Traditional New Orleans King Cake

I love a good party .... and I especially love a good cake! :) With Mardi Gras coming up soon, I thought it would be fun to share a Traditional New Orleans King Cake. Although it may sound intimidating, it's a really simple cake to make! 



Mardi Gras takes place 46 days before Easter - which is the day before Lent (this year it is Tuesday, March 4th, 2014). As you may know, Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent. Although, the most famous Mardi Gras celebration is in New Orleans, there are many celebrations throughout the world. 
The King Cake came to New Orleans from France in the 1870's, and it honors the three kings who visited the baby Jesus. Traditionally,  a dried pea, coin or plastic baby is hidden in the cake to represent the Christ child. Whoever finds the token in their piece of cake is said to have a year of good luck. The King Cake is shaped like a crown and is decorated in the "royal" colors - violet (justice), gold (power) and green (faith).  These three colors are also the official colors of Mardi Gras.

Laissez les bons temps rouler!


Traditional New Orleans King Cake
Printable recipe
Yield: 12 servings

For the cake:
2 pkg. (¼ oz. each) active dry yeast
½ cup warm water (110°F - 115°F)
½ cup sugar
½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
½ cup warm milk (110°F - 115°F)
2 egg yolks
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
3-4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ cup sugar
1 egg, beaten

For the glaze:
1½ cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice
2-3 tbsp. water
Green, purple and yellow sugars

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add the ½ cup sugar, butter, milk, yolks, salt, lemon peel, nutmeg and 2 cups of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough. The dough will be sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth or elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about an hour.

Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 16x10-in. rectangle. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon with the ¼ cup sugar. Sprinkle over the dough to within ½-in. of the edge. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting on the long side. Pinch seam to seal. Place seam-side down on a greased baking sheet - pinch ends together to form a ring. Cover and let rise until doubled, about an hour.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush the cake with the beaten egg. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. 

For the glaze, combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice and enough water to achieve the desired consistency. Spread or pour over the cooled cake. Sprinkle with the colored sugars.



Other Posts You May Enjoy:

Jambalaya
Southern Cornbread
I hope you enjoy! Shared at thesefun parties!

Don't forget to share and comment ♥Copyright © Love Bakes Good Cakes 2012-2013 All Rights Reserved

Jambalaya

The weather is acting crazy here in Phoenix .... one minute it's bright and sunny ... and the next, rain clouds or dust storms are moving in. They don't seem to last long and then it's right back to being bright and sunny. I think it's so cool that you can actually see the storms roll in here. I've never seen anything like it. 
Needless to say, we've gotten some rain here in Phoenix the last few days .... some much needed rain I might add. Where I'm from, you could almost set a clock to the time it would rain. It would be so darned hot and the humidity would get so high - that the rain would be a welcome relief .... until the humidity started to rise again! :) 

I'm learning that things are different here in the desert .... rain is a big deal. I mean, they cancel school if it rains! (No joke, my oldest son who attends a public school was sent home 2 times in the past 2 weeks for rain .... nothing more than rain). I know some of y'all have to be just as shocked as I was. Things like that don't happen in other parts of the country to my knowledge. If it rains, life still goes on. Kids stay at school. Apparently here, they have huge issues with flooding and I'm guessing that is really the reason school is dismissed early? I'm not really sure. I found out the other day that Phoenix has what they call The Stupid Motorist Law .... I can't even make that up - it's a real law here!
I'm not sure what it is about rainy weather, but it kinda makes me want to eat spicy food. Spicy food that I can have cornbread with. Two particular meals come to mind for me - Chili .... or Jambalaya. MmmmMmmm. This time, Jambalaya won! :) Enjoy, y'all!

Jambalaya

Printable recipe

Yield: 6 servings

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 lb. smoked sausage, halved lengthwise and sliced

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-in. cubes

1 tbsp. Cajun seasoning

1 medium onion, chopped

1 small green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

2-3 stalks of celery, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (16 oz.) crushed tomatoes

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

½ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. Tabasco sauce

1¼ cups uncooked white rice

2½ cups chicken broth

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the Cajun seasoning over the sausage and chicken. Cook the sausage until browned. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the chicken to the same pan and cook until slightly browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the onion, bell pepper and celery to the same pan and cook for 3-5 minutes or until tender. Stir in the garlic, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper flakes, pepper and Tabasco sauce. Add the sausage, chicken and the rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.


One Pot Chicken and Sausage Pastalaya
Southern Cornbread
I hope you enjoy! Shared at thesefun parties!
Featured at The NY Melrose Family

Don't forget to share and comment ♥Copyright © Love Bakes Good Cakes 2012-2013 All Rights Reserved

  

Creole Tuna

Have you started your back to school shopping yet? I try to get it done as early as possible because I hate picking from the "leftovers". I hate to admit that I over buy every single year - do you?
With my mind shifting to back to school, I have wanted to share some easy weeknight meals that are great for when the kids return to school in a few short weeks! Everyone could use more of those, right?
If you ever need a meal that relies on pantry staples, this one's for you! There's a very good possibility that you already have all of the ingredients to make this dish on hand! It's very budget friendly too!

Creole TunaSightly adapted from Taste of HomePrintable recipeYield: 4 servings
½ of a green pepper, chopped½ of a small onion, diced1 stalk of celery, diced2 tbsp. butter2 tbsp. all-purpose flour½ tsp. sugarSalt and pepper, to taste⅓ cup milk1 can (14.5 oz.) stewed tomatoes (chop them up if you prefer smaller pieces)1 can (6 oz.) tuna, drained and flaked1 tsp. Cajun seasoningCooked rice
In a skillet, saute the green pepper in butter until tender. Stir in the flour, sugar, salt and pepper. Mix well. Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly until well combined and thickened. Stir in the tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add the tuna and Cajun seasoning. Heat through. Serve over cooked rice. 

Tuna Salad Sandwiches
Orange and Broccoli Shrimp with Rice

I hope you enjoy! Shared at thesefun parties!

Don't forget to share and comment ♥Copyright © Love Bakes Good Cakes 2012-2013 All Rights Reserved