La Arepa’s owner, Nohemi Rodriguez, is excited to introduce her native Venezuelan staple—sweet corn cakes called cachapas— to more Rhode Islanders. Crediting her culinary knowledge to generations of her family, she said, “They will be named Elena’s Sweet Corn Cakes. When I launched the restaurant [in Pawtucket], my mother [Elena] taught me the recipe. She used to come to the restaurant to make the cachapas for me.”
Making salsa was her initial idea, but Hope & Main instead recommended cachapas, La Arepa’s most iconic product. While she and another employee will make the cachapas, which will be sold frozen for retail sale, Rodriguez hopes to eventually hire additional employees.
Eat her gluten-free, preservative-free and made-from-scratch cachapas with virtually any protein at any meal or with some cheese for dessert. While Rodriguez grills the golden ¼-inch-thick, 4-inch round cakes, home cooks can heat them in the oven or microwave or on the stovetop.
“This takes us to a whole other level; it’s completely different from owning a restaurant,” said Rodriguez. “I love making food that makes people happy.”
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