LET THEM EAT CAKE!

The History of Mardi Gras King Cake

To go along with my first post, I decided to explore the history of another favorite Southern food especially favored in the Mobile Area. Since Mardi Gras is right around the corner I chose the famous king cake that is made only during the weeks of Mardi Gras.

The roots of the king cake date back to the early days of Christianity in Europe. King cakes traditionally go on sale to coincide with the Epiphany or Twelfth Night. It became traditional to bake a special cake -- a king's cake -- to mark the occasion.

Back in the olden days, a king cake was a simple sweet bread baked in an oval, much like it is today.It became customary for the party giver to include a small bean, coin or other trinket in the mix. According to legend, the recipient of the treasure was afforded special rights and privileges.Nowadays the finder of the prize is charged with hosting the next party, at which time another king cake with a bean would be served, and so on and so on. The bean has now been replaced with a tiny plastic baby. Custom no longer dictates that the victim who finds the baby host the next party; they are now only required to bring the next king cake.

The prize is also no longer baked into the cake, rather the baker places it inside the box so that the host or hostess can hide it in the cake, or not. If you do choose to hide it in the cake, it's a good idea to let your guests know it so nobody swallows it. By most accounts, the king cake didn't appear as a part of Mobile's Mardi Gras celebration until 1959 when Fred Pollman, owner of Pollman's Bakery, brought back a recipe from New Orleans where the practice had been going on for years. And, just as soon as you start to enjoy them, they're gone. Tradition holds that none are sold after the celebration of Carnival ends on Mardi Gras.