Some of the best birthdays I had growing up always involved a tres leches cake.
Back in my hometown, most people celebrate with a simple cake from Safeway or Walmart. But for my family, Veracruzana Bakery is where the magic is.
The mexican bakery is a simple ten-minute drive from our house. The moment you walk in your nose is absolutely bombarded in the best kind of way.
I love the smells of the fresh loaves of sweet bread being put into the display cases, the sweet icing for the cakes and even the savory scent of whatever dinner item is being cooked in the kitchen.
The bakery is a small business that I miss having so close to me. The staff is friendly, and the food is absolutely to die for. It makes you wonder why more places like this are not as popular.
I think it is very important for small businesses like this to grow. Not only is it worth the buck but you can fully dive into a culture in a way that can be easily appreciated by everyone.
Food is not only the way to take in energy, it’s also the means of showing love for a lot of people.
My mother, for example.
I can count the times she has hugged me on two hands. But there has never been a time where she let me go to sleep hungry.
Sharing food from diverse cultures feels the same. The feeling of a warm hug brought to you in the form of pupusa.
My mother grew up in a truly diverse household, and, although I’m very out of touch with those parts of me, she tries her best to introduce me and my siblings to new things.
We grew up expanding our food palette, and I have come to associate so many Hispanic dishes with the best times in my life.
Back when all of the kids still lived at home, we were buying a Tres leches cake for each of our birthdays, and it would be gone before the week was over. Mind you, these cakes are enormous. And there were six of us living there at the time.
When my mother first found Veracruzana she piled all her kids in the car. We went inside, and I think at this point she looked more excited than any of us were. Her love language is food, and she’d finally found a place that would help us connect. At least our flavor palette, that is.
There is still plenty I don’t know about my family. We come from all over the world, and I still have a lot to learn. But who said I can’t start with the tastiest things first?