What makes the baked goods at Leila Bakery & Cafe so special? Owner Kelly Ball says it’s the handmade crust.
“We make our crusts all by hand. We roll, press and shape them,” she says. “We put a lot of time into the crust.”
The same crust is used for quiches and pies in a deep-dish style. Leila is well known for its pecan pies.
Popular treats are the laminated pastries like croissants and kolaches. Laminated dough is made of many thin layers separated by butter and produced by repeated folding and rolling.
“We spend a lot of time laminating that dough to get all those layers in there,” Ball says.
The bakery also incorporates different items from the farmers market to make fresh items, like roasted pears in its seasonal kouign-amann.
Neighbors can buy loaves of sandwich bread and bags of granola made with real maple syrup and butter.
“We don’t sell anything we don’t make,” she says. “All the breads are made from scratch a couple times a week.”
Leila is named after Ball’s family member who lives in Belgrade, Serbia.
“Leila is my husband’s aunt. She’s just a very warm soul,” Ball says. “She’s a very giving, selfless, loving person.”
Aunt Leila hasn’t visited the bakery, but Ball hopes it can happen someday.
“Whenever we visit, she would cook all our meals for us and just really nurture and take care of us,” Ball says.
Leila Bakery & Cafe, 6041 Oram St., 972.807.6297, leilabakery.com
