holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe photography tips with a point and shoot

holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe We find the origins of holidays exceedingly interesting. We enjoy learning how so many holidays have their origins in pagan tradition. Mardi Gras, which is literally translated “Fat Tuesday” and celebrated this Tuesday, February 21, 2012, in New Orleans, began in Europe. The ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia, celebrated in mid-February was a circus like festival not unlike Carnival or Mardi Gras. When Ancient Rome accepted Christianity as its state religion the leaders of the church felt it was better to include the customs of pagan religions rather than try to eradicate them. Carnival was the solution for the Christian church. Preceding the penance of Lent, Carnival allows Christians to, shall we say, let their hair down and party. holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe Mardi Gras was brought to America by The Catholic French in the late 17th Century. Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville and his brother Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville were sent by King Louis XIV to defend France’s claim to the Louisiane territory, which is, today, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe Mardi Gras is celebrated throughout the world. Called Mardi Gras in some countries, Carnival in others there are many traditions that are a part of the festivities. One of those traditions is the baking and eating of “king cake”. The "king cake" takes its name from the biblical three kings. holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe The Epiphany, which is commemorated on January 6th, acknowledges the visit of the Magi (three kings) to the baby Jesus. January 5th, the eve of the Epiphany, is the twelfth day of Christmas. King cakes may be eaten until Mardi Gras, the day before Ash Wednesday when Lent begins. The purple, green and gold seen everywhere during Mardi Gras is also a traditional element of the king cake. The colors became a tradition after a visit by Russian royalty, Rex; a Mardi Gras krewe was inspired by the Russians and used the colors as their official ones. The colors very quickly became synonymous with Mardi Gras and are an essential element of the king cake. holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe A king cake is an oval shaped yeasted coffee cake, covered with icing and purple, green and gold sugar. Traditionally a plastic baby (to represent Jesus) was baked within the cake, but many avoid the practice and place the baby underneath baked cake in order to avoid choking. Bakeries in Louisiana produce thousands of king cakes each Mardi Gras season and often ship them around the world. Photography Tips if you are using a Point and Shoot: 1. These were taken with a point and shoot, but shot in raw format. By shooting in raw format, this allows us to tweak the images during post processing. Processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 using an Antique preset. 2. A Soft Box Was used, inexpensive from Cowboy Studio 3. Camera Used SONY DSC-H50 holidays & recipes: mardi gras king cake recipe
King Cake Ingredients 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast 1/2 cup warm water 1/2 cup warm milk 1/3 cup margarine 1/3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 egg 4 to 4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour Filling 1/2 brown sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 cup (1/2 a stick) melted butter Glaze 2 cups confectioners' sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons water (add more by drips if needed) Purple, green and gold colored sugar Directions In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, margarine, sugar, salt, egg and 2 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled. Mix filling ingredients in a bowl, set aside. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Split dough into two pieces. Roll each into two large rectangles. Spread the filling over each rectangle, leaving a 1 inch border along the edges. Roll up each one jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch to seal. Place seam side down on a lined baking sheet. Form each roll into an individual circle and pinch ends together to seal the rings. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Combine the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and enough water to achieve desired consistency. Spread over cooled cakes. Sprinkle with colored sugars.
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21 comments

  • February 22, 2012 at 8:49 am //

    Never had king cake, but it looks intriguing :)

    • February 22, 2012 at 9:00 am //

      Thank you so much Kiri = )

  • February 22, 2012 at 4:55 pm //

    Very interesting history of Mardi Gras. This king cake looks exactly what I remember having there. I love that you even included the baby. Your photos are beautiful. Sometimes I miss having a point and shoot for the situations when carrying a big DSLR just isn’t an option. And knowing that it can take a picture like this makes me think it may be time to go out and buy one!

    • February 22, 2012 at 7:17 pm //

      Hi Alyssa, of course, I Love my DSLR, but there are times when you don’t feel like lugging your gear, and there’s cost too, I think it’s a good idea for anyone starting to get a point and shoot, find their niche and then upgrade, with food photography though, with a P&S light is such a necessity to omit any noise in low lighting but when you find that the camera isn’t given you the results you want, then upgrading might be a good idea, but within the last few years, P&S have higher pixels and a nice Macro option.

  • February 22, 2012 at 8:35 pm //

    I am such a fan of yeasted cake/pastry! Love the look of this cake!

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:23 am //

      Thank you Anh, we love sweet breads!

  • February 22, 2012 at 9:00 pm //

    I did not know this cake before…but it looks beautiful!

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:23 am //

      Thank you El Pasticcio.

  • February 23, 2012 at 5:06 am //

    Have to admit, I have never heard of a King Cake before. But, now I know and I am really excited to give this recipe a try. Thanks for the inspiration!

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:23 am //

      Thank you, we are really fond of sweet breads, this reminds me of an Easter bread.

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:22 am //

      Thank you so much Reshmi, an thank you for your help on the recipe, I greatly appreciate your time and effort = )

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:22 am //

      Thank you Reem.

  • February 23, 2012 at 9:52 am //

    As a Gulf Coast native, I have eaten my share of King Cake during Mardi Gras, but I’ve never attempted making one. Kudos to you for taking on this iconic delicacy. It’s beautiful!

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:21 am //

      So happy you enjoyed this Alaiyo, how long as it been since you’ve had a King Cake?

  • February 23, 2012 at 2:53 pm //

    Looks great. Well done.

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:20 am //

      Thank you.

  • February 24, 2012 at 3:43 am //

    How festive, I love it! I’ve never had a King Cake, but I’d like to give it a try!

    • February 24, 2012 at 8:19 am //

      Thank you Mama’s gotta bake = )

  • February 28, 2012 at 12:09 am //

    I was just thinking about making a King Cake for Fat Tuesday this year, but was dissuaded because it was going to be a hassle to find a good recipe… and then I stumbled across your blog! This recipe is bookmarked and I can’t wait to try to make it for next year!