How to be a good Cuban woman in order to marry well.

I had some company over the weekend. My mom and my oldest daughter.

And if Luza (my 95 year old mom) is here, that means I'm cooking. Or, in this case, baking.

And then, of course, there's Amy (my first-born), who is 26 years old, which, in Old-School-Cuban-Grandma-Land is code for "Old Maid" (or "solterona").

Of course, in Old-School-Cuban-Grandma-Land the fault for having a 26 year old who is still (!) unmarried rests squarely on my shoulders. (Bad mother, what?)

Apparently, I didn't teach Amy to cook well enough. Because if she could cook, Luza reasons, she would quickly be snapped up and out of the single woman's ranks just like that! *snaps fingers*

I surreptitiously roll my eyes at this point of the conversation, "Ay, Mami..." I can't even finish with an articulate response.

So I invite Amy to come and bake with me and Luza. The truth is that she (Amy) had found this fabulous recipe for Flan Cake (Flan Cake, people!) on blog-friend, Anne Marie's What's Cookin? Blog and she knew I'd totally be into it. And I totally was. I did tweak it some, but the inspiration came directly from Anne Marie. (Thanks again, Anne Maroo!)

This was Amy's Facebook status on Friday night:

Amy Kikita Hohneker is on her way to her mother's house to learn how to be a good Cuban woman in order to marry well.

All that to say this:

These forces converged on Friday night and together we - Luza, Amy and I... well, technically, Amy and I - made it. My mom sat there and made critical helpful suggestions. The final product was a gorgeous, delicious, amazing, there-are-not-enough-superlatives-in-the-world Flan Cake.