Mardi Gras

Wishing Everyone a Happy Mardi Gras!!!

I am wishing I was there today. We have had a lot of fun in years past. Love to hear some of your Mardi Gras experiences. 

Mardi Gras King Cake

Another tradition of the Mardi Gras season is having a King Cake or King Cake party. The baking of this special cake started to honor the wise men or three kings, who came bearing gifts to the Christ Child. It is part of the celebration of the Twelfth Night, which also marks the beginning of the Mardi Gras season.
 Each cake is baked with a tiny baby inside. Most times the baby is plastic but sometimes its porcelain or gold. The person who gets the slice of king cake with the baby inside either buys the next cake or hosts the next King Cake party.
  The original King Cakes were a simple ring of dough with a small amount of decorations. Now the cakes are more festive with the top of the cake covered with a sugar topping in the traditional Mardi Gras colors of purple, green, and gold. Once the cake is baked the baby is inserted.
Manny Randozzo ‘s has some of the best cakes and will ship anywhere.
https://www.randazzokingcake.com/

A traditional Mardi Gras King Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water, about 105 to 115 degrees
• 2 tablespoons milk, scalded and cooled
• 4 to 5 cups flour
• 8 ounces butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons melted butter
• very small plastic doll, a large bean, or coin
• light corn syrup for topping
• granulated sugar colored with food coloring pastes: green, purple, and yellow

Preparation:

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add milk and about 1/2 cup of flour. In a large bowl, blend butter, sugar, salt and eggs. Add yeast mixture and mix thoroughly. Gradually, add 2 1/2 cups flour to make a medium dough. Place in a greased bowl and brush with melted butter. Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise until double in volume, about 3 hours. Use 1 cup or more flour to knead dough and roll into a 4 to 5 foot long rope. Form into a oval on a 14 x 17" greased baking sheet, connecting ends of the rope with a few drops of water to make a good seal.

Press the doll, bean, or coin into the dough from bottom. Cover dough ring with a damp cloth and let rise until double in volume, about 1 hour. Bake at 325° for 35 to 45 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Brush top of cake with corn syrup and sprinkle with alternating bands of colored sugar. If desired, freeze cake.

Mardi Gras

   Mardi Gras 2011 is in full swing this weekend. The parades are rolling down the streets of New Orleans and its party time.  People are always asking me about some of the traditions of the Mardi Gras seasons. Plus I get the question how could you bring your kids there?  Most people who haven’t been there before think of it as just a party on Bourbon Street with nothing but girls gone wild and a lot of drinking. Well I am not going to tell you that Bourbon Street isn’t like that or that there isn’t plenty of drinking going on but Mardi Gras is about so much more. Mardi gras is about excitement, music, picnics, and of course parades. 

   It’s a time to celebrate with family and friends.  Mardi gras or Fat Tuesday is the last day of the Carnival season which always falls the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. It is the feast before the giving up of things for lent.  That is why the date changes year to year. Mardi Gras is 47 days before Easter.  

Mardi Gras 2010 Time Flies by

As I am enjoying my morning coffee I can’t help but think how another year has flew by so fast. A year ago today we were in New Orleans celebrating our sons 21^st birthday and Mardi gras. That was some trip we had. 22 people joined us for the celebration and fun. This was not our first time to New Orleans or our first Mardi Gras. We have been to few. Our last Mardi gras was pre Katrina. That is when our son saw that 2010's date would be the day after his 21st birthday.