Winter Fate Bakes is a one-woman, small batch bakery founded by Playa Vista resident, Winter Morvant, who specializes in handcrafted treats for people and their dogs.
Winter Fate Bakes specializes in handcrafted treats for people and their dogs
By Kamala Kirk / Photo by Chris Mortenson
Winter Morvant has enjoyed baking her entire life and would always give her creations away to others as gifts and for birthdays, but five years ago she finally decided to turn her hobby into a side business.
“I baked my entire life and am self-taught,” Morvant says. “My partner, Geoff, and several of my close friends said, ‘You’re really good at this and you need to turn it into a business.’ I listened to them and here I am. Los Angeles has a lot of famous bake shops, but I feel that I do a good job at bringing Southern flair and hospitality to my baked goods with flavors and combinations that aren’t common out here.”
Winter Fate Bakes offers an extensive menu of sweet treats including custom cakes, Southern desserts, cookies, vegan tarts and cheesecakes, among others. Born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Morvant also lived in New Orleans before moving to California just over seven years ago. Many of her baked goods are inspired by her Southern roots including her signature 7-Up Cake, which is served at Chef Keith Corbin’s LA restaurant, Alta Adams.
“My most adored and beloved item on the menu is my 7-Up Cake, it’s what I’m known for,” Morvant says. “Typically, 7-Up Cake is made by adding 7-Up to a box of cake mix and calling it a day. I took something that’s known across the South and added my own twist by using top-quality, organic ingredients. It’s a bundt cake that comes in a beautiful circular shape and it’s very light, airy and moist. It’s absolutely delicious and is loved by many of my celebrity clients. I can also make a gluten-free or vegan version upon request.”
Customers also love Morvant’s Cereal Milk Cupcakes, which feature toppings such as Fruit Loops, Frosted Flakes and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
“Cereal milk gives this really unique flavor to things,” Morvant says. “The milk has this rich depth of flavor and I’ll work it into buttercream frosting, cake or cookies.”
One of Morvant’s favorite items is her Hummingbird Cake, another traditional Southern treat.
“It’s a spiced cake with fresh organic pineapple, banana and toasted pecans with a silky cream cheese buttercream,” Morvant says. “People flock to it like hummingbirds because it’s so sweet. It’s what I make for my birthday every year.”
Delivery is available throughout Playa Vista, and Morvant also offers in-person pick-up for clients who live outside of the area. Many of her customers drive from as far away as Orange County to pick up her baked goods.
“I also welcome people to ask me to make things that I don’t have on my menu,” Morvant says. “Even if I’ve never made something before, I love to challenge myself by trying new things in the kitchen.”
While Morvant can accommodate a wide variety of requests and caters to certain dietary restrictions, the one thing she can’t accommodate is nut allergies.
“Whenever someone places an order, I always ask if they or anyone that will be eating the items have food allergies,” Morvant says. “Because I work with nuts in my kitchen, I’m probably not the baker for someone if they or someone in their family has a nut allergy. I want to make sure that everyone is safe.”
Morvant also books up far in advance, especially around the holidays, so she recommends ordering several months before a birthday or special occasion. Her baked goods are typically made to order by batch and she also holds weekly bake sales where she’ll feature a treat of the week, along with any other items that she’ll sell individually. All information about current treats and upcoming sales can be found via her Instagram page (@winterfatebakes).
Cajun food is another passion of Morvant’s and she also sells her own homemade Cajun Seasoning. Inspired by her dad’s cooking, it features freshly hand ground herbs, spices and rock salt, and can be used as a marinade, dry seasoning salt or dry rub.
Aside from baking, the other love of Morvant’s life is her dog, Deuce. The American Pit Bull Terrier mix rescue who Morvant has had since he was a baby helped to inspire the other part of her business.
“Deuce is 14½ years old and he’s just incredible and perfect in every way,” Morvant says. “A lot of the dog treats out there contain sugar, corn, soy and all these additives that I don’t want him to eat. If I could bake beautiful and healthy desserts for people, I was going to do the same for him. I’ve been baking for him his entire life and when I started my business, I knew I was going to have a bakery that served people and their dogs.”
Morvant offers a wide variety of dog treats including birthday cakes, cookies and biscuits, ice cream and Smoothie Snacks. All of her dog treats are organic and free from unnatural sugar, preservatives and color additives. They’re also human grade so that dogs and their owners can share treats.
All of the Smoothie Snacks on Morvant’s menu are named after Deuce’s dog friends and her website includes a section with photos of the different pups next to their favorite flavors. The frozen bite-size treats are made with fresh, local organic, dog-safe fruit and vegetables from the Playa Vista farmers market; vegan options are also available. The Deuce features her dog’s favorite flavor combination of peanut butter, banana, local honey and coconut yogurt.
“Deuce has always collected friends, especially puppies,” Morvant says. “He’s the grandpa of the neighborhood. He taught them all how to act and be part of a pack. He’s shaped so many dog’s lives for the better. I worked with each dog to figure out what they liked so every flavor is for a specific dog. I named them all after Deuce’s friends.”
Charitable giving is another important aspect of Morvant’s business and she loves doing various fundraisers to raise money for important causes and nonprofit organizations.
“I’ve been lucky enough to raise a lot of money for animal rescues, organizations that help children in underserved communities, victims of domestic abuse, and helping to feed the homeless,” Morvant says. “Anyone who wants to use my baked goods to raise money for a good cause is welcome to reach out to me and I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
Despite the success of her baking business, Morvant also has a day job as a program manager for an electric vehicle company, so she spends the early mornings, evenings and weekends baking.
“I never want baking to lose its therapeutic quality,” Morvant says. “I feel like if it was my full-time job, it would become more stressful. And whenever I’m feeling stressed out or upset, I like to go and bake it out. I love creating and making people happy. I enjoy coming up with new things and taking inspiration from art or things I come across in life.”
A resident of Playa Vista since last October, Morvant loves how safe the neighborhood is and that she can walk her dog anytime, even at night.
“I love how clean it is here and how safe I feel,” Morvant say. “Deuce is a social butterfly so we love that there are so many dogs in the neighborhood. It’s also very peaceful. Geoff and I always joke that the loudest it gets in the neighborhood is the sound of kids laughing on their way home from school.”
Winter Fate Bakes
Instagram: @winterfatebakes
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