Mom’s cheescake business taking off

“She takes her time, energy, and patience in making these. You can for sure tell she pours her heart into each product she makes. Making her customers happy is her goal and with me, she has succeeded.” Rodney Beck

Darrah DeYoung is the face of Baked & Boujee Cheesecakes. A one-woman operation that has grown bigger than she ever could have imagined.

DeYoung is a mom to a two-year-old little girl, she said after she had her baby, she lost herself. “I lost my identity, I guess to motherhood.”

DeYoung started selling her cheesecakes out of her home in January, her friend inspired her by sharing her plan to bake cookies and sell them out of her house to make some extra income. DeYoung thought “if she can do it, so can I.”

DeYoung made a cheesecake and gave a slice to her neighbour, who then posted about it on a local Facebook group. “My phone has been nonstop, I’m up to my eyeballs in cheesecake.”

The Food and Service industry is nothing new to DeYoung who has been working in it since she was 16.

Her doctor put her off work when the COVID-19 pandemic started in March of 2020 because little was known how the virus would affect pregnant women.

DeYoung says it’s the longest she’s gone without working and wanted to make her own money again when she started baking cheesecakes.

She did not anticipate how quickly her new venture would take off.

At the time of writing this article, DeYoung has over one thousand likes on her Facebook page that she started in January of 2023.

She has already started building a regular client base. “I've got a couple of ladies that order like cakes every week.”

Rodney Beck posted a video online reviews DeYoung’s cheesecakes that was seen over 3000 times in just 24 hours.

When asked how he heard about Baked & Boujee Cheesecakes he said he saw his friend post about them online. “It looked so good that I had to contact the makers of these mini cheesecakes to order some myself.”

Beck has a Facebook page called “Rodney’s reviews” where he reviews food from the community and gives his unique take on it.

When asked what his favorite thing to order from DeYoung is, he said the coconut cream pie mini cheesecakes are “Like biting into a piece of heaven. It warms the soul. It’s like a rush of deliciousness through your whole body.”

“She takes her time, energy, and patience in making these. You can for sure tell she pours her heart into each product she makes. Making her customers happy is her goal and with me, she has succeeded.”

Beck added.

When asked what she wants people in the community to know about her DeYoung said this: “I'm so grateful for every order for every follow, for every like. The comments online have so nice. I'm just so happy.”

“I had postpartum depression bad, and I felt like I had no purpose outside of like wiping bums. Every single time someone orders something from me. I'm so grateful.” DeYoung added.

Postpartum anxiety and depression rate tripled over the span of COVID-19, DeYoung being just one of the new mothers affected by it, but she doesn’t shy away from telling her story stating, “I’m not ashamed of the mental illness.”

DeYoung is working on getting her business permit, so she can expand her business outside of her kitchen. Her next goal she says is to get into the New Glasgow Farmers Market, and then expand from there, saying the ultimate dream is to open a café with her mom.

With options for everyone, DeYoung also offers gluten free, cheesecakes and can accommodate to those with food allergies as well, making Baked & Boujee Cheesecake accessible to everyone.

You can find Baked & Boujee Cheesecakes on Facebook.