Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Jimenez
Hi Kayla, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Since I was young, I’ve always loved designing and creating things of all kinds. Creativity has taken on many forms in my life and I’ve been able to exercise it through a variety of interests, including hand-lettering, cooking, fashion, and interior design (just to name a few!). I’ve also seen an entrepreneurial thread woven throughout various phases of my life. I was the kid who loved selling lemonade in my front yard or making hand-crafted items to sell for mission trips and fundraisers.
Over the past few years, I had seen decorated sugar cookies at a few events and wondered, “How in the world do they make cookies that look so perfect with icing that doesn’t flow over the edges?!” All I knew about icing was basic buttercream or the kind you buy in containers at the grocery store. After attending a retirement party and admiring & closely dissecting a decorated sugar cookie there, I fell down the very long rabbit hole of YouTube cookie decorating videos and quickly learned about the magic of royal icing. The decorating videos were mesmerizing to watch and I just couldn’t get enough! I had seen one video showing the creation of a front door cookie donning a mini wreath on the front and thought that would be such a fun design to experiment with and gift to all our neighbors. At the time, we were renting an apartment in a very sweet community with loving neighbors who I knew would receive them well and give me honest feedback. I looked up sugar cookie and icing recipes and went right to work! I remember it was a Thursday night when I started the whole process and it took me until Sunday evening to finish 28 cookies. The end result was so cute, but my immediate thought was, “Wow, I don’t think I’ll ever do that again!” I was not prepared for just how much work everything required. This happened in February of 2022. I didn’t make any more cookies right away, but I did continue watching cookie decorating videos and discovered more techniques and fun designs that really held my interest. Our neighbors loved the door cookies and kept encouraging me to make more, but I really wasn’t sure. A couple of months went by and my husband was set to graduate with his masters degree in May. By that point, I had long forgotten the intensity and time-consumption of the door cookies, and, at the same time, felt really inspired from all the videos I had been watching. I decided to give it another go and created some cookies for his graduation celebration.
Fast forward a month, and the President’s Office (of the school my husband attended) was knocking on my door asking if I could create 240 logo cookies for an event out of state. I LOVE a good challenge and felt like this was an opportunity I just couldn’t pass up. By that point, I think I had a few batches of cookies under my belt and had adjusted my expectations for the time and labor involved. All the videos I was watching really had me inspired and I was excited to take on this challenge. I remember asking the person who ordered them if I could include a sticker with my name and email address on the back of each cookie. I assured her, “I promise, I’ll make it very tasteful.” And THEN it occurred to me… the dual meaning of “tasteful,” which is having good taste, both in flavor and design. Thus, The Tasteful Cookie Co. was born! That large order was my first big break and 2.5 years later, my cookie business has been steadily growing and I have the honor of creating custom cookies for occasions of all kinds!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve always been really inspired by people who are experts in their field. Whether it be olympians, doctors, mechanics… whatever! To watch someone excel because they’ve put in the hard work and allowed their failures to propel them toward further excellence is endlessly beautiful to me.
Any worthy endeavor is going to come with its challenges. I can’t even count how many times I’ve messed up. It took lots of trial and error before I felt like I had perfected my cookie recipe. Also, any “cookier” will easily tell you that mastering different royal icing consistencies is one of the most difficult tasks in this craft. It is so temperamental but so critical to achieve a nice flood and also to create different textures on a cookie design. It’s a science, really. (Truly!) Did I over mix it? Oversaturate the color? Add too much water? Not enough water? Butter bleed? Color bleed? Cookie sweating in the bag? I’ve experienced it all. After doing this over and over and over (and over), I’ve adopted so many methods to increase my efficiency while decreasing the frequency of errors. I am still learning so much with each and every batch I make and am constantly perfecting my style and skill of this craft.
The entire process from dreaming up the designs, sourcing the ingredients, baking the cookies, mixing the icing, coloring and flooding down the icing (in several different consistencies), decorating (often multiple layers), drying (the base layer takes a minimum of 24 hours to fully dry!), and then packaging is all very time-consuming. I learned this from the beginning, but I’ve really adjusted my expectation threshold and the end result is always worth every ounce of effort. I heard a quote from the famous Taylor Swift, who once said, “I get tired a lot, but I never get tired of it”… and I really resonate with that!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Cookie decorating really marries my loves for gift-giving and intentionality. For me, it is both a business and a ministry. I am committed to crafting custom sugar cookies that blend exquisite design with exceptional flavor. Every cookie is made with high quality ingredients and a passion for detail, ensuring each creation is both beautiful and delicious. My mission is to honor God through creativity and serve my customers by bringing their visions to life, one tasteful cookie at a time. There are many things I don’t do well, but I am so thankful for the ability to learn these skills in order to create something very meaningful and unique that can touch my clients in a way that Oreos can’t (even in all their glory).
My main offering is custom sugar cookies for any occasion. Corporate events (company logos!), birthdays, retirements, weddings, baby showers, holiday parties, or even “just because” gifts… you name it! I can put just about anything on a cookie. There is always a reason to celebrate and never a lack of need (want) for custom cookies! I also do 1:1 decorating lessons and cookie decorating classes, in which I put in the hard work of planning and prepping the materials and teach students to do the decorating (the most fun part)!
Any big plans?
I am currently running my cookie business alongside my day job, which I also enjoy. I am an administrative assistant by day and a “cookier” by night (and all weekend long, if I’m honest) and enjoy the challenge of balancing both. Learning to juggle them has really helped me learn the prioritization of tasks and further cultivate important life skills. As of now, I don’t have any major changes planned for the near future, except to continue expanding my skills and challenging myself to learn more advanced techniques. I’ve also been adding new tools to my cookie arsenal and am excited to learn how to optimize them for further customization. I recently purchased a 3D printer, which I can use to print my own cookie cutter designs. This opens up the door for endless creativity!
In order for all of this to be possible, I must thank my husband Eric, who, without fail, washes every single baking pan and icing bowl after each order (without complaining)! He has also spent countless hours helping me package cookies and I am so grateful for his unwavering support. I also want to thank my family, friends, clients, and community for spreading the word and allowing me to continue doing what I love so much. It is my ultimate aim to create cookies with excellence for God’s glory and I am holding the future with open hands. It will be so exciting to see how it unfolds!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetastefulcookieco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetastefulcookieco
