What started as a special request from Gloria and Emilo Estefan has turned into one of Miami's new taste sensations. The Estefan's daughter was planning her Quince party and had requested a cake in her favorite flavors: guava and cream cheese. Iliana Lombardero, owner of Divine Delicacies Custom Cakes created a masterpiece that delighted the Estefans and has become a very popular selection at her bakery located near the FIU campus in Miami.

Divine Delicacies Custom Cakes has baked cakes for many national and local celebrities. In addition to the Estefans, the bakery has created custom cakes for singer Rihanna, director John Singleton, Miami Heat player Dwyane Wade, and Carmen Electra.

On any afternoon, the store may be busy with people stopping by to look through photos of the many available cakes. The store has a licensing agreement with Brazilian artist Romero Britto. The bakery's current catalog includes more than a dozen colorful Britto-inspired creations. Even the lowly Bundt cake gets some new twists here, with flavors like dulce de leche, guava, pineapple, and mango.

Although many cakes sold here are made to order, the store also offers several “Cakes-to-Go” – ready-made cakes in the signature vanilla rum flavor that can be personalized.

“The Three Guys From Miami get a lot of requests from people who are looking for a true Cuban cake for their wedding or special party,” Musibay says. “Divine Delicacies is a great choice – a great cake – I loved it!”

Lombardero and her husband Jorge Rodriguez started baking cakes in Havana in 1985 where they earned quite a following for their delicious and artistic creations. The bakery's signature cake is a vanilla rum cake and it finds its way into many types of elaborately decorated cakes for everything from Father's Day to birthdays, weddings, and celebrity events.

“My husband Jorge was the master of the fondant cake,” Lombardero said. “His cake designs have been used by several prominant Miami bakeries.”

Open: Tuesday through Saturday 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM | Monday & Sunday Closed

Divine Delicacies Custom Cakes

1659 SW 107 Avenue

Miami, Florida 33165

305-554-4446

Website: www.ddcakes.com

Recently, Lombardero invited the Three Guys From Miami to come over and try the guava cream cheese cake. On a recent sultry Saturday, Jorge Castillo and Raúl Musibay visited the shop. Both men were delighted to find a freshly baked cake that literally had their name on it.

“Sometimes the filling in guava pastries can be very thick and cloyingly sweet,” says Castillo. “In this cake the guava favor is very light – almost subtle. And my wife tells me that this is the moistest cake she's ever eaten.”

Sweet, moist, and dripping with sweet guava goodness...

Almost too pretty to slice!

(L-R) Jorge Castillo, Laura Rodriguez, Iliana Lombardero, and Raúl Musibay.

Sadly, Jorge Rodriguez passed away in 2004. However, his wife and two beautiful daughters are carrying on the family tradition. “My sister and I were blessed with my father's passion,” says daughter Laura Rodriguez. “We will forever carry on his legacy at Divine Delicacies.”

When Cubans cook out, it's common to start the grilling with several Spanish-or Portuguese-style chorizos to be eaten as appetizers while the main dish cooks. Chorizos for the grill are not the typical dry cured Spanish chorizo, but a semi-cured cooking sausage.

These "Peregrino" Spanish-style chorizos are made in America using a traditional Spanish recipe that includes smoked sweet Spanish paprika, Cadiz sea salt, and fresh garlic. They are great on the grill and always tender and moist.

Find out more by clicking here.

Spanish Cooking Chorizo

Still the king in our book, the Palacios chorizo is our favorite for paella and rice dishes or just lightly fried and served as a snack with Manchego cheese and Cuban bread. This flavorful chorizo is made by a family-owned company in Spain.

The delicious pork sausage is seasoned with sweet smoked paprika This mild chorizo is made from a generations-old recipe by a family-owned company in La Rioja.

Seasoned with sweet smoked paprika , Palacios chorizo is all natural with no artificial preservatives.

Find out more by clicking here.

Chorizo for Use in Most Recipes

“Three Guys From Miami Celebrate Cuban” is our latest book. Here you'll find many classic Miami Cuban recipes, this time with an emphasis on dishes that are great for parties.

“Three Guys From Miami Cook Cuban” is our first book. It contains many classic Miami Cuban recipes and favorite dishes.

Two great Miami Cuban cookbooks!

Capture the Cuban Flavor of Miami.

Cubans have been living in Key West for more than 150 years.

Sure, it is a great place to party and for most tourists, Key West is all about Piña coladas and Jimmy Buffet. After a hot day in the sun in Key West, the cool evening brings the nightly sunset festival on Mallory pier and a mile-long block party along historic Duval Street. With sun, sand, and fishing in the daytime and a lively party scene at night, it is easy to forget the great Cuban heritage of Key West. Cubans have been living in Key West for more than 150 years.

Florida and the Keys have been forever connected to Spain. Even the name Key West is a transcription of the island's original Spanish name, “Cayo Hueso” so named for the human bones found in local Indian burial mounds. Early Spanish explorers led by Ponce de Leon came to Florida in 1513 and claimed it for the Spanish crown. Although France and England laid claim to it at varying times, Spain held Florida and the Keys through much of its colonial history until 1815 when Spain ceded Florida to the United States.

In the early 19th century, the business of Key West was wrecking and marine salvage. Shallow waters and the nearby coral reefs led to scores of offshore shipwrecks. Salvaging ships that had run aground became a profitable venture that employed hundreds of sailors recently arrived from New England states.

The start of Cuba's Ten-Year War for independence brought a large wave of Cuban immigrants to Key West. During this time, more than ten percent of the Cuban population fled the island for U. S. cities such as New York, Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Key West. Vicente Martinez Ybor, a Spaniard who supported the Cuban rebels, arrived in Key West in 1869 and established the first cigar factory. Key West proved to be ideal for cigar making. Much like Cuba, Key West has a perfect temperature and humidity that allows tobacco to remain pliable throughout the manufacturing process.

Cigar making proved to be a very profitable venture for factory owners and workers alike. Using tobacco shipped daily from Cuba by ship, skilled cigar makers could make as much as $50 per week. Within a few years, cigar making became even bigger than marine salvage. At its peak, Key West's cigar industry included more than 200 factories that produced over 100 million cigars per year.

Finding the Cuban side of Key West can be a challenge amid the carnival atmosphere of the more touristy spots. Perhaps the most visible reminder of Cuban influence is the hundreds of roosters that seemingly run wild on the narrow streets and lanes near the Naval Station. This wild flock descends from the many Cuban roosters brought to the island to compete in the sport of cock fighting.

The Key West Historic District or Old Town Key West includes more than 3,000 historic structures in a 200-block area that includes Key West's business district and about 30 percent of its housing.

Admit it, when you think of Key West, you're probably thinking about something like this!

Walk along some of the byways to discover a side of Key West that has not changed much in 100 years. Along the 600 block of Elizabeth Street are shotgun-style houses that Cuban cigar workers once occupied. These simple, three-room Bahamas-style cottages are small and narrow, partially due to the lack of lumber, but mostly due to the slender lots made necessary by limited island space.

Many Key West houses have front porches and shuttered windows to control sunlight and protect against storms. Several homes still have cisterns to capture rainwater, as there is no natural source of fresh water anywhere in the Keys. Some of these cigar maker's cottages have been converted into guesthouses and there is at least one example remaining on Duval Street. A one-story cottage is now the home of Cuba! Cuba!—a store that specializes in Cuban art and memorabilia.

Key West

Sure, come for the party atmosphere, but while you are here explore the Cuban side of Key West. There are several sites of Cuban historical significance in Old Town Key West and along Duval Street, although several have been repurposed to cater to the tourist trade.

Check out our complete Cuban Key West Travel Guide HERE.

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