The team behind a very popular, now closed, local vegan bakery have announced that an exciting new chapter is on the way.
Cherry Darlings started back in 2011 as a catering and wholesale business, by Tim Salmon. In 2014, he launched Cherry Darlings as Australia’s first all-vegan bakery in Goodwood. The bakery was open until January of 2024, across multiple locations, and now what once was so popular will be given a new life.
Tim’s partner Allie, who has been involved in the business since 2019, says that a cookbook has been in high demand.
“I always think about a night after we closed the bakery and went out on a date in the city, and the woman next to us recognised Tim and me and asked for a cookbook,” she shared.
Allie and Tim are in the process of adjusting the recipes to be suitable for everyday bakers and cooks.
“At this stage, there is no timeline outlined, but recipe testing has begun. By recipe testing I mean digitising all recipes (most are handwritten), and adjusting quantities to make them suitable for family pies, or individual sweet servings – we were making 200 x per product at a time.”
A lot of the recipes were originally made using big machinery and wholesale ingredients. They also used a lot of other recipes within them, as they made their own cheese, yoghurt, custard, and cream.
“There’s a lot to balance to get the initial quantities right in making smaller batches of, say, cream and custard, before being able to think about making cannoli custard cream,” said Allie.
One thing they do know about the cookbook is that they’d love to produce both a PDF copy and a hardcover or physical book, making it a real testament to the memory of Cherry Darlings.
“We want the book to feel like a love letter to those choosing to keep animals off their plates, and to the Adelaide vegan community that supported us so deeply. Visually, we’re aiming for a refined scrapbook style with some zine elements thoughtfully designed and professionally polished, but still deeply personal.
“It will include hand-drawn illustrations, handwritten elements, customer-submitted photos, notes from staff, and shared memories from both institutions. I’ll be doing all of the visuals, writing and formatting myself, drawing on the skills I’ve developed in my design degree to make sure it feels authentic to us and honours the legacy of both Cherry’s and Vego’s.”
As for the recipes within, they’re “sharing everything.” If they own the recipe, it’ll be in the book.
“I just want to say the Mexican burger has been SO requested and I can confirm that it is 100% in there – and the choc mousse!”
Allie and Tim share that they’re so excited to revisit Cherry Darlings in a way that feels right, and create something that honours its legacy and memory.
They also have an ongoing call out for memories from both Cherry Darlings and Vego’s in the form of photos or even just quotes. If you want to send something in they’ll credit you in the book for your contribution. If you’re keen to get involved, email the team at [email protected].
For more information and to follow along, click here.
More News
