Meet Natalie Robles | Baker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Natalie Robles and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Natalie, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
Before working in the kitchen full-time, I was working at a Los Angeles nonprofit, so when I decided to start my own small business, I was determined for it to somehow be connected to the community. The pandemic presented some unique opportunities for me to be able to achieve this goal – the smallest, yet most impactful silver lining (for me, at least). One of my dear friends, Karina, and I participated in the Bakers Against Racism bake sale in the summer of 2020. By selling chocolate chip cookies, we were able to raise $1000 for Black Women for Wellness – a local nonprofit that focuses on the well-being of black women and girls. Knowing the funds that we raised were going back to the communities that we grew up in gave the greatest sense of fulfillment. Our passion and creativity could directly help our people. My supervisor from the nonprofit I was previously employed with, Para Los Niños, reached out to me to present an idea in early 2021. Their program was trying to find ways to keep families and kids engaged since kids were at home due to the pandemic, so they thought a virtual cooking class could do the trick. It did! From the very beginning, parents and kids absolutely loved it. I began with a Spring series, teaching the families how to make classic sweets such as brownies and rice cereal treats, along with savory dishes such as roasted vegetables. Since everyone loved it so much, I went on to do a Summer and Fall Series! Each one focused on flavors and dish ideas that would be ideal for the weather and holidays, such as Thanksgiving. However, it was important for me to make the recipes easily accessible to the families since many don’t have certain kitchen appliances and/or tools. I also wanted to focus on cooking techniques and processes so they could carry on these techniques and apply them to other dishes. I always encouraged them to use their creativity and change any flavors that they would like or even substitute ingredients to use any foods that could be going bad. Again, my goal with these series was to teach them different cooking methods to be able to apply in several situations. It has been incredibly fulfilling to be able to share my passion for food with the people in my community and to see a passion be ignited in them as well. I’m excited to start the series again this year!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Getting to the point I am today was not easy. I graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor’s in International Development Studies and a minor in Latin American studies. I always had a passion for food, but I wanted to go an NGO or the nonprofit sector. After working at a local nonprofit called Para Los Niños, I was unfortunately laid off due to budget cuts – not unheard of in the nonprofit arena. I had sold cakes and cookies on the side and had always talked about a pipe dream of switching careers, but I never really knew how or when to pull the trigger. I decided to change my career at the age of (almost) 30. The lay off was a blessing in disguise. Instead of going to grad school as I had originally thought, I decided to go to culinary school.

Going to culinary school full-time while also working at a restaurant was no easy feat, but I’m glad I did it. That level of balancing time prepared me to work at the Ritz-Carlton in Marina del Rey, which is ultimately what has given me the most rewarding work experience. I learned some of the most invaluable lessons in that building, from cooking techniques to patience and everything in between. My fellow pastry team and my pastry chef were the most precious assets there, as they taught me kitchen and life lessons galore.

My orders primarily consist of cakes and custom decorated sugar cookies for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, and everything in between. Last Spring and Summer I offered cream puffs featuring specialty flavors, such as guava, mango, toasted coconut, and strawberry. I plan on bringing them back this year. I hope that all of my experiences – both personally and professionally -shine through in everything I create and all of the flavors I put together. Everything I make has a purpose , and I hope that comes through, too.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Day 1: Walk around Arts District, check out the street art, hang out at EightyTwo for arcade games and drinks, get ice cream at Van Leeuwen Day 2: Beach Day in Long Beach, walk around 4th Street, grab some pastries at Gusto Bread, get lunch at the Attic
Day 3: Sushi Enya in little Tokyo! Donuts at Cafe Dulce and a quick (or not) trip to Daiso and Beard Papas
Day 4: Picnic at Griffith Park – Sandwiches from Wax Paper Co.! Finish to watch the sunset at the Observatory
Day 5: Beach day at Redondo Beach, by the Esplanade, pizza at Pedone’s then ice cream at Handel’s

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes to my family at Para Los Niños. They helped form the foundation for my passion for the community. I always knew I wanted to be involved in helping the underserved somehow, and my family at Para Los Niños not only guided me but helped shape the woman I am today. Without their guidance, I would have never taken the leap to fully invest myself in the culinary world and, ultimately, starting my own small business. They also taught me the importance of self-care, setting boundaries, and taking care of oneself, because you can’t help your community if you aren’t at your best yourself. Maria Lopez, Mayra Gonzalez-Sanchez, Karen Garcia, Darlene Rivas, Angela Leon, Amy Lopez, Teresita Nevarez, Pancho Tamales, Ralph Guirado, Stephanie Padilla, Francis Jacobo, Mireya Ingham – I’m positive I’ve missed a few, but these are all of the names of the humans I will carry with me wherever I go. Their love for the community will always light a fire under me. Another shoutout goes to the pastry team at the Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey (Laketta Phillips, Alondra Zuniga, and Ana Zamora) and my first pastry chef, Karina Pineda. These are some of the strongest women I have ever known. Pushing way past physical and mental pain to get the task at hand done is just one of the feats I will carry with me everywhere I go. Their individual friendships are incomparable.

Website: kneadandsugar.com (under construction!)

Instagram: @kneadandsugar