The story of the Nicaraguan woman who bakes cakes in Homestead, Florida

Rosalba Ruiz Cuarezma has been a lover of the good taste of Nicaraguan pastries. But since she moved to the United States in 2002, she has encountered a different culture, as the ingredients of the cakes she tasted were different and took her away from the tradition that had accompanied her for years.

She assures Diario La Prensa that this was one of the reasons that inspired her to start her own business: Jeshua’s Cakes 100% Nicaraguan, which operates in Homestead, Miami Dade County. Ruiz says, “I started making Nicaraguan cakes because Nicaraguan relatives helped me create the original recipe, because I was troubled because the cakes here have nothing to do with Nicaraguan cakes, which are very delicious, ” says Ruiz, who also prepared these in Managua. Where does it originate from?

Although the business was officially founded in 2020, Ruiz, 47, says she started selling cakes in 2005, inspired by the arrival of her first child and the financial situation of her household. He had advertising space in a local newspaper in Miami, but it did not attract many customers so he abandoned the project.

“I got a call from there. So when I was able to work legally, I completely forgot about it, because it wasn’t really working for me,” says Ruiz, who found herself legalized in the United States. Had to wait seven years to be able to make it and get a good job. ,

Ruiz Cuarezma believes that she inherited her passion for pastries from her great-grandmother and maternal grandmother (RIP), as both of them were chefs. In addition, he received as an inheritance a family recipe, which he still preserves and allows his business to succeed. “I had a passion for food, for Nicaraguan things, always cooking delicious things, even my (Christmas) stuffing is 10 out of 10,” he says proudly.

He also claims that thanks to an uncle he was able to pay for a pastry course, which allowed him to apply it to the traditional recipe for pastries made in Nicaragua. Apart from cakes, she also prepares desserts like Pio Vie, Tres Leches; And even pudding or cupcakes.

For him, the best filter for cake is his own taste. “I think that’s what it is, that when you cut it, you say: ‘This is a Nicaraguan cake’, so simple and besides, that it passed my test, my test, which is the most Importantly, because I was tired of eating the same thing.”, account.

a business opportunity

Ruiz says he always knew baking was one of his skills, but he never saw it as a business opportunity. He added, “I never felt like it was something I was going to do.”

While waiting for her immigration document, Ruiz, in addition to making cakes, shipped products to Nicaragua so that a sister could sell them and make a small profit. She also cleaned houses until she got a job as an office worker. However, the death of her employer and staff cutbacks left her unemployed in 2015.

With the arrival of his son in 2017 and the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the economic situation put pressure on his family and he considered starting over “because remember they always say geniuses are born in adversity,” He says.

Ruiz says his mother, who was visiting Miami, inspired him to start selling cakes again. “One day we were talking and I said to her: ‘Mom, imagine if I had given up making cakes, I don’t know what’… And my husband’s birthday came, and he says to me: ‘Why what? We don’t make cakes for her’; and I do it and she says to me ‘Wow, this is delicious. I can’t believe you’re not doing this,'” says Ruiz, who also loves her husband. Had support so that he could devote himself completely to the business.

For Nicaraguans, social networks were a great advantage for promoting business as it led to more advertising and customers started coming. Now it has Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok. “It was an incredible thing, it slowly started selling, people came in the middle of the pandemic, they didn’t care; They came with masks and that’s how I distributed, that’s how I worked and, thank God, Jeshua’s Cakes has been running for three years and it’s successful,” he says.

The enterprise operates out of Ruiz’s home, has a legal operating permit, an LLC license (limited liability company) and works to order with 48 hours’ notice. Ruiz dedicates himself 100% to his venture; And her children and husband help her in preparing the cake. It also does delivery.

“I’ll give you your super fresh, delicious cake, made with traditional, authentic Nicaraguan meringue, that hardens like a foam,” Ruiz proudly claims, assuring that its ingredients. It uses a percentage of Nicaraguan products to guarantee the good taste and texture of the cake.

It has a Nicaraguan clientele, but has also won over the tastes of Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Venezuelans, Peruvians and Cubans. “When people eat cake, actually, I tell you, well I even put videos of my reviews, people say to me: ‘You transported me back to my childhood’, and that’s something you don’t know that. How do I get it done,” he said. They say.

Ruiz assured that they have up to 20 orders a day and that Mother’s Day, Christmas and New Year’s celebrations are good dates for business. “I do everything step by step, with my own hands, nothing is bought, nothing is pre-made,” he says.

It also handles orders for weddings, 15th birthdays, first communions and even church celebrations. “I think the fact of making it authentic is the key to success, the path to success that I’m still on and I know we can grow even more,” he says.