Mother’s Day has a special place in Jessica Marie Garcia’s heart. “I’m an only child to a single mother, so to say we’re ‘close’ is an understatement,” Jessica tells HollywoodLife in an EXCLUSIVE interview about her Mother’s Day partnership with Cholula, the Mother of Sauce. Born in Florida, Jessica’s father was of Mexican descent but was out of the picture while the On My Block star grew up. “[My mother] is my best friend and my ride or die, so on Mother’s Day, I always tried to go all out for her.
“But, we didn’t have a lot of money when I was younger,” she tells HollywoodLife. “So, I would hand-make decorations for the house to surprise her the next morning. I’d make her a card, and one year I learned how to tape over one of my music cassette tapes, so I wrote her a song.”
“She has been through so much in her life,” continues Garcia. “She escaped communist Cuba at eight-years-old, she’s a breast cancer survivor, and three years ago survived a massive heart attack. So honestly, I’m just incredibly grateful that I have her here to celebrate these holidays with. So, now that I have found some success in my career, I can actually spoil her the way I’ve always dreamt of doing as a child.”
This Mother’s Day was also noteworthy for Jessica since it marks the first time she’s celebrating as a mother. In February, she and her husband, Adam Celorier, welcomed their first child, a daughter named Selena Grey. Was Adam planning to “go all out” for Jessica, the same way she would for her mother? “I would love to say that I’m leaving it all up to my husband, but I’m far too much of a control freak for that,” she tells HL. “We’re going to spend the morning making a Cuban/Mexican feast for brunch and probably having my closest friends over who can’t spend the day with their mothers.”
“My mom is very much the mama for a lot of my friends while their mothers are out of state,” she adds, “so I’m happy to share her amazingness with them. I’m sure we’ll end up in the pool and playing board games through the night.”
Knowing how painful it is for one to be separated from their mother, Jessica teamed with Cholula on Cinco de Mayo to not only honor her Mexican heritage but to also surprise a few lucky fiesta-goers with prizes, recipes, and for some, a surprise flight home and a brunch for their mother. Jessica and Cholula ensured that these lucky winners would have the best Mother’s Day (or the best Dia de las Madres, observed on May 10.)
“I feel like it is very kismet that Cholula and I are teaming up because I live for spice,” says Jessica. “I grew up in a Cuban household with incredible food, full of flavor, but it was never spicy, and I craved that so much — my Mexican side was creeping out. So, I would always add a dash of Cholula to my meals to feed my need for heat. Realizing that Cholula Hot Sauce and I are almost the same age, I’ve been using the Mother of Sauce to add flavor to my meals for the majority of my life.”
Like a mother’s hug, Cholula makes everything better when you’re feeling down. Those who couldn’t make it home for Dia de las Madres could be there in spirit by whipping up a family recipe, adding a dash of any of Cholula’s tasty selections, and smiling at the memory as the flavors took them back.
“My mother is an amazing cook and Cuban food is her specialty,” says Jessica, who will be soon teaching her own daughter her own culinary traditions. “I would love to be able to pass down her recipes to Selena one day, especially her ropa vieja and picadillo. Those are only two of the many that make my mouth literally water talking about. Her roast pork and croquettas are out of this world. The smell of these foods fill up our kitchen with so much love and instantly make me think of family, and I just hope I can pass these traditions and recipes with her one day soon.”
Tradition is also included in every bottle of Cholula. The recipe was originally prepared for the Jose Cuervo family (yes, he was a real person) by the beloved cook, a grandmotherly figure known as “La Chila.” Her likeness adorns every bottle of Cholula. However, what if Jessica was offered a chance to appear on a bottle of Cholula – perhaps a limited edition bottle for charity?
“First of all, that would be a literal dream come true,” she says. “I would just cross that off my bucket list.” That begs the question: which flavor? “If I had to choose a flavor that already existed I would say the Sweet Habanero because it’s on the spicier side with a kick of sweetness…just like me! But if I could come up with my own flavor I’d like to create a Smokey Hot Honey flavor because I’m all about that sweet heat.”