Episode 72: What Does Elevating Puerto Rican Cuisine Look Like in Practice? - with Executive Chef Yari Vargas
Small Business Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Small Business Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 72: What Does Elevating Puerto Rican Cuisine Look Like in Practice? - with Executive Chef Yari Vargas

We’re going to talk about Puerto Rican food in this episode. The underlying theme in our conversation surrounds the question - Is Puerto Rican food healthy? And by that we mean...how do we think about our food? Do we only look at it as fast food? Why do we eat the food we eat today? Are we ignoring other parts of our ancestral history in trying to maintain what we feel is the “right way” to make Puerto Rican food today? And - are we challenging ourselves enough to think of different ways that elevate the way Puerto Rican cuisine is presented without losing that same great flavor?

Today we welcome Yari Vargas - executive chef and owner of Casa Yari in Chicago - to discuss these questions and more. We’re also going to hear about her journey to becoming a small business owner, what being Puerto Rican and Honduran means to her, and her Puerto Rican food recommendations for people who want to be a bit more health conscious ahead of the holiday dinner season.

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Episode 71: The Honeycomb Network Creates a BIPOC Collective Care Sanctuary + PC1003 Becomes Law - What That Means For Puerto Rico’s Pensions, Education & Public Services
Small Business Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Small Business Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 71: The Honeycomb Network Creates a BIPOC Collective Care Sanctuary + PC1003 Becomes Law - What That Means For Puerto Rico’s Pensions, Education & Public Services

It's a packed episode today! First, we welcome Denise Ruiz and Cristina Guitirrez to the show. They are the founders of The Honeycomb Network - a holistic co-working and co-creating collective care sanctuary centered and focused on the BIPOC community. We learn more about their organization, and we cover a lot of ground on things like knowing your worth, opening their space during the pandemic, creating spaces for people to address their generational trauma and personal healing. They also share a story of dealing with people in the neighborhood, who don’t take too kindly to what they do and their mission, which has led to the repeated vandalization of their space. 

Then we welcome returning guest, freelance journalist from Puerto Rico, Carlos Berrios Polanco, to discuss the controversial bill known as PC1003 that recently became law in Puerto Rico. It’s basically a law that takes care of La Junta and vulture capitalists and takes away from pensions, education, and public services that working people benefit from so deeply.

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Episode 67: Puerto Rican Desserts, the Baking Industry & Starting a Small Business with the Owner of Borinken Cakes
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 67: Puerto Rican Desserts, the Baking Industry & Starting a Small Business with the Owner of Borinken Cakes

Being a small business owner can be tough, and the pandemic has only made things harder, especially for BIPOC owners. On today's episode, we welcome Boricua small business owner, Rachel Diaz, to the show. She is the owner of a Puerto Rican Bakeshop called Borinken Cakes. She’s a working mother of two, who - before getting into the baking business - had a career in product design with products appearing on the shelves of retailers like Target, Michael's, and Joann Fabrics. When she entered the baking industry, she went from baking at home, to operating out of a mall kiosk to now owning two storefronts. We’re going to talk with Rachel about what it took for her to start her own business, the challenges she faced as a small business owner, and of course, the wonderful world of Puerto Rican desserts!

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Episode 29: John Vasquez Mejias & The Puerto Rican War
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 29: John Vasquez Mejias & The Puerto Rican War

We talk a lot about the importance of knowing our history as Puerto Ricans on this show, including the ways in which our history is kept from us. Some people recommend watching documentaries and reading books, but what about seeing and reading our history in the form of a graphic novel?

Storyteller, artist and art teacher, John Vasquez Mejias, joins the show to talk about the Puerto Rican War - a graphic novel that tells the story of Puerto Rican revolutionaries fighting American colonialism in 1950. We spoke to him a couple of weeks ago to talk about his purpose behind this graphic novel, his art and his perspective on the back-to-school debate as a teacher amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Episode 27: A Puerto Rican Birthday in Quarantine
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 27: A Puerto Rican Birthday in Quarantine

Vanessa Torres thought she would be celebrating her birthday solo in quarantine, but she was surprised by a Boricua Birthday Parade on her block just for her with cars filled with family and friends. We invited Vanessa Torres, Anais Zayas, and Mary Santana from the Miracle Center to talk about this moment, why it mattered and what their work at TMC looks like during the COVID-19 quarantine.

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Episode 23: Healing Jodonas with Melissa Cintron & Dorian Ortega
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 23: Healing Jodonas with Melissa Cintron & Dorian Ortega

Co-founders of Healing Jodonas, Melissa Cintron and Dorian Ortega join the show. We discuss what Healing Jodonas is, their monthly healing poetry circles, and the effects healing poetry circles can have on someone dealing with things like burnout, trauma, etc. We also had the chance to listen to some poetry from past Healing Jodonas Healing Poetry Circles.

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Episode 19: Creator of Shop La Maestra & CPS Teacher, Sabrina Alicea
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 19: Creator of Shop La Maestra & CPS Teacher, Sabrina Alicea

On this week’s episode of the Paseo Podcast, I am joined by Sabrina Alicea. She is the creator of Shop La Maestra, is a 7th grade Chicago Public School Teacher, Member of the Chicago Teachers Union Local 1, and a Chicago Boricua with an Ivy League master's degree.

We are going to talk about Sabrina’s Shop La Maestra brand, life as a POC at Harvard University, the realities of being a Chicago Public School Teacher, the recent CTU strike and a whole lot more.

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Episode 17: IL Legal Weed with Che.dibles Founder
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 17: IL Legal Weed with Che.dibles Founder

In honor of Weed being legal now in Illinois, Michelle Vazquez from Che.dibles joins the Paseo Podcast to discuss her cannabis-infused treats. Che.dibles is Puerto Rican owned, latina owned, a small business, and Chicago made.

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Episode 14: An Urban Pilón Thanksgiving
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 14: An Urban Pilón Thanksgiving

Urban Pilón founder, Chef Roberto Pérez, joins the podcast just in time for the holidays. We talk cooking dos & don'ts, recipe suggestions for beginners & pros, & creating a Puerto Rican Thanksgiving...we don't always have to have a Turkey - baked pasteles anyone?

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Episode 7: The Urban Theater Company
Joshua Smyser-DeLeon Joshua Smyser-DeLeon

Episode 7: The Urban Theater Company

Puerto Rican actor, producer, & co-founder of the Urban Theater Company, Ivan Vega, joins the show! We talk UTC & the Chicago theater scene.

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