The short, happy tale of the Mardi Gras King Cake
ย ย Everyone and his brother seem to be buying King Cakes these days.
ย ย ย ย Grocery stores and bakeries can't keep them on the shelves in the Mardi Gras season.
ย ย ย ย The cake is circular or oval-shaped and decorated in bright colors resembling a bejeweled crown.
ย ย ย ย Like the traditional colors of Mardi Gras, the preferred colors of the King Cake are purple, representing justice; green signifying faith; and gold for power.
ย ย ย ย Originally, the cake was baked on the eve of the Epiphany โ the church feast day commemorating the 3 wise men's visit to the Christ child, 12 days after his birth. Thus, the King Cake is a way of honoring Christ the King.
ย ย ย ย More on this intriguing story, plus an easy-to-follow King Cake recipe, can be found in the cookbook titled "๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ฑ 100 ๐๐ฆ๐ธ ๐๐ณ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ๐ด ๐๐ฆ๐ค๐ช๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐๐ญ๐ญ ๐๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ" (available in softcover and hardcover) from the publisher atย www.acadianhouse.com/new-orleans. The King Cake goes back to 12th century France, and it was brought to Louisiana by French settlers in the 1700s.
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