On Dessert Day, find out where to find sweets without sugar, gluten or lactose in SP

Gone are the days when a dessert made without sugar, lactose or gluten was synonymous with something dry, hard and bland — or when finding sweet treats like that was a difficult task.

This scenario has changed in recent years with the emergence of confectioneries specializing in unrefined sweets, which prepare desserts with an attractive presentation and in which sugar, milk and gluten are not required.

Replacing these ingredients while maintaining the same consistency, texture and flavor as the recipes, however, is not so simple. Furthermore, the alternatives are to view these products in relation to traditional ones, notes confectioner Regina Paula, from Fioca.

“Doing it by hand is more difficult. It’s a big challenge if we don’t want to add additives to the dessert,” she says. Regina, who worked in sports medicine, was looking for healthier sweets and savory snacks when she decided to switch to gastronomy and open her own brand in 2019.

Some alternatives found to sweeten recipes are honey, molasses, raisins, dates and natural sweeteners, such as stevia and thaumatin.

Desserts of this type are aimed mainly at those with dietary restrictions, but have attracted a more health-conscious clientele. Regina, from Fioca, says that, in the beginning, there were customers who refused to eat anything lactose-free and even threw sugar sachets on top of the sweets.

Behavior has changed, and today addresses such as Amay confectionery and Diblu ice cream, with sweets without sugar or gluten, have lines on the sidewalks.

On Dessert Day, celebrated this Wednesday, October 9th, discover ten places to eat sweets without sugar, gluten or lactose in São Paulo.

Amay

Voted the best confectionery in the city by Folha’s O Melhor de São Paulo Gastronomia special, the house prepares light and delicately presented desserts, all gluten-free and some sugar-free. Trained at Le Cordon Bleu São Paulo, Aya Tamaki creates Japanese-inspired sweets, such as matcha cake (R$ 29.90 per slice). The choux pastry stuffed with vanilla bean cream (R$ 16.50) is one of the flagships. Another suggestion is the red fruit cake, free of gluten or sugar (R$ 29.50).
R. Cubatão, 305, Paraíso, southern region, tel. (11) 3887-7966, @amay.doces

Vanilla Cocoa

Created by nutritionist Renata Baldin, the confectionery specializing in vegan and gluten- or lactose-free sweets has just gained a physical space in Pinheiros. The menu lists brigadeiros, cakes, chocolates, honey bread and other desserts, such as the chocolate mousse pie (R$ 34), the guava cheesecake (R$ 35) and the lemon and pistachio truffle (R$ $ 13) —all without sugar, gluten or lactose in the preparation.
R. Padre Carvalho, 117, Pinheiros, west region, tel. (11) 97500-6097, @cacauvanilla

Bodyfit

All ice creams (and the cone) are produced without sugar, wheat or lactose at this ice cream shop, which has three units in the capital of São Paulo. Among the flavors, there is passion fruit cheesecake, caramel, vegan pistachio and Belgian chocolate with brownie pieces. Prices start at R$21 and there are also sweets, such as the brownie with chocolate sauce (R$25).
Al. Lorena, 1,504, Cerqueira César, west region, @corpfit.jardins

Diblu

Opened last year, the ice cream shop offers ice cream and sweets made without wheat, lactose, coloring or added refined sugar. In the cold vats, the flagship is the ice cream that bears the house’s name, made with lactose-free milk and spirulina, which gives it a bluish tone. The cone with a scoop costs R$ 23. In the window, you will find the brownie served with chocolate ganache and a scoop of gelato, for R$ 28, and the cookie sweetened with coconut sugar, for R$ 6 each.
R. Balthazar da Veiga, 250, Vila Nova Conceição, south region, @diblu.gelato

Fioca

The doughs, fillings, toppings and jellies that make up the desserts are made in-house, dedicated to sweets free of sugar, gluten and lactose. To sweeten, pastry chef Regina Paula uses her own sweetener, a mixture of stevia, tapioca fiber and thaumatin. The extensive menu lists cakes, pies and sweets, as well as savory snacks. You can find orders such as the famous brigadeiro made with 100% cocoa, dates and nut milk (R$ 11), without wheat, sugar or lactose. The so-called millionaire bar, made of 70% chocolate, combines nuts, dates and tahini (R$ 19). Available to order, the Moroccan cake is made with spices, chestnut flour and orange blossom water.
R. Barão de Tatuí, 555, Vila Buarque, central region, tel. (11) 99615-1873, @fiocacs

HT – Healthy Sweets

The menu of sweets free of gluten, lactose and sugar is extensive and features delicacies such as vegan paçoca covered with 70% chocolate (R$ 68 for four pieces) and Italian pistachio straw (R$ – both are sweetened with natural sweetener (R$ 37). Orders are made for delivery.
Al. Franca, 147, Jardim Paulista, western region, WhatsApp (11) 98777-7271, @htdocessaudaveis

Isabela Akkari

The brand, one of the pioneers of so-called healthy confectionery, was created by Isabela Akkari ten years ago and became a kind of brand. The products are made without gluten, lactose, refined products or artificial preservatives. The alfajores are popular, in flavors such as dulce de leche, brigadeiro and pistachio (R$ 24 each), but there are also chocolate bars, cakes, pies, brigadeiros and brownies. Akkari recently created his own brand of sweetener, Nanéa, made with a mixture of isolated tapioca fiber and stevia — a 1 kg package sells for R$125.
R. Comendador Miguel Calfat, 410, Itaim Bibi, western region, @isabelaakkari

Nana Atelier

Prepares gluten-free, refined and preservative-free sweets and cakes, with sugar-free and lactose-free options. The protein cookie pie (from R$55) is made with almond flour, organic rice flour and zero-sugar coconut milk chocolate – the filling can be vegan brigadeiro. Orders are made to order for delivery or collection at the studio.
R. Comendador Miguel Calfat, 392, Vila Nova Conceição, south region, @_nana.atelier

Grain Bread

In this artisanal bakery, breads and sweets are prepared without sugar, lactose or gluten. In the window facing the street, desserts such as red fruit cheesecake (R$ 26), banoffee (R$ 26), cinnamon roll (R$ 22) and cakes, such as corn with guava syrup (R$ 23) and of cocoa with house-made ganache (R$ 22).
R. Barão de Capanema, 440, Cerqueira César, western region, WhatsApp (11) 3082-5040, @padariapaodograo

UrbanKitchen

The restaurant has a healthy approach and does not use refined sugar in its desserts, which are worth highlighting – instead, it uses stevia, natural sweeteners or organic demerara sugar. One of the suggestions is the meringue, made with vanilla cream, strawberries, berry coulis and whipped cream (R$ 27). Also in the sugar-free line, the devil’s cake in a jar (R$ 27) is a chocolate cake with coconut flour, cream and chocolate ganache.
R. Ferreira de Araújo, 332, Pinheiros, western region, tel. (11) 99498-3336, @urbankitchen.br