In New Orleans — a city known for its four seasons of seafood and its unique cuisine — it is only fitting that Mardi Gras have it its own special dessert — the king cake.
Each year during the weeks prior to Mardi Gras, locals enjoy these one-of-a-kind cakes. According to Randazzo’s Bakery, one of the largest king cake suppliers, it is estimated that more than one million king cakes are produced each year, with as many as a third of the cakes being shipped around the world.
Even though these unique, oval-shaped cakes come in many different varieties, their basic design remains the same. Each cake consists of a rich dough that is baked, and then topped with icing and sugar in the traditional Mardi Gras colors — purple (justice), green (faith) and gold (power).
Many king cakes are made plain, but some are filled with different types of flavoring. Strawberry, lemon, cream cheese, cinnamon, blueberry, apple and even chocolate are just some of the fillings available.
Each king cake usually includes a small plastic baby, which can be hidden somewhere in the cake. It is a common New Orleans tradition that the person who finds the baby buys the next cake.
King cakes, like much of New Orleans culture, originated in France.
According to Randazzo’s, king cakes came to be associated with Mardi Gras because of its traditional appearance on the day of the Epiphany — Jan. 6. It is also referred to as the twelfth day of Christmas, or the King’s Day, and marks the start of the carnival season that runs through Fat Tuesday.
The French settlers brought a tradition to New Orleans dating back to the twelfth century in which people would feast on round cakes that resembled the modern-day king cake, according to Randazzo’s. The cakes were part of a ceremony called The Feast of the Epiphany.
Since these cakes were eaten on the “King’s Day,” they soon were referred to as “king” cakes. Before long the Feast of the Epiphany developed into a major holiday, complete with a festive royal theme, and was celebrated throughout France.
Shortly after, the participants began to put a tiny bean into the dough prior to baking the cake. That bean was eventually replaced with the modern-day plastic baby to better symbolize the baby Jesus, for whom the three kings, or wise men, were going to see. In accordance with the biblical tale, the person who found the baby Jesus would be crowned the mock king.
While certain aspects varied, the basic structure of these ceremonies remained the same for several hundred years until the late 19th century when the king cake tradition was adapted to become one that is truly New Orleans.