What’s your favorite Cuban Dessert? Please don’t start your answer to this question with “it depends.” I can’t handle: “it depends.” I want the answer to be quick, clean, and uncomplicated. Someone asks you: “What’s your favorite Cuban dessert?” I want you to have the answer handily on the tip of your tongue. I want you to know your mind on ...
Marta’s Favorite Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe
When we first arrived in Miami from Cuba in 1961, a cousin took me to a bakery to get me a treat. Back then, Cubans had not yet taken over the town and this was an old fashioned cake bakery. She purchased a wonderful thing for me. It looked like a cupcake, but with a little more density. There was no frosting, but it had chocolate chips scattered ...
Saying Yes To the Dress
When my husband, Eric proposed to me back in 1992, the first thing I did was go out and buy a couple of those big, fat bridal magazines. I pored over the perfection of the gowns that promised to fulfill every blushing bride's dream. *sigh* The styles back then were both the poufy ballgown type and the closer fitting "mermaid" look. Fitted through ...
5 Things I’m Loving Right Now
There are things I like and there are things I love. (I'm not talking about the obvious, like husband and kids and grandsons.) Right now there are a few things in my life that have I more than love. Truthfully, I'm a little obsessed with them. I know you'll appreciate these as much as I do, because you have excellent ...
25 (and a Half) Years
It's already February, people. Next week is Valentine's Day. Wait. What happened to January? Is it just me? Or does time appear to be like Millennium-Falcon-in-hyperspace zooming away? I'm having a serious case of Tempis Fugit* right now. (*that's Latin for "time flies." Yeah. All those years of Catholic really school paid off, didn't they?) Six ...
Born to Be Wild
{This post is a review of the superMOPI Toddler Motorbike (there's no motor). I was not compensated in any way for writing this. I received a toddler size superMOPI for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.} My grandson, Sebastian - you may call him Bash - is a super-active, high energy kid. He's been walking since before his 8th ...
Mami Always Knows
For years - many more years than I'd care to admit to - I would call my mom with cooking questions. I remember my first attempt at Arroz con Pollo. "Do I have to use the pressure cooker?" (I got over my fear of pressure cooking pretty quickly, but that's not important right now.) "Canned asparagus. Really?" and "Is the beer at the end really ...
Life is in Session
I have been fully intending to do a recap of 2017. But like many of my other good intentions, it hasn't quite gone the way I intended. My answer to the "well, why not?" question remains the same: Life is in session. I have a friend who says that often and I have since adopted the habit of explaining why things do or don't get done. Why do ...
L-love for L-loyd – The Lego Ninjago Movie on Blue-Ray & DVD
This post is in partnership with Warner Bros. Pictures I often say that I love living at this time in history for many reasons. One of my biggest loves is technology. Let me be more specific: I love that I have access to any and every movie on DVD and Blu-Ray. Today all that love goes to my friends at Warner Brothers Home ...
Feeling the Force in Star Wars: The Last Jedi
I was a guest of Disney for this event. All opinions are my own. At the beginning of this month I received an amazing, but cryptic invitation to the Global Press Conference for Star Wars: The Last Jedi. (!) I know. Shut up. In the email were the enigmatic words: Location to be disclosed later. Of course, I accepted right away. But where was it ...
My Big Fat Cuban Christmas Gift Guide 2017
{This is not a sponsored post. All the businesses I'm promoting happen to be ones that I personally like and can recommend.} Christmas shopping is wonderful and terrible, isn't it? We are all generous people and if you're anything like me (and I know you are) you're always looking for the very best Christmas gift for the people on your Nice ...
It’s Cuban Christmas Crema De Vie Time!
It really is the most wonderful time of the year. And as I'm fond of saying, Christmastime is absolutely the best time of the year to be Cuban. Why? I wrote all about that right here: 10 Things That Are Awesome About Being Cuban at Christmas. You're welcome. You'll notice that the very first thing on that list is Crema de Vie. It's our own ...
Get It Before Christmas
Let me explain Cuban Gift Giving for just a moment. At least how it has always worked in my family. The Scene: You're at a family gathering, which for a Cuban family pretty much means any night of the week or stray weekend. You mention that you saw a cute ________ (<--insert name of cute thing you saw in passing) at a shop nearby while you were ...
Elena Ruz Turkey, Guava & Cream Cheese Sliders Recipe
Ah, Thanksgiving. I love this holiday so much. I love that a day has been set aside to give thanks. And I have so very much to be grateful for. I especially love knowing that families across the country are gathered together around the family table, because to me that is an absolutely sacred space. I have posted about how I go about styling ...
There’s No Place Like Home
I'd like to be able to report that I had a Master Plan from the beginning, but that would be a lie. I'm talking about Halloween 2017 At The Darby's. I'm about to let you in on my creative process and how my family works with me to make me crazy help me make it happen. In this case, I had seen a friend's Facebook post last year. (Last year!) ...
