Frisco couple opens gluten-free, dairy-free bakery

by Elizabeth Knighten of Star Local News

Gluten Free Medley started because of need in the family of Jason and Jaime Medley.

Jaime Medley

A new loaf of bread sits on the Medley kitchen counter top.

In previous years, a lactose and gluten intolerance hindered cookie and cake connoisseurs from the delicious treats they crave. However, Frisco residents Jason Medley and his wife Jaime have come to the rescue with their home business Gluten Free Medley LLC.

Jason Medley, who moved to Frisco in January and his wife and three children followed in March, said that he is able to operate his business from home under the Texas Cottage Food Law.

The law, which according to its website www.texascottagefoodlaw.com, "SB81 was signed into law by Governor Rick Perry on June 17, 2011." The law officially goes into effect on Sept.1, the same date Medley's company opens for business.

"We used to live in Michigan, and there was a Cottage Food Bill that was active in Michigan," Medley said. "When I got transferred to Texas earlier this year, we found our that Texas was trying to get the same kind of food bill passed and so that's when we started looking into what it would take to get a business started."

Medley said he and his wife referred to the Texas Baker's Bill Facebook page, which helped him and his wife learn the rules of operating a business out of their home.

It's [Texas Baker's Bill] really good for small business, for people that don't either have the capital or the time," Medley said. "It's a lot of overhead to rent a commercially licensed kitchen, so it gives a home baker the chance to get a start by baking for people within a guideline that were set up by the bill."

Medley said one of the rules however, states that under the bill bakers cannot sell products at farmer's markets or restaurants.

"We are allowed to sell something that is produced out of our kitchen directly to a consumer, so we are setting up Sunday nights as a pick up time," Medley said.

The home business will allow consumers to place orders and pick up their items on Sunday evening.

Medley said he and his wife felt that there was a need for the gluten free, dairy free niche in Frisco.

"We look at our customer base like North Texas -- when we started looking, we found only one gluten free bakery, and that was in Dallas," Medley said, "and that was about 30 miles from us, so that's why we wanted to do it."

Medley also said they felt the need for the business because more people are starting "to get diagnosed with either an intolerance or celiac disease."

Medley said his wife's father was diagnosed with Celiac Disease and their oldest son has also been diagnosed with Eosinophilic Esophagitis. E.E is a food allergy which causes an inflammation in the esophagus.

"Directly, we have three small children and they are all on gluten free and dairy free diet," Medley said. "Our son is 5 and he has something called E.E which is the gluten -- it harms his esophagus, and so by him not eating gluten, it kind of keeps that disease at bay."

Medley said his wife has been baking gluten free for "10 or 15 years."

"My wife has cooked with her mom, for her dad, who was diagnosed with a Celiac disease about 15 years ago," Medley said.

While both Medley and his wife have no professional culinary skills, Medley said he has competed in several barbecue competitions in Michigan.

Medley said the company offers bread, gluten free granola, cookies, muffins, cupcakes, decorated cakes, dry mixes and holiday snacks.

"We want to offer some unique items every month, so we're going to have a monthly menu that we send out to our customers with seasonal or holiday type offerings," Medley said.

Medley said the prices for the baked goods are high in comparison to what consumers can find in the store; however he said it's because the items are fresh and cooked to order.

"Our loaves of bread are $8, which obviously is a lot higher than a standard loaf of bread at the grocery store, but everything is fresh and the gluten free flour is a lot more expensive, so it does increase the cost of the food," Medley said. "We're trying to sell it as if we're your personal baker, we're baking everything to your custom food order, nothing has just been sitting around on a shelf for days waiting for you to come and pick it up."