ince 1990, I’ve been baking up Connecticut’s best cakes and cookies. Baked with real ingredients: butter, sugar, flour, eggs, and heavy cream , all of our Sweet Maria’s cakes and cookies are baked with my passion for delicious sweets.dmc_6440 copy I’ve always loved to bake. Living with my mother and grandmother, baking has always been a part of my life. My extended family of great aunts, cousins and godmothers always had something yummy cooking and were always eager to share their secrets. I learned a lot about baking with only the finest and freshest ingredients. My first part time job in high school and college was at a local neighborhood bakery. Here I learned a lot about production and cake decorating. After earning a Bachelors in Marketing, continued to bake cakes at home for family and friends while holding down a day job in advertising. I baked and decorated cakes at home and delivered them before work for a growing number of corporate accounts. Many are still our customers today. My passionate hobby had now become a thriving home business. In 1990 I opened Sweet Maria’s in an 1800 square foot space in my old neighborhood. At the same time, my Mom retired from her career as a bookeeper and my Dad retired after being a barber for 50 years. My parents, as well as, husband, aunts, and assorted cousins and more, have all become an integral part of the Sweet Maria’s team. After nine years, we moved to larger location, occupying 4,000 square feet and employing 12 year -round employees. And more for seasonal staffing. Most days, it’s a great job to have, baking up delicious sweets and being a part of people’s happiest moments. That’s what matters most. I also love to share recipes and traditions, and that led to having my first cookbook Sweet Maria’s Italian Cookie Tray ( St. Martin’s Press) , published in 1995. It includes 65 recipes for traditional cookies. Three more baking books followed which can now be found in Sweet Maria’s Big Baking Bible. This book compiles all four of my baking cookbooks ( Sweet Maria’s Italian Cookie Tray, Sweet Maria’s Cake Kitchen, Sweet Maria’s Italian Desserts and Sweet Maria’s Cookie Jar) into one must-have volume. Plus The New Lasgana Cookbook ( St. Martin’s Press, too) offers up easy homestyle recipes for everyone’s favorite comfort food. My love of writing, developing, and sharing recipes has also led me to be a frequent contributor to Intermezzo Magazine, and a frequent guest on Better Connecticut. Most times, I can be found at the bakery, with a chocolate covered apron digging into the daily orders, meeting with customers ,teaching a class or signing a cookbook or two. Everyday provides inspiration to create the best and most beautiful cakes and cookies possible. At Sweet Maria’s , our motto has always been “more than just another pretty cake”. It’s always important for it to taste as good as it looks.