I made my very first King Cake this weekend. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a few years now. I love trying regional recipes or those with historical or cultural significance – like Hoppin’ John on New Year’s day – so King Cake on the last weekend before Fat Tuesday seemed especially appropriate. And since blog reader Doris made 14 of these last week and then sent me her recipe, along with lots of encouragement, I decided to give it a go.
It’s a yeast bread that’s shaped into a rectangle and filled with cinnamon and sugar and then rolled up. After it’s baked it’s covered in frosting and purple, green and yellow sugar.
It’s delicious and colorful and a great Mardi Gras tradition, even if I didn’t have a plastic baby to put inside.
Very pretty! The baby thing sort of freaks me out, anyway.
It’s beautiful! We bought one for robotics practice last night and ours didn’t have a baby either.
It’s lovely! The baby thing is kinda creepy.
Your King Cake looks wonderful.
In Greece it’s called Vasilopita and we make it for New Year’s at the other end of Epiphany. A coin is placed in the cake before baking instead of a baby.
Hmmm, did it taste better than it looks?
My next-door neighbor on my college dorm floor was from Na’wlins and her mom sent a cake up to her overnighted every year for Mardi Gras. The icing is a little off-putting, especially when it’s started to melt a bit, but we still had fun and probably ate the whole thing with a lot of giggling.
I think it’s neat you gave it a whirl. 🙂
I love the colors! It’s almost too pretty to eat – but I’m sure it tasted great.
I’ve never heard of it before! Is getting the plastic baby a good thing or a bad thing??
Looks delish! I like the cream cheese and cherry filling type. If no plastic baby is available a dried bean is traditional as well. If you get the baby (or the bean) you are King or Queen for the day and are supposed to provide the cake for the following week (or next year if it’s the end of the season).
Someone brought one of these to work last week — it reminded me a lot of a Kringle with frosting and sugar on top. Totally yummy, no matter what it’s called. I love a tradition with good food attached.
; )
I grew up in Louisiana and I have to say your king cake looks authentic.
Oh I used to make those for French class all the time. 🙂 Looks great to me!
It looks yummy!
Yumm!!! I have a pecan praline one coming from Ambrosia Bakery tomorrow. I can’t wait. Google it and drool!!
Yum!
Here in Louisiana, that would be…an authentic King Cake! Looks great!
Ooh, pecan praline from Ambrosia Bakery, Melissa. And where is your house? LOL. We got our youngest daughter’s wedding cake from them, and it was MARVELOUS!
It looks really cool – how did it taste?
Very pretty! We had them last sunday at a church brunch with little Jesuses inside (I’d never heard of them or the tradition of putting something inside them before, so I’m feeling better about the whole thing now!!!).
Oh, NO PLASTIC BABY? !!! Blasphemous. I have never eaten King Cake, but by the description, I am sure I would love it. Good thing I’m not there, because I don’t NEED it. 😀
We have a woman in the college from New Orleans and she made 4 King Cakes yesterday. It was very good, but no one has admitted to finding the baby, which I don’t understand because it’s supposed to mean good luck. She brought us beads too – we had fun yesterday!
It sounds delish. You’re probably better off without the baby. That part sounds a little weird.
BTW I just gave you a Kreativ Blogger award.
yummy yum yum
Yummy! Yesterday was the first day in several years that we didn’t have King Cake at the office – boo.
Yum. I’ve had it a few times, and what a delicious concoction! Yours looks amazing!
I had never heard of Kings Cake until yesterday, when I had a piece. It was pretty good. Very rich. And I found myself whisking the Kings Sparkles off my desk and clothing for the rest of the day.
Looks like a good colourway for yarn – The King Cake colourway. Yumm.
Pretty and looks yummy too! I have never tried King Cake yet.
I’ve never been to Lousiana and consequently, never understood the Mardi Gras thing. One of my students was explaining it to me as a time to overindulge before Lent. I never seem to need a reason to overindulge! Especially after my daughter made your red velvet cake! I’m not going to show her this recipe. My hips cannot afford it.
Looks authentic to me!!…c’mon down to Galveston anytime – don’t wait for Mardi Gras!!
(Guess what! I linked here from “Nancy’s Arts, Crafts and Favorites” blog! Small world ;-))
I was going to ask if you put the baby in! The only time I’ve ever eaten King cake was in New Orleans at a conference I attended.
Is it still a King Cake if there’s no baby?
Interesting.
Carole, I couldn’t leave a message on your post regarding the letter to the president so here I am instead. Thank you for taking the time to do that. Your letter was sincere and clear and focused on one of the basic needs that both the young and old need…the library. We someone loses a job, the go to the library to use the computer to type their resume, etc.
Please keep us posted when you get a response. I, like you, have a lot of faith in this president. I hope people will be patient and give him the time to straighten out the mess that the last administration left us all with.
Wow, I didn’t get any comments on my King Cake that I made for the first time this weekend. Looks great. I used a whole pecan half for the baby, but it got lost in the chopped ones.
Bon temps rouler!
How fun! I’ve never heard of it, which is a shame since my family is from Louisiana.