Tomorrow is "Fat Tuesday", the day before the season of Lent begins where fasting and sacrifice are practiced. If people are going to be tested to give something up that they love for the entire 40 days, they get one last hoo-rah of indulging, hence the name Fat Tuesday.
The Mardi Gras season brings a lot of fun things in New Orleans such as parades with huge floats all decked out in a specific theme and extravagant balls where thousands of people attend. Some friends and I went to visit a good friend who grew up in New Orleans and would be able to show us the culture better than anyone. We had an amazing time. The food was to die for and unlike anything I have eaten anywhere else. I would go back again just for the food (and to see my friend, of course!).
While in NOLA (as the natives call it) our friend, Lauren, also introduced us to the widely popular Mardi Gras tradition of King Cake. If you have not tried King Cake before, think of it as the King of cinnamon rolls, but better. She recently came to visit Florida for a friend's wedding and stayed at my house, and she was so sweet to bring a gift of gratitude- a King Cake! I was so excited. This one came from one of her favorite bakeries in the heart of New Orleans, Caluda's (find more information on that here). The box it was in was humongous, and I could hardly wait to dig it. THEN my friend tells me that this isn't just any King Cake, it is a King Cake STUFFED with COOKIE DOUGH! Could it get any better? That's not where the fun ends, though. Another unique feature of these cakes is that there is a small plastic doll baked into the cake somewhere. The tradition is that whoever finds the hidden baby (signifying baby Jesus) must bring a King Cake to the next social gathering, and it has been my mission to find the baby in every cake I eat. If that means eating more than a single serving, then so be it! This cake was so delicious, and we got to enjoy it over the course of a few days. Because you are probably in suspense right now, I will tell that I did find the baby Jesus in this cake despite everyone's efforts to steal my moment from me. We are planning a trip to NOLA next year during the Mardi Gras season, and I can't wait to take part in this fun King Cake tradition again!
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| All the way from New Orleans! |
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| Look at those layers of sweet dough, cookie dough, cinnamon, and frosting! |
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| I found the tiny baby Jesus |
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me! You are too "sweet" ;)