Purveyors of Pan Dulce Make Life Sweeter
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You might say finding a delicious dessert in Harlingen is, well … a piece of cake.
That’s certainly the case at A Piece of Cake by Ybarra’s, which earned Best Desserts in Town honors from The Valley Morning Star in both 2006 and 2007. Owned by husband and wife team Maria and Erik Cardenas, the bakery specializes in more than 15 flavors of cakes, including white, chocolate, strawberry, pineapple, piña colada, red velvet, orange mandarin and carrot.
“Some of our most popular cakes are Tres Leches, Strawberry Chantilly and Banana Split,” says Maria Cardenas. “We also make a Chocoflan cake. It’s chocolate cake with flan.”
Cakes aren’t the only treats turned out by the ovens at A Piece of Cake by Ybarra’s. Mexican sweet breads, or pan dulce, including cookies, pies and handmade tamales are also among their offerings.
The Mexican influences in the bakery’s products were handed down from Maria Cardenas’ parents, who emigrated from Mexico.
“My dad started out as a dishwasher, and it was his dream to open a restaurant,” Cardenas says. “He eventually did start a restaurant in Weslaco.”
Cardenas and her brother, Martin Ibarra, followed in their father’s footsteps and opened their first bakery, Ybarra’s Cake Shop, about 30 years ago in Weslaco. Four years ago, they opened a second location in Harlingen. Ibarra continues to operate the Weslaco bakery while Cardenas and her husband run the Harlingen location.
“What I love is decorating cakes and how creative you can be,” Cardenas says. “You can create a boot or a raccoon coming out of a tree stump. I’ve even made a cake in the shape of a space shuttle. There’s a whole new world in cakes – it’s not just a round cake with frosting anymore.”
Lara’s Bakery is another Harlingen establishment known for its ability to satisfy any sweet tooth. It opened in 1957 and has used the same recipes for the last 51 years.
“My mom and dad started it, and I took over three and a half years ago,” says Terri Lara, owner of Lara’s Bakery. “My mother was a Mexican immigrant, and my father was from here. His father had a bakery in a neighboring town.”
Lara’s Bakery’s specialties include molletes, or yeast pastries topped with a colored sweet paste of egg, sugar and shortening; marranitos, or pig-shaped, cookies made with molasses; cinnamon-flavored Mexican wedding cookies; and pumpkin-filled empanadas, which are like turnovers.
“The pumpkin empanadas are a hot item year-round,” Lara says. “People make lines to buy them.”
In 2001, Southern Living magazine got wind of Lara’s Bakery and featured the family’s products.
“They came and took pictures of all our breads,” Lara recalls. “Baking is our family tradition.”
The same is true for Jorge Salas and his family, who own Nelda’s Bakery in Harlingen. Salas, a Mexican immigrant, along with his wife, Delia, has owned the business since 1987. They now spend their days making pumpkin, pineapple and apple empanadas, as well as marranitos, ladyfingers, donuts and other baked goods.
“My papa had a bakery in Mexico, and he was a great teacher,” Jorge Salas says.
In addition to bakery items, Nelda’s offers breakfast tacos, menudo and Mexican barbecue, as well as the convenience of drive-through service.
“A lot of people come to the drive-through for empanadas and coffee,” Salas says.
Story by Jessica Mozo
Photo by Jeff Adkins
