Mardi Gras and the Ubiquitous King Cake
A royal breakfast. A King Cake stuffed with a pecan raisin filling is the perfect way to start Fat Tuesday!!
Laissez le bons temps rouler! It’s Mardi Gras! New Orleans, Rio de Janeiro, Venice, Nice, Cologne… these are just a few of the many cities that take this colorful celebration to dizzying heights. However, straight on the heels of a Saints Super Bowl win, no one is celebrating this year’s festival with more spirit or fanfare than America’s favorite city – New Orleans. Let the good times roll, y’all, we’ve got some classic and new creations that fit right in with the Fat Tuesday theme.
New Orleans’ Mardi Gras is rich in a beautiful history that goes far beyond the flashy beads of Bourbon Street. First celebrated in 1699 about 60 miles south of modern-day New Orleans, the tradition of Mardi Gras has not changed greatly over the course of the years. Official parade organizations – called Krewes – formed in the mid 1800s and are, effectively, the social clubs that represent floats in the varied parades that occur throughout the city and region during Mardi Gras. The ranking structure of Mardi Gras is a parody of royalty with many balls held to crown the king, queen, dukes, knights and captains.
Mardi Gras originated as one of a series of Carnival days held in all Roman Catholic countries between Twelfth Night (12 days after the birth of Christ/The Feast of the Epiphany) and Ash Wednesday. The weeks prior to Mardi Gras are the last opportunities for merrymaking and indulgence in food and drink. The festival is marked by parades with fantastically designed floats, pageants, elaborate costumes, masked balls, people dancing in the street and, of course, the ubiquitous King Cake.
The King Cake is probably the most traditional Mardi Gras dish. Dating back to the 12th century, serving a King Cake during Mardi Gras celebrations is a tradition that honors the three Magi who visited the Christ child on Twelfth Night. The cake is a yeast cake, more like a cinnamon roll or brioche, braided into an oval representing either the unity of faith or the Three Kings. A small plastic baby, fava bean or other trinket is baked into the cake to represent either the Baby Jesus or the rebirth of Father Time for the new year. The cake is then decorated with sparkling sugars the colors of Mardi Gras – purple representing justice, green representing faith and gold representing power. Whoever finds the baby or trinket is considered lucky, in some cases they are the King or Queen for a day and they must host the next King Cake celebration. New Orleans bakeries sell more than 750,000 King Cakes each year!
While many Mardi Gras revelers purchase their King Cakes from one of the many wonderful bakeries in New Orleans, I like to take a little extra time and make my own. This year, I spiced up a traditional recipe with extra cinnamon and a sweet pecan raisin filling and mixed all three sugar toppings together for a more aesthetic look.
If, however, you’re looking for a more modern, sweet ending to your Mardi Gras party, you may want to try this excellent dessert shake from Bob Siegel, chef/owner of Creative Edge Parties in New York City. Recently, I was fortunate enough to attend one of Creative Edge’s incredible events at The Times Center here in New York. The passed hor d’oeuvres were amazing but the dessert table was nothing short of spectacular. Bob was nice enough to share his simple but gorgeous recipe for Pecan Bourbon Milkshake (below). I recommend this as a last homage to Mardi Gras season.
Laissez le bons temps rouler, aujourd’hui… ne mangeons pas a demain. Loose translation – let the good times roll today, tomorrow we fast!!
Sparkling sugar in green, purple and gold represent faith, justice and power. India Tree brand has the prettiest hues.
King Cake Recipe
Serves 8 - 10
For the cake:
- 1 cup lukewarm milk, about 110°F
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons dry yeast
- 3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup melted butter
- 5 egg yolks, beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons nutmeg
For the filling:
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 2/3 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 2-plastic babies
For the icing:
- 1 cup powdered confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 1 tsp. lemon rind
- 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
· Colored sprinkles in green, purple and yellow or gold
Prepare the Cake
Pour the warm milk into a large bowl. Whisk in the granulated sugar, yeast, and a heaping tablespoon of the flour, mixing until both the sugar and the yeast have dissolved.
Once bubbles have developed on the surface of the milk and it begins to foam, whisk in the butter, eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest. Add the remaining flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg and fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a large rubber spatula.
After the dough comes together, pulling away from the sides of the bowl, shape it into a large ball. Knead the dough on a floured surface until it is smooth and elastic, about 15 minutes.
Put the dough back into a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside in a draft-free place to let it rise (proof) for 1 1/2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.
Prepare the Filling
Combine the dry ingredients. Pour butter over the cinnamon mixture and mix until crumbly.
Once the dough has risen, punch it down and divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. Roll each piece of dough between your palms into a long strip, making 3 ropes of equal length – about 16 – 18 inches. Push the filling into the center of each roll and seal the dough around it. Braid the 3 ropes around one another and then form the braided loaf into a circle, pinching ends together to seal. Gently lay the braided dough on a nonstick cookie sheet and let it rise until it doubles in size, about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F and bake for 30 minutes or until the cake sounds hollow when tapped. When the ring is still warm, push the doll into the bottom of the cake.
Prepare the Icing
Mix the butter, milk and powdered sugar getting out all of the lumps. Add lemon rind and juice. Add more milk if the mixture is too thick, more sugar if it’s too thin.
Spread the icing over the ovals letting it run down the sides.
Mix the sparkling sugar together and sprinkle all over the cake. Alternately, sprinkle the colored sugar over the cake in alternating patterns of green, gold and purple.
The dessert bar at The Times Center event catered by Creative Edge Parties. (Photo retouched from my iPhone.)
Pecan Bourbon Milkshake - recipe compliments of Creative Edge Parties
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 cups vanilla ice cream
½ cup whole milk
½ cup candied pecans
2 tablespoons bourbon
4 white chocolate straws
Prepare
In a blender, combine ice cream, milk, pecans and bourbon. Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve with Chocolate Straw.
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