In a township mushrooming with cafes, here’s one with a unique selling point: Calcutta Confecti in AE Block makes breads with oats instead of refined flour, replaces sugar with jaggery, and seed oils with olive oil. It is a healthy cafe.

“I started my home bakery eight years ago, but always insisted on natural ingredients. A turning point came when my mother, a diabetic, passed away. Thereafter, I decided not to sell sugar — white poison — to my customers,” says Propa Chakravartty, a resident of New Town’s Elita Garden Vista. Her cloud kitchen continues to operate from Salt Lake’s BD Block.

A fitness enthusiast herself, Propa longs for wholesome, protein-rich meals when eating out. “So we’re offering a Chicken Oats Burger (Rs 250) that contains a solid 40g of protein. The oats bread is made from scratch, and we use the healthy Greek yoghurt don’t instead of yeast for fermentation,” she says. Similar is the Slow-cooked Minced Mutton Baguette (Rs 600). “This one, packed with 500g of mutton, is so filling I expect it to be shared by four people.”

Chocolate-filled doughnuts (left); Chicken Oats Burgers

Desserts like cakes, buns, cinnamon rolls and doughnuts are all healthy too. “Doughnuts elsewhere are fried in palm oil, which is terrible for the arteries. We use olive oil for marination and bake them instead. Our Red Velvet Pastry (Rs 180), which sold out on the first day, uses beetroot for colour rather than artificial dye.”

Another favourite is the Korean Garlic Bun (Rs 120), filled with homemade cream cheese. Despite its east Asian name, it is served with a Middle Eastern hummus dip. “Commercially available dips contain emulsifiers, trans fats and even dalda to increase shelf life,” says Propa. “Ours is made from boiled chickpeas, fresh parsley and olive oil.”

Vegetarians can also try the Mushroom Oats Sandwich (Rs 65) or one made of homemade cottage cheese. “Most places use synthetic paneer these days. I myself have tested paneer from reputed restaurants and found it to be fake. So we make ours from fat-free milk,” she explains.

The cafe itself is cute and cosy, with a bakery display on the ground floor and a staircase leading to a laidback upper floor. “It’s more of a party pad upstairs, with beanbags, board games, and yes, we are pet-friendly too,” says Propa’s husband, Deepta.

The couple admits that it hasn’t been easy to make healthy food tasty. “It took a lot of trial and error to find alternatives,” says Propa.

She hints at a diabetic-friendly Chicken Crust Pizza that should be available during the Pujas. “We are also proud of our coffees. We have a signature blend of Chikmagalur coffee with Belgian chocolate, and have priced it modestly at Rs 90 so all can try it,” she says.