Yvonne Hayden (also writing as Yvonne Torres-Hayden) discovered her love for writing in high school, where she was encouraged by her English teacher, Ms. Gelshenen.

While working as an administrative assistant, she self-published two books on everyday Excel which addressed common questions from coworkers. For years she has written the annual play she and her family perform on Christmas Eve for their own laughs and pleasure.

Yvonne is thrilled to publish Carl’s Closet, a story she wrote many years ago. The title was inspired by a dusty storage closet that the employees called Carl’s closet in the office building where she worked.

In 2017 Yvonne published her first children’s book, Yo quiero pasteles/I Want Pasteles, which is a dual language Spanish-English book and a celebration of her Puerto Rican family culture and Christmas tradition.

In addition to writing the stories, Yvonne created the illustrations. She enjoys drawing, but it’s more about the joy of creating the characters and scenes.

Yvonne lives in Arizona with her husband, Tom, who keeps her laughing.

Do you want to make pasteles? You’ll find a variety of recipes with different fillings on the Web. And if you've never made them, it’s helpful to see it done. Following are two excellent videos by Sweets and Beyond.

  • To see how to make the outer plantain mixture and assemble the pasteles, click the title below:

  • To see how to make a classic meat filling, click the title below:

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Plantains          

Plantains are a yummy nutritious ingredient in most pasteles recipes. Be careful when peeling the raw plantain. It oozes a white liquid that makes a brown stain on hands and porous surfaces that's difficult to remove—on fabric it may be impossible. So wear plastic gloves, an apron you don't mind staining, and have fun!