A salty first batch of cookies, a cross-continental childhood, and a decision to walk away from nursing—Salome’s path to Afua's Sweets is equal parts grit and grace. We sit down with the Ghanaian cake artist to unpack how culture, constraint, and courage shaped a business that blends bold flavor with delicate technique.

Salome traces the roots of her palate from Ghana’s tropical brightness to Ethiopia’s Italian-leaning pastry traditions, revealing how coffee, mango, and passion fruit found their way into her modern designs. When lactose intolerance made traditional tasting impossible, she pivoted into vegan methods, testing butter and cream alternatives until she could whip, bake, and serve desserts that fooled even devoted dairy fans. Along the way, she rediscovered why baking calms the mind: small, intentional steps that transform stress into focus and joy.

The leap from hobby to business brought its own lessons. We break down the turning points: cost analysis that ended the “dirt cheap” label, coaching from Porsha Kimble that encouraged her to show up on camera and set prices with confidence, and boundaries that eliminated late-night DMs and last-minute chaos. Salome shares practical tactics for home bakers—how to price, how to practice, how to build systems—and casts a vision for the future with petite French-style desserts that let complex pairings shine in elegant bites. It’s a conversation about valuing your craft, honoring your limits, and letting your story be part of the brand.

If you felt seen by any part of this journey, hit follow, share the episode with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more bakers find us. Your support keeps Cake Therapy growing and brings more voices, more flavors, and more healing to the kitchen.

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Follow Sugarspoon Desserts on all social media platforms @sugarspoondesserts

Beauty lives in the smallest details, and sometimes those details become a life. We welcome Gabby from Rosa’s Cakes in New Orleans—a self-described non-cook who transformed a love of clay miniatures into intricate fondant toppers, sought-after treat sets, and a thriving home-based bakery with her mom, Rosa. While preparing for an approaching hurricane, Gabby opens up about resilience, family legacy from Nicaragua, and the practical choices that keep their creative business strong through real-world storms.

You’ll hear how clay beads turned into cake toppers, and how event-planning experience evolved into stellar customer service and efficient production systems. Gabby breaks down her design workflow for cupcakes and sets, where three variations per dozen keep creativity structured and timelines sane. We dive into how she sources molds and materials, why she favors treats over towering cakes in sweltering summers, and how Instagram became their storefront—proof that consistent, thoughtful posting can elevate a neighborhood favorite into a regional go-to.

What stands out most is her definition of success: showing up for her kids, protecting quality, and shipping work she loves regardless of likes. She offers grounded advice for emerging cake artists—be patient with yourself, invest in presentation, and let motivation carry you through slow seasons. This is a warm, candid look at building a legacy of work ethic and craft, turning detail into identity, and finding freedom in a business shaped by care, culture, and grit.

If the story moved you, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review so others can discover the show. Your support helps us spotlight more makers and fuel the Cake Therapy Foundation’s work with women and girls.

Remember to subscribe wherever you get your podcast. Share the episodes and let's chat in the comments.

Support the Cake Therapy Foundation:
1. Cake Therapy - Cake Therapy (thecaketherapyfoundation.org)
2. Buy Me A Coffee : The Cake Therapy Foundation (buymeacoffee.com)
3. Buy The Book: Cake Therapy: How Baking Changed My Life https://a.co/d/76dZ5T0

4. Buy The Book: Lessons I Never Learned from My Father: Things We Missed Out On and How They Still Impact Me https://a.co/d/9wLOguc

Follow Sugarspoon Desserts on all social media platforms @sugarspoondesserts

What happens when your spark fades but your calling won’t stay quiet? We sit with author and strategist Octavia McIntosh to trace the honest arc from high-output corporate life to designing a freedom-aligned business that doesn’t demand constant presence. Octavia opens up about the subtle signs of burnout, the two-year inner conversation that led to her “I’m out” moment, and the practical blueprint she wished she had—now captured in her book and a growing I’m Out ecosystem.

Together we unpack four anchors that changed her leadership and her life: knowing herself, deepening self-awareness, understanding people, and regulating how she shows up. Octavia shares how she reframed the fear of failure with a better question—what if it works—and why freedom, for her, means income that continues even when she steps back. We explore small rituals that restore calm and clarity: faith as a steady center, quiet time under a tree, the medicine of wind and water, play with her dogs, and even coloring to release the need to chase. These practices aren’t escapism; they’re strategy, making space for better decisions and better results.

If your nine-to-five feels like a slow leak of energy, you’ll find clear first steps here: detach mentally, step outside the noise, watch your life like a film, and notice what needs to stop and what wants to start. Octavia’s roadmap isn’t a reckless leap; it’s a thoughtful plan to replace your salary, test your offers while employed, and transition with evidence and ease. Along the way, we return to our own mission—baking as therapy, memory, and community—because healing works best when our hands and hearts move together.

Subscribe, share this with someone who needs courage to change, and leave a review so others can find the show. When you’re ready to explore Octavia’s work, search “I’m Out” by Octavia McIntosh on Amazon and connect with her on Instagram at @iamoctaviamcintosh. Let’s bake clarity, one brave choice at a time.

Remember to subscribe wherever you get your podcast. Share the episodes and let's chat in the comments.

Support the Cake Therapy Foundation:
1. Cake Therapy - Cake Therapy (thecaketherapyfoundation.org)
2. Buy Me A Coffee : The Cake Therapy Foundation (buymeacoffee.com)
3. Buy The Book: Cake Therapy: How Baking Changed My Life https://a.co/d/76dZ5T0

4. Buy The Book: Lessons I Never Learned from My Father: Things We Missed Out On and How They Still Impact Me https://a.co/d/9wLOguc

Follow Sugarspoon Desserts on all social media platforms @sugarspoondesserts