Sunday, January 24, 2010

Mardi Gras and the Making of a King Cake

I cannot remember when I first heard of Mardi Gras, but I have been a Louisianian for 38 years and it certainly hasn't been that long. Probably more like 20 years. Perhaps I heard of it, but never in detail, so I had no idea what it was. Over the years I've researched and read a lot about Mardi Gras and while many people associate it with a wild and partying occasion, it doesn't necessarily mean that to everyone. It can pretty much be whatever a person wants it to be and I choose for it to just be a time of fun and happiness. I've always been intrigued by the King Cake and have always wanted to "try my hand" at baking one. But, it always seemed like more of a baking challenge than I wanted to tackle. Our Thursday's paper had several recipes for a King Cake and one of them caught my eye. It seemed like it might just be "doable." So, thought I'd share my experience with you.
Of course, the first thing in baking, is gathering your ingredients. I really liked the fact that this particular recipe called for the Hot Roll Mix and you need to know that I actually used my micro grater for the lemon and orange zest called for in the recipe. I hear that those little "touches" are what make you a really good cook. ~chuckle~



It was suppose to be rolled into a rectangle, not an oval, but......... I now know that's why I had issues with the braiding, uneven ends. Just won't work! But, I will make sure it is a rectangle the next time I make it. Don't you just love the look of that cinnamon sugar!


As you can see, I definitely had issues with the braiding, but was able to form it into a ring on the cookie sheet and I figured once it was baked that it wouldn't make that much difference. ~smile~

Well, somewhere in the baking process, the ring formation was lost. But, I didn't think it looked all that badly. Again, I learned and I will make my braids longer and thinned next time and hopefully it will remain in a ring throughout the baking process. Perhaps I should just put a clean tin can in the middle and that should definitely help. ~chuckle~

Here it is, iced with the purple, yellow and green dyed sugar sprinkled on top. I thought that the icing covered a "multitude of sins." Now, let's cut into it and see what happens.

Looks pretty decent I'd say and who better to "try it out" than dear friends.

And, what dear friends they are, they were impressed and ate the whole piece! So, I'm saying my first King Cake was a success, but I learned a lot through this first try and am expecting my next one to be even better, maybe not in taste, but definitely in looks. ~chuckle!~ Now, whether or not you have learned anything, I would say that you have probably been entertained by this entry. And, I forgot to say, I have never figured out why they are called a King Cake rather than King Bread. I mean it's really nothing like a cake, mine was more like a HUGE cinnamon roll and any that I have ever eaten was more like a bread. Oh, well, doesn't matter, I just wondered.

In closing, I must tell you that this blog entry was begun at 3:30 this afternoon and it is now 10:52PM and I'm just now getting it finished. I might say that I had some major interruptions while trying to do this. I do hope it is worth all my efforts to get it done. ~smile~

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Lea @ CiCis Corner
Lea @ CiCis Corner

Hi there! My name is Lea. I've been wife to the best Hubby for 44 years....Mom to a son and daughter....CiCi to 4 precious Grans....lover of family and friends....enjoy laughter and a good time....shopper....picture taking maniac....maker of delicious fudge....organizational enthusiast....memory maker....Southern Belle...and most importantly.....a Child of the King! Welcome to my little corner!

3 comments:

  1. Well, now that was quite entertaining. Congratulations! I thought it looked very yummy! But, I do still wonder why it is called a King Cake. To me, they are better for breakfast that anything else! Good job, girlfriend!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks like you did a wonderful job! I've had a hard time finding a King Cake that I just love - I probably should try homemade! :)

    ReplyDelete

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