by Julie Engelhardt Special to South Valley Newspapers
For some people, spending the entire day in the kitchen cooking and baking is the last thing they want to do. But that isn't the case for Hollister moms Anna Hernandez and Karen Bushaw.
Instead of shying away from these domestic duties, Hernandez and Bushaw love spending time in the kitchen creating sweet confections. And now, because of a simple ad they both answered in the newspaper, they spend up to 40 hours a week baking cakes, cookies and pies for hundreds of people. These former stay-at-home moms are the new pastry chefs at the Cedar House Restaurant.
According to restaurant manager Tony Ybarra, Cedar House has been trying to staff the bakery for the past two years. Yet he and the owners, Murphy and Carol Sabatino, could never find the right person to fill the job.
"I was looking for something that was a little more down-to-earth, a little more home-style baking as opposed to commercial industrial baking," Ybarra said.
So Ybarra, the Sabatinos and chef Jose Ostiguin sat down one day to discuss the type of person they needed. They hit upon the idea of looking beyond chefs who had been trained in restaurants or culinary schools, and decided to place ads looking specifically for homemakers to fill the job.
"Who better knows about doing things like this than stay-at-home moms?" Ybarra said. "Because they are the ones who are baking, they're the ones who know what you want, they're the ones who are smiling at your friends when you're coming home from school. That's what we needed."
And that's what they found in Hernandez and Bushaw.
Hernandez, who has five kids ranging in age from 6 to 20, had worked for the Hollister School District but decided to take leave when her youngest child was born. As her children grew, Hernandez knew she would have to find a job eventually, but she didn't know what she wanted to do.
That's when she saw the ad for the pastry chef position. Although her friends and family had always raved about her cooking, Hernandez was uncertain about answering the ad. She first checked with her family to see if she should go for it.
"My 20-year-old said, 'Mom, it's the perfect job for you - make your pumpkin roll,'" Hernandez said.
She went to the interview on a Friday, and as Hernandez described it, the experience wasn't what she expected.
"One of the first things Tony said was, 'Tell me about your carrot cake,'" she remembered. "I must have answered correctly because I was hired on the spot." She began work the following Monday.
Bushaw, who is the mother of two teens, has worked off and on over the years for a doctor's office, a title company and for her husband's business.
"I was actually sitting at an open house for my husband, going through the paper, and I saw the ad and decided to call and just see," Bushaw said. "When I talked with Tony, he was so sweet."
Bushaw remembered being a wreck when she went for her interview.
"You lose that confidence a little bit when you don't work outside of the home," she said. "That was the biggest factor, getting over that."
After interviewing with Ybarra, Bushaw met Hernandez.
"I just got a feeling from her that felt good," Bushaw said. "I just watched her work in there and we got to walk around, and I left the restaurant thinking, 'If I could do half of what she's doing, then I'll be fine.' I went home and told my kids and husband. I was on such a high. I feel that way - I just love her."
A third chef, Peggy Fortino, will be joining the other two ladies, and her specialties include cake design and decorating as well as French pastries.
The Cedar House is undergoing renovations and will soon offer accommodations for weddings and receptions. With Fortino on board, patrons can purchase wedding cakes directly from the restaurant.
Hernandez and Bushaw have their own specialties, too. Hernandez offers up her pumpkin roll as well as fruit pies, cookies and cakes. Bushaw loves to make cookies, specializing in chocolate chip cookies, monster cookies and Italian cookies such as biscotti.
"When I first started here and baked my first baked good, and somebody bought it, that was the most amazing thing," Bushaw said. "You're so used to baking for your family and friends, but to have somebody purchase your baked good - and like it - it was an amazing feeling."
The new partnership has been a win-win situation for everyone involved. Ybarra is pleased with the end result - more desserts to offer to customers both in the restaurant and for take-out. The idea to hire homemakers as pastry chefs has been a hit with the staff as well as the patrons, and the new chefs love their new jobs.
"I think that stay-at-home moms who are trying to get back into the work force should be given a chance," Ybarra said. "These ladies have all kinds of talents and just need to have the opportunity to use them."
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