Airdrie resident Caitlin Horovitz knows how to create something sweet out of a sour situation.
Horovitz has had a passion for baking since she was a child, helping her grandmother, great-grandmother and aunts create in the kitchen for years.
After raising her four kids, Horovitz decided to take the Culinary Entrepreneurship Program at SAIT in 2019. In 2021, she followed her passion for classic cocktails and decided she wanted to create a mobile bar called Sidecar Bar.
“The plan was to keep it very vintage and true to the feel of an old prohibition-speakeasy style,” Horowitz says. “When it came time to refit a trailer to suit the mobile bar concept, the cost of it was beyond the reach of anything we could achieve.
“At first, we were discouraged … but it didn’t keep us down. Combining my love of baking and the countless experiments with infusing fruits with booze, I got the inspiration to start perfecting the art of infusing all the desserts with cocktail goodness.”
The Sweets
Sidecar Sweets offers a unique twist on traditional baked goods by infusing them with delicious boozy flavours, adding a fun and indulgent element to the experience.
“You are going to get a flavour experience you have never had before,” says Horovitz.
Sidecar Sweets offers a variety of delicious creations including cupcakes, marshmallows, custom cakes, cheesecakes, dessert platters, mini cupcake “shots,” brownies and more.
“Specializing in cocktail creations, using all-time favourite desserts and infusing them with classic cocktail flavours, we strive for excellence in everything we create,” says Horovitz.
Flavours include peach rosè, velvet amaretto, mudslide, brandy Alexander, tipsy dulce de leche, RumChata cinnamon bun and, of course, sidecar. She also makes kid-safe mocktail desserts with flavours like Shirley Temple, blue lagoon and virgin pina colada.
Sidecar Sweets sources its ingredients as locally as possible from Calgary and area wineries, breweries and distilleries. Horovitz also gets as much of the fruits and other ingredients as she can from farmers’ markets in the area.
The Community
Horovitz works out of the kitchen at the Town and Country Centre, but has a five-year plan to open her own storefront and kitchen.
“I want it to be a communal kitchen because I know so many great business owners that are looking for space to cook in,” she says.
Horovitz adds she gets to meet several local entrepreneurs and business owners in the markets and shops where she sells her baked goods. These include: The Farm Table in Carstairs, Complete Home Collective in Airdrie, Olds Uptowne Market, and Main Street Market Strathmore and Okotoks.
Sidecar Sweets can also create custom flavours for all occasions and hosts in-home workshops to teach the craft to others.
“There is no more unique gift for a cocktail-lover than creating a delicious treat out of their favourite drink,” Horovitz says.
Horovitz says, although being an entrepreneur can be a bit bittersweet sometimes, she always knew she’d end up on the sweet side.
“At an early age, I knew I wanted to own my own business one day — one that had sprinkles and pretty things where I could let my creativity run wild!” she says.
Give your taste buds the adventure of their life by visiting sidecarsweets.ca.
