Great Everyday Meals Magazine | By Momma Cuisine July-September 2017 | Page 18
GEM: Can you share a little bit about your
background and how your Sweet Life blog
came about?
VR: My initial goal for Sweet Life was to teach
myself to bake. I wanted to showcase how eas-
ily it could be to bake delicious treats at home.
I posted a few recipes, then quickly became
uninspired. The process felt forced, not relata-
ble to me. One evening I was preparing dinner
for the family. Mi cariño (hubby) suggested I
share my frijoles de olla on the site. I told him
he was crazy – who would want to hear about
beans. He said, it would be a reflection of the
cooking you do day to day, why not share what
you cook for us daily? That evening I share my
recipe for frijoles.
The next day I received three emails from read-
ers, the following day ten more and by the end
of the week I had received almost fifty emails
from readers stating that they loved my recipe
and had always wanted to learn how to make
the frijoles their grandma made for them. I was
blown away with the supportive emails and
then began sharing the plates of my childhood
and the plates mami made for us growing up.
The next day I received three emails from
readers, the following day ten more and by
the end of the week I had received almost
fifty emails from readers stating that they
loved my recipe and had always wanted to
learn how to make the frijoles their grandma
made for them.”
GEM: Where do you go or what do you do to
find the inspiration to keep creating all of these
amazing dishes and drinks?
VR: My family and I enjoy taking road trips.
Texas is so big that you could drive 2 or 3 hours
in any direction and be in a new, exciting city.
We love eating where the locals eat, so this in-
spires me to recreate these amazing dishes at
home. My husband and I also take mini week-
end vacays to go bar hopping. I like to chat with
the bartenders, pick up a few tips and sip on
their creations.
I also recently began a Cooking with Sweet Life
Facebook Live show where I feature a Talent-
ed Tejano each week. I head into their kitch-
en where they share a favorite family recipe,
and I shake up a cocktail that pairs with the
dish. Hearing the stories of how their mothers,
aunts, fathers cooked for them growing up re-
ally pushes me to spend time with new friends
in the kitchen.
GEM: What is a typical day like for you?
VR: A typical day for me is hard to say because
each day is so different. I try to begin each day
without jumping on social media, ya tu sabes.
I homeschool my daughters, so after breakfast,
we go over the day’s schedule then they con-
centrate on their schoolwork. I jump on the
computer to answer emails, schedule client
calls, edit pictures, and draft posts. At noon I
make lunch and begin prep for the recipe I plan
to shoot that day, which we will have for din-
ner. I try to shoot at least three recipes a week,
plus two cocktails and plan-prep for the larger
shoots I do for clients.
I recently transitioned my blog to a lifestyle
blog to include entertaining, DIYs, and trav-
el so for the larger bigger shoots, I call in my
pho