Another fantastic idea from our friends at Rich’s is this super-spectacular, traditional Louisiana King Cake, made from their ready-to-bake cinnamon roll logs. As a side note… Did you notice the one above says, “Beat Bama?” Well, it must have been a good luck charm because….LSU DID! #GEAUXTIGERS
First of all, let’s talk about what King Cake is and where it came from. It is a sweet pastry dough, either filled or not, twisted into a circular shape, outfitted with a plastic baby, baked and decorated with icing and colored sugar. Historically, it is part of a Catholic celebration known as Epiphany, which falls on January 6th, or Twelfth Night, which marks the proposed date of arrival of the three wise men in Bethlehem to visit and bring gifts to baby Jesus. In addition to its presence for religious celebrations, King Cake appears throughout the Carnival season, which runs from Epiphany to Fat Tuesday, which is the Day before Ash Wednesday or the start of Lent. Once Lent begins, those who follow this religious practice typically abstain from their usual indulgences, such as cake. Whew, did you get all that?
There are so many varieties of the delicious concoction, my personal favorite being a strawberry/cream cheese filled version. I like mine gooey and soft, but other folks like it more like a slightly sweet, cinnamon enhanced French bread. I don’t know what’s wrong with those people, but I digress. The plastic baby that is typically inserted into the cake symbolizes the baby Jesus. Tradition has it, that the person who gets the slice with the baby is responsible for the cake at the next celebration. The Louisiana version of this cake is almost always decorated with the three colors associated with Mardi Gras: Green, gold and purple, which represent justice, faith and power, or royalty, loyalty and truth, depending on who you ask. There are some amazing, intricate versions, such as those from Sucre in New Orleans, to a more traditional, simple version…like these.
Now that you know the back-story of what it is and why it is here, let’s talk about some easy ways for making your own versions and some packaging options for your store.
There could not be an easier way to make a grand bakery presence than to create some of these for your store. Large or small versions are completely within reach for your deli manager.
Take a look… So Fun and Simple. Get creative for Any Holiday, Event or Season (Football is a Season, Right??)
