Valley bakeries prep for 'Three Kings Day'

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- For 14 years at the Clovis and Barstow location, Panaderia Cafe Oaxaca has been serving the Central Valley a taste of home.

"The inspiration came from my grandfather -- he was a baker in Oaxaca, and my mom wanted to continue with that," says Rosi Garcia.

The panaderia shelves are lined with his recipes.

"The ojandra, reganadas, mamonas, casquitos, those all come from my grandfather," Garcia said.

Garcia and her family take pride in sharing their Oaxacan culture.

The holidays are extra special.

"The recipe we have for Rosca de Reyes, we only bring out once a year," she said. "This one has orange zest, which gives it that extra flavor."

Ahead of Three Kings Day, they're still serving their famous pan dulce, but busy fulfilling orders for Rosca de Reyes.

"The rosca itself represents the crown for the kings, the baby inside of the Rosca de Reyes is Jesus himself hiding, and then the little fruits on top are the jewels on top of the crown for the king," Garcia said.

The day celebrated by Latino families across the US, Latin America, Mexico and the Caribbean commemorates the journey the Three Wise Men made to Bethlehem.

It's also a celebration of family and togetherness.

"It's awesome knowing we can give that to other people and they can enjoy that with their family," Garcia said.

Whoever's slice has baby Jesus inside is hosting a party or cooking food on February 2.

Because the Baby Jesus toy is not edible, each box has a warning label with how many each rosca contains.

When Rosi's sister adopted a vegan lifestyle, they started adding plant-based options to the menu.

Now, nearly half of the menu options are plant-based.

"I love that people continue to stop by and try our goodies, figure out what it is they love," Garcia said.

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