I know. You can't believe you read that title right. But it's all true. I have a great recipe for you today.I've been messing with espresso. (Because Cuiban!) Specifically Café La Llave Espresso in some recipes and I'm delighted to share the first of these right here:Café La Llave Espresso Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream Frosting.The ...
Crema de Vie – A Cuban Family Tradition
I've often shared how my family, instead of baking Christmas cookies for gifts, makes a super delicious please-don't-call-it-egg-nog Cuban "egg nog." We call it Crema de Vie and it has been a Cuban family tradition for as long as I can remember. I remember as a child getting to have a sip on Christmas eve. (Shut up. The rum was only used as a ...
What’s Your Favorite Cuban Dessert?
By Marta Darby
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 ...
My Big Fat Cuban Christmas Playlist
Do you love everything about December? I absolutely do. Also, being Cuban at Christmas is like the best thing ever. I wrote about that here: 10 Things That Are Awesome About Being Cuban At Christmas. You're welcome. And because I'm a giver and you asked for it, I created a very Cuban Christmas playlist for you to enjoy while you're making your ...
My Big Fat Cuban Cooking Playlist
As we head into the holidays, we are marking the beginning of what my dad used to call The Gran Comelatas. There's going to be lots of eating which means there's going to be lots of cooking. Lots and lots of cooking. And eating. And so on, and so on... I don't know about you, but there's nothing that makes me happier in the kitchen than some ...
A Cuban Cure for All That Ails You
I know that there are lots of things we Cubans do that are dancing on that fine line between tradition and superstition. This gets dialed way up when we get sick. We have quite the plethora of Old Wives Tales to choose from when it comes to remedies. And we Cubans don't just have plain Old Wives, our Old Cuban Wives (read: 'Abuelas') not only ...
Cuban Bruschetta. Believe it.
I know what you're thinking. You saw the title of this post and you said out loud, "There's no such thing as Cuban Bruschetta." That's also what my mom said. (But then she's a Cuban Mother and it's part of her job description to argue recreationally, but that's not important right now.) Lucy (who is the Bruschetta Expert of the family) asked, ...
Santayana loves Celia
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I love me some Santayana Jewelry. Not gonna lie: their azabache has saved my life a time or two.And I'm not ashamed to say I also love love love! our very own Cuban icon Celia Cruz.To my everlasting delight, today Santayana Jewelers in Miami "le pusieron la tapa a'l pomo" as we like ...
Post Solar Eclipse – Café La Llave Giveaway
By Marta Darby
4/22/2024: CONGRATULATIONS! We have a winner! Good job, Eva! Please contact me via email – send me your physical address so I can forward to Gaviña and they can send you your goodies – also put HEY MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG so I don’t accidentally delete your email. Buen Provecho and thanks for playing along! Editor’s Note: If Eva ...
REAL Snow: A Darby Family Adventure
Sebastian: “I really want to see REAL snow.”❄️ PomPom and Wella: “Say no more.” And we were off! So we packed up our snow gear and drove an hour and a half up to Wrightwood in the local San Gabriel Mountains and enjoyed a glorious 4 day family getaway.We rented a beautiful chalet via Air BnB and it was so worth it! The place was massive, yet ...
Dulce De Leche Cheesecake with Maria Cookie Crust
I am one of those dinosaurs that still enjoys leafing through magazines. (I know. Shut up.)Recently, Lucy and I were sitting in my living room perusing my stack of magazines with Max and Logan happily playing at our feet. Full disclosure: it was Lucy who saw an add in one of the magazines. “MOM! Maria Cookie Crust!” She declared authoritatively.I ...
Hispanic Heritage Coffee Basket Giveaway
By Marta Darby
10/30/23: CONGRATULATIONS! We have a winner! Good job, Patricia! Please contact me via email - send me your physical address so I can forward to Gaviña and they can send you your goodies - also put HEY MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG so I don't accidentally delete your email. Buen Provecho and thanks for playing along! Editor's Note: ...
Cafe La Llave Espresso Ice Cream
It's after Labor Day, which, if you're old school like me, means "put those white shoes away!" It's also supposed to be a time to ease into fall. Am I right? I'm laboring <-- see what I did there? - to bring you another entry into my "Cooking with Coffee" series. You can see the other recipes here: Espresso Coffee Cake and Espresso ...
Summer Café La Llave Basket Giveaway
By Marta Darby
UPDATE: AUGUST 2, 2023 - We have a winner! Thank you all for entering this giveaway. There will be a few more this year, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, congratulations to the winner: ****************************************************************************************** Rebekah ...
Cafe La Llave Espresso Coffee Coffee Cake
I should really start calling this series of challenges "Cooking with Coffee," but that's not important right now.Today I made a Coffee Cake, but not just any Coffee Cake. I made an Espresso Coffee Coffee Cake. What does that even mean? Well, there's brewed espresso in the batter and in the icing. It's a delicious and beautifully caffeinated ...
Hispanic Heritage Café La Llave Giveaway
By Marta Darby
UPDATE:10/24/2022 WE HAVE A WINNER!!WE'RE SO DELIGHTED THAT OUR WINNER IS LEONELLA ALVAREZ! PLEASE SEND ME AN EMAIL WITH "HEY MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! IN THE SUBJECT LINE. SEND YOUR MAILING ADDRESS SO I CAN GET IT OUT TO CAFE LA LLAVE TO SEND YOUR COFFEE GOODIES OUT ...