Freshly baked empanadas, pan dulce and homemade refreshments were among the goods sold by LBCC culinary arts students at their Dia de Los Muertos bake sale held at LAC on Thursday.
The bake sale took place between the T and V buildings, a placement which was intentional according to those who were organizing and running the event.
“We wanted to be in a spot where we would get good foot traffic,’” Julio Maya, a culinary arts student who helped organize the event said.
“We wanted to be positioned between classes and student’s cars so they can see us as they leave,” said Maya.
Their strategy worked, the fundraiser had a steady stream of people coming to support and purchase baked goods from them.
Alongside Maya, Jaime Pich, another culinary arts student, spent a great deal of time preparing for the event.
LBCC student, Emmy Edwards, right, makes a purchase with her phone alongside her friend Joe Norvell (center) at the culinary arts bake sale fundraiser. Norvell bought an empanada as well from LBCC culinary arts student, Julio Maya (left). (Tenoa Stewart)
The two wanted to make sure all the food was prepared as fresh as possible, spending the week leading up to the event solely on food prep.
“Preparation is what takes the longest,” Pich said. “There’s a lot that goes into measuring and getting ingredients ready, the night before we proofed the bread and made sure to bake everything the day of.”
Proofing is a baking process in which yeast has time to ferment allowing dough to rise before baking.
Among those who stumbled upon the bake sale was Kimberly Marquez who noticed the event being set up on her way to class and decided to stop by and purchase some food before leaving campus.
“It’s nice to see different clubs being involved with food and culture,” Marquez said. “There’s no need to travel to places to experience cultures, it’s brought here.”
Lordes Roa, also a culinary arts student purchased baked goods from the sale with the intention of placing them on an altar for her deceased family members for Dia de Los Muertos.
“I heard about the fundraiser over social media and wanted to make a point to stop by and show some support,” Roa said.
While the event was themed toward Dia de Los Muertos and not Halloween, organizers still chose to host it on Thursday, one day before Dia de Los Muertos would be officially celebrated, due to the lack of foot traffic on campus on Fridays.
The event was held by A Taste of LBCC, a club which is attended by a majority of culinary arts students but is open to all students.
The club hosts cooking meetings where students can come and cook foods from different cultures, they also help students update resumes and host social events.
“We try to make sure everyone knows they’re invited. Anyone who is interested in cooking is more than welcome to stop by,” Maya said.