Black Entrepreneurs Bring Regional Dishes and Vegan Treats to Maison Yaki | The New Yorker

"A five-year-old cake-and-pastry operation from Lani Halliday, Brutus Bakeshop impressed me as it transitions toward a brick-and-mortar location later this year: both gluten-free and vegan, Halliday’s pastries feel like creatively wielded constraints — her passion-fruit–glazed, guava-filled pop tart buoyed my spirits, and her miso-chocolate-chip cookie is astonishingly complex (as funky as an unfiltered wine). Her dark-chocolate cake, made with aquafaba and a rice-based flour mix, has an exceptionally soft, glossy crumb, and her collard-leaf wraps around sliced heirloom tomato and sautéed mushrooms read as a thoughtful nod to heritage rather than a mere substitute for starch." - Hannah Goldfield