell food substitutions have been made (a big turnoff for some). Plus, without the added dextrin, many of the pastries are even lighter. Barton bakes her products fresh daily and will take specialty orders, if there’s something you’d like to try but you don’t see it behind the glass counter.

“I make muffins in the morning, I make savory things in the afternoon and I make cookies during the evening” said Barton. “If there’s something you want, just ask for it, and I’ll make it that day. It feels good to make things fresh and where people are like, ‘Alright, then I’ll come back later.’”

Michael Glen, Clementine’s other owner, works as the barrister, floor manager and all-around go-to guy (he built the tables from scratch himself). A native of Melbourne, Australia, Glen prepares coffee made-to-order, a pour-over method known as the Hiro Japanese style, using beans from Kitten Coffee, a local roaster out of Bed-Stuy.

“Australians have a very strong coffee culture, and so I wanted to bring some of what I know here,” said Glen. “The Hario method takes 3-4 minutes to make one cup. It’s the purest form of making drip, very fresh, very strong. And we also have French Press for people who need to just run off to work.”

The French Press is $2 for a 12 oz. cup, and the Hiro-style pour-over is $3 for an 8 oz. cup.

Clementine is cozy, seats about eight people and feels decidedly vintage. But Barton makes clear her preference of not wanting to see the shop become an office away from the office, as so many coffee shops and bakeries end up being:

“We want it to be more like a living room; not an office,” said Barton, “a space for people to come in and hang out and talk to each other, versus sitting all day on your lap top. They can do work; but we prefer this to be a living room.

Clementine Bakery sells a variety of baked goods. Although most of their products are sweet, there are biscuits and savory options as well, all ranging from $2 - $5.

“I love this neighborhood, and I consider it my home now” said Barton. “I love the idea of getting up in the morning and being able to come down here and give the community something I really love.”

Clementine Bakery is open Monday through Sunday, from 8:00am to 6:00pm. “But we’re still feeling out the hours… if someone comes up to the door past 6:00 and wants a cookie, I generally let them,” said Barton, smiling.