Neidy Venegas has carved a name for herself in the culinary world. Earning her first Michelin star in 2021 while leading the pastry program at Barndiva Restaurant in California, Venegas continues to pave the way for Latinas seeking inspiration in the culinary arts. This time, through a new venture called “Poems N Pastry.”

Leaving the restaurant scene after having her son in 2023, motherhood and postpartum depression birthed a new kind of creativity for this chef. After seeking alternative ways of caring for her child while honing her love of writing and baking, she started producing small batches of sourdough pasta, pastries, and granola. Selling these at pop-up events and local farmer’s markets.

The 36-year-old owner sat down with Modern Muze and dished on the inspiration behind it all and what she hopes comes next in her culinary world.

In 2021, Barndiva Restaurant was awarded a Michelin star while led its pastry program. How has life changed for you since? 

When I was in culinary school, we had to introduce ourselves to the class, and I remember saying, “Hi, my name is Neidy, and I want to be a Michelin Chef one day.” Looking back, it makes me laugh because, truly, my mentality has changed significantly since I started my culinary career. When we received our star, it was in the middle of COVID. We weren’t thinking about it at all. My goal was solely to create a pastry program and get people excited about desserts there.

I’d never created a pastry program from scratch. It was a lot to work on, but I had fun and felt empowered when I accomplished my goal. As far as the star goes, I realized it was only important to me as I spoke the words to my class. After that, what was important to me was to learn from great chefs, to be inspired, and to create always. I stay true to that. If there are accolades, that would be great! But I truly just measure my units of joy these days by seeing my son laugh all day, eat, and be healthy. 

You just became a mom and have shared much of your story through your poems. Recently, you shared that your breastfeeding journey ended. As we celebrate National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, how do you feel that chapter influenced who you are today?

Oh man! Deciding to breastfeed was such a labor of love. I’ve never known, nor will I ever know, another labor of love that is truest to its word than that. I feel so incredibly lucky that I could do it, because there are a lot of parents that cannot. That journey was harder than labor! The hormonal imbalance that happens is brutal. Not to mention the daily interruptions every two hours.

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I felt all I did was sit and feed him, which rips away at the image you have of yourself. Your bodily autonomy is gone for months. It did make me realize that I can make it through anything. The first couple of months of postpartum were some of my darkest days. I was in such a struggle between all the love I felt for my son and the darkness I felt mentally. I felt like an awful mother a lot of the time because in my mind all I should have felt was love, but feeling low was never mentioned, so feeling that way was frowned upon.

That is a tough struggle to get out of. Looking back, I don’t know if I would do it again. There are tons of good mothers who formula-fed with healthy, happy babies. Was it worth my mental health? I don’t know, but I am grateful that journey between my son and I is over. All he has to do now is finish the frozen milk bags in the freezer. 

One of the exciting projects you are working on now is Poems N Pastry. How did it come up and where do you draw inspiration for the prose and the food?

I mentioned earlier my struggle with PPD&A (postpartum depression) and it wasn’t until I was on medication that I really came out of that cloud. It took a while to get because my insurance changed in between, but once it kicked in, I started feeling a bit more like myself. I then started looking for child care, which is honestly a JOKE in America. Clearly, that wasn’t going to happen, but I needed to bring some income, so I decided to create a new IG account. The only thing I thought to name it was Poems N (for my name) Pastry.

That’s really all that I am. I’ve been writing poems ever since I was young. I use words a lot to heal from things or put my feelings into writing. They are not all great or even good, but it is very cathartic for me to finish one, and I even have some good ones in there, too! Pastry has been my career for over a decade, so combining the two felt natural. I didn’t know where I was going with it, either. I was just going to post some poems and whatever I was inspired to make, but I’ve just turned it into a business I hope to grow. 

Tell us about your passion for sourdough and heritage grains. What are some easy dishes people can whip up with your products?

I grew up in a home that cooked every meal and have a mother who always offered fruits and veggies to us. One of my childhood snacks was alfalfa sprouts with lime and salt, I mean what child enjoys that, but I did. As I got older, I just kept an interest in more colorful eating. If you “eat the rainbow” in fruits and veggies, you typically feel very healthy and full of energy. When I became a cook and learned even more about food, farmers and their growing practices just followed. I was very fortunate to meet the Tehachapi Grain Project early in my career. A single-woman operation, bringing LA restaurants whole heritage grains through a regenerative farm. I think the general public needs to be informed about the grains they are consuming.

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Stripping grain away from its husk and the germ is essentially taking away all its nutrients and flavor, as a chef, that just doesn’t make sense. We need to get rid of this notion of, I don’t like the “wheaty” flavor and realize that as a mass population, we’ve been conditioned to ingest nutrition-deprived food that is mass-produced. We need to leave big agriculture behind and focus on regenerative farming. Big agriculture has done enough damage, and with small farmers focusing on rebuilding the topsoil, we can increase biodiversity, improve water cycles, and so much more.

Sourdough is really just a byproduct of healthy eating and being a baker. If we continue introducing good bacteria into our gut, I believe that dictates our overall health. I try and eat a lot of fermented things. Whether in pickles, drinks, breads, cookies, or the sourdough heritage grain dried pasta that I make. People often assume it will all taste sour, say sweet things, like cookies or cakes, but it’s really more about introducing a healthy culture that will carry tons of good bacteria into your gut. They sell tons of pills that introduce good bacteria to your gut for top dollar, but you can do that yourself in a much more tasty way. 

You’re also catering some incredible parties and classes. What can people expect when hiring your services or attending an event?

Honestly, I just try to offer as much as possible. With classes, I believe that guests should leave full of information they didn’t already know. Not only in mind but also in skill. Interactive cooking classes allow me to have them leave with a new skill, whether making pasta, decorating a cake, or pie. For so many, food is scary, but it should be more fun than anything. I believe that anyone can do most things with practice. Our catering side is the same. We cap it at 35 people max so that we can buy the best farmers’ market ingredients, treat the product with respect, and serve the guests with attention to detail and all the flavors from years of cooking. 

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What would you say to moms that are starting new ventures from your experience?

Oof! Honestly, keep persevering. It is incredibly tough to try and start a new venture at any age, and when you have children, it just adds another level of stress. I think if it’s something you believe in, then anything is possible because all you have to do is work hard, and as moms—we already do that. 

Where can people find you and purchase your products?

Currently, my only form of communication is social media. I’m a very small batch producer, so most of my orders are local delivery or pick-up. You can follow me @poemsnpastry to look out for Pop-Up and class dates. You can also reach out about custom orders or sourdough-dried pasta shipping.