Treat Yourself

GIZELLE LOOTS, FORMER STUNT DOUBLE AND PERSONAL TRAINER, STARTED BANTING BAKER GIGI IN SEPTEMBER 2016, AFTER HER EXPERIMENT WITH BANTING-FRIENDLY BREAD SPARKED AN INTEREST IN CREATING LOW-CARB BAKED GOODS AND TREATS.

- Shireen Fisher

My brother Garth had been banting for a while and was really thriving,’ Gizelle says. ‘But he complained that he was struggling with not eating bread. At the time I was quite housebound, so I thought I’d see if I could find some recipes online and try to make bread for him. Not having any cooking experience, this was a totally new venture for me. I felt really proud when I created my first bread; so impressed with myself, in fact, that I posted it on Facebook – and all of a sudden there were all these people asking if they could buy the bread from me!’

Before long, Gigi started making vegetable based breads using ingredients like zucchini and kale. ‘I never saw it becoming a business, but I enjoyed baking so much and enjoyed the satisfaction it was giving people even more, so I tried more and more creations,’ she says.

All this led to the creation of Banting Baker Gigi at the Bay Harbour Market in Hout Bay, Cape Town and at the Mojo Market in Sea Point.

Gizelle describes Banting Baker Gigi as a fun approach to the low carb lifestyle. She wants the brand to appeal to children too, as many parents are promoting a sugar-free lifestyle to their kids. She also does kids’ parties, enlisted by parents keen on her ‘sugarfree birthdays’ package.