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THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF PUERTO RICAN ARTS & CULTURE HOSTS OMI HOPPER BOOK TALK AND MEET-AND-GREET CELEBRATING NEW COOKBOOK “COOKING CON OMI”
TikTok Star,“Next Level Chef” Finalist Returns to Museum August 15 for Special Conversation, Signing, and Culinary Celebration
CHICAGO, Illinois (June 16, 2026) – The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture today announced it will host a special Book Talk and Meet-and-Greet with Omallys “Omi” Hopper on Saturday, August 15, 2026, from 12 – 2 p.m. celebrating the release of her new cookbook, Cooking con Omi: A Love Letter to Puerto Rican Home Cooking. The event will be held at the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture at 3015 W. Division St. in Chicago Humboldt Park neighborhood, and will feature a conversation moderated by journalist Ana Beleval and includes a signed copy of the book. Tickets ($40) are available at www.nmprac.org.
Published by Ten Speed Press, Cooking con Omi will be released August 11, 2026, and features 100 recipes inspired by Puerto Rican traditions, family memories, and contemporary Latino cuisine. Hopper previously partnered with the Museum in 2023 for a sold-out fan meet-and-greet and viewing party celebrating her appearance on Fox’s Next Level Chef.
Written by Puerto Rican food creator and social media personality Omi Hopper, the cookbook celebrates the vibrant flavors, traditions, and cultural stories of Puerto Rican cooking, while reflecting Hopper’s personal journey reconnecting with her heritage through food.
“Omi Hopper represents exactly the kind of storytelling we celebrate here,” said Billy Ocasio, President and CEO of the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture. “Through her food, she is preserving culture, honoring family, and connecting generations to the richness of our Puerto Rican heritage. Cooking con Omi is a love letter not just to Puerto Rican home cooking, but to all of us who grew up with those flavors and memories. We are honored to welcome her back and could not be more excited to share this celebration with our community.”
Growing up in Puerto Rico, Hopper developed a deep connection to food and culture before moving with her family to the mainland United States. Through her popular social media platform @cookingconomi, she began documenting recipes and traditions as a way to preserve and celebrate Puerto Rican identity for future generations.
The cookbook includes recipes spanning breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desserts, including:
- Los desayunos de abuela (Grandma’s breakfasts): Cremita de maíz con frutitas del bosque (wild berry cornmeal porridge); revoltillo con salchichas (scrambled eggs and sausage); Sandwich de tostadas francesas con pasta de guayaba y queso (Guava and cheese French toast sandwiches)
- Almuerzo en el campo (Lunch in the countryside): Asopao de gandules con bolitas de plátano (Pigeon pea soup with plantain balls); Caldo de pescado (Puerto Rican fish broth); Empanadas de yuca, coco y jueyes (Cassava, coconut, and crab empanadas)
- ¡A comer! (Dinner is ready): Mofongo (Mashed plantains with garlic and pork crackling); Chicharron de pollo (Fried chicken bites); Meat loaf a lo Boricua (Puerto Rican meat loaf)
- To’ lo melao (All things sweet): Tres leches de coquito (Coquito tres leches cake); Flancocho de chocolate y dulce de leche (Chocolate and dulce de leche flancocho); Arroz con dulce (Sweet rice pudding)
Hopper has appeared on programs including CBS Mornings, Today, and Univision’s Despierta America, and was recently a semifinalist on Next Level Chef hosted by Gordon Ramsay. She currently lives in Rhode Island with her husband and four sons.
Omi Hopper Book Talk and Meet-and-Greet
Saturday, August 15, 2026
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture
3015 W. Division St., Chicago, IL 60622
Tickets: $40 per person
Includes a signed copy of Cooking con Omi, meet-and-greet access, light appetizers, and beverages.
Cooking con Omi: A Love Letter to Puerto Rican Home Cooking
By: Omi Hopper
Published by Ten Speed Press
On sale August 11, 2026
Hardcover | $32.99
ISBN: 9780593837689
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Images available for download at this link.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF PUERTO RICAN ARTS AND CULTURE
The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (3015 W. Division St., Chicago) is the only national museum outside of Puerto Rico dedicated to interpreting the arts and culture of the Puerto Rican people. Founded in 2000, it is housed in the historic landmark Humboldt Park Stables and Receptory, near the Paseo Boricua. For more information: https://nmprac.org/