Audelia (Audi) Orellana always wanted to be a wife and mother, but she also loved crafting, baking, and expressing herself as an entrepreneur. Originally from Las Vegas, Orellana met her future husband while in Omaha for a work trip. “I knew I didn’t want to raise kids in Las Vegas,” she says. “So, I moved.”
The motherhood dream came true with a full house of four sons, and in 2017, she started creating and selling cake pops. She became well-known for her unique flavors and artistic flair.
Orellana and her husband wanted to settle in Papillion because of the excellent schools. In 2018, they found a perfect home in the Hickory Hills neighborhood. “I don’t think I’m ever leaving,” she says.
In 2022, though, business took a back seat. Orellana’s teenage son was matched for a long-awaited kidney transplant. In an unusually generous move, she decided to give back to the transplant program by donating one of her kidneys to an unknown recipient.
During their double recovery, Orellana ended up closing her cake pop business. Three years later, when she and her son were both doing well, she felt the urge to create.
“I started doing little videos showing people how to make cake pops,” she says.
She had also been experimenting with sourdough with great success. “I haven’t bought bread at the store since I started,” she says.
She began making bread for friends, and they encouraged her to sell the extra loaves. That led her to think about reopening her business. Unfortunately, someone else was already using a similar name. So, she decided to rebrand and add sourdough.
Canvas & Crumbs became the perfect name for her edible art studio. It is a licensed cottage bakery, where cleanliness and customer satisfaction are top priorities.
Most orders come from her website, but this spring Orellana offered a new element of fun – porch pickup. Customers can find their pre-orders on her porch at 84th and Giles, or they can select from the week’s special offerings, which she posts on social media. This honor system works well in the cottage bakery world, especially in a friendly town like Papillion.
Orellana still makes videos for the cake pop and sourdough communities. She wants to encourage other moms to be creative and to pursue their own business ideas. Her message to these entrepreneurs is simple.
“You can do it,” she says.
Recipe:
Sourdough Discard Cookies
A warm, cozy treat that makes the most of your sourdough starter discard.
Ingredients
The Wet Mix
- 1 ½ sticks Unsalted butter, browned and cooled
- 2 cups Light brown sugar
- ½ cup White sugar
- 2 Large eggs
- 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
- 1 cup Sourdough discard
The Dry Mix
- 4 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 tsp Baking soda
- 2 tsp Salt
The Fold-In
- 2 cups Chocolate chips (or as many chocolate chips as your heart desires!)
Instructions
- Brown the Butter: Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it turns a golden brown. Remove from heat and let it cool.
- Combine Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, cream together the cooled brown butter, light brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the eggs, then stir in the vanilla and sourdough discard.
- Mix in Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the wet mixture. Mix until just combined.
- Add Chocolate: Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Prep and Bake: Scoop dough into balls of your desired size and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake at 350°F for 12–15 minutes until the edges are golden.
Audi’s Tip: “You can wait until they cool but I’m my humble opinion, don’t wait! Life is too short to wait! Warm and cozy is best!”