Cookies are the most magical pastry item. They can be soft, hard, small, big, or even crunchy on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside. But have you tried perfecting a cookie recipe to your exact liking? I have, and it is NOT EASY. Especially when in my family, my husband likes the soft and gooey and I like the more crunchy cookie. My daughter likes exotic flavors and my son likes plain ole chocolate chip. So when buying (or making) cookies, its no easy task to please everyone. Until I found Flamingos and Honey.
My son and I go to the Mercola Market on Tuesdays to check out all the local vendors, and to support small, when we stumbled upon Flamingos and Honey. The owner, Lorena, greeted us with the warmest smile that instantly drew us into her booth. She acknowledged us both and asked what kind of cookies we enjoy. She let my son sample a Chocolate Chip cookie, which he devoured instantly, and I grabbed a sample of the Guava White Chocolate cookie for my daughter to try later. I took home a Chocolate Chip and a Flourless Monster cookie and a few samples of the other flavors Lorena had that week. When my family and I ate the cookies, we knew we found our new favorite baker! Lorena with Flamingos and Honey officially became our "cookie lady". I knew I had to go back the following Tuesday, purchase more, and get to know her business better!
The following Tuesday, we went back. She remembered exactly who we were which was amazing on its own, and she even remembered my son liked the Chocolate Chip and gave him a sample while we talked. I have been to many markets and bakeries, but I have never felt so welcomed as I do when going by Lorena's booth. Of course my first question was, what is her secret? But just like a magician, a baker never reveals her secret.
Flamingos and Honey is a Florida Bakery meaning Lorena tries to get all of her ingredients from other local farms and businesses. She truly believes in supporting others to maintain a strong community. Lorena handcrafts all her cookies in small batches to ensure you are getting the most fresh and delicious cookies each and every time! To me, supporting local, and not mass producing your cookies in giant bulks, really goes a long way. I know when purchasing a cookie from her, not only am I supporting her small business, but I am supporting others as well.
Speaking of Florida, thats part of how she came up with the name Flamingos and Honey! Lorena wanted a name that represented Florida. Something that represented both tropical and sweet. And then it hit her! Her love for Flamingos is very tropical and her husbands love for sweets. Honey! "Florida isn't the land of Milk and Honey, its the land of Flamingos and Honey!"
Now when you taste the Flamingos and Honey cookies, you may think the business has been opened for a long time. To perfect the recipes, Flamingos and Honey has had to been around for years! Well we are all wrong! Lorena started her career as a classically trained Pastry Chef and has worked in several prominent restaurants and hotels throughout Florida, but Flamingos and Honey has only been up and running, from Lorena's house, since October 31st, 2022! Not even a full year yet! While at the moment, Lorena doesn't have a storefront, you can still order cookies through the website, www.flamingosandhoney.com, and by visiting her on Tuesdays at the Mercola Market in Cape Coral.
When you start a business from the ground up, you always have a motive or inspiration. Lorena's inspiration to start Flamingos and Honey actually came from her own mother. As a child, Lorena and her mother would bake for each holiday, every achievement, and every other excuse they could find. Memories like that are precious and need to be preserved. Lorena's mother taught her to always pursue her passion and her dreams. For Lorena, those memories inspire her everyday to continue to bake and to show her mother that she is the strong woman that her mother raised. So because of Lorena's mothers guidance, and encouragement, Flamingos and Honey is woman owned and woman invested.
I know I personally have fell in love with her cookies, but its not just the delicious round sweets that keep me coming back. Its Lorena. She has always shown me and my family kindness and that really does go a long way. Learning about her story, her mother, and that she supports locally, is all just a great reminder on why I started my own business as a Publisher with Macaroni KID. My grandparents always taught me that if you are doing something you love, you wont have to work a day in your life. And that is exactly what Lorena shows me each time I see her. I am proud to support Flamingos and Honey each week and very honored to be able to call Lorena a friend. Now don't take my word for it, and try her cookies yourself!
