King Cake Time!

Today is Fat Tuesday, the last big hurrah before Lent. Not that I observe Lent or anything. But I'll take any excuse to party.

Every year, I bring a King Cake to the office. I always use the same tried-and-tested recipe from Kittee Berns of Cake Maker to the Stars. Here's the recipe! Plus, she has newer recipes for gluten-free king cakes.

Here's this year's cake. It's a jelly roll-style cake shaped into a ring and covered with icing and Mardi Gras colored sugar. There is a hole in the center of this cake, but it's covered in sugar:

I've never had a non-vegan king cake, but I've always heard people complain that storebought versions of these Danish-like cakes are dry and tasteless. Not so with Kittee's cakes! The dough is moist and almost cinnamon roll-like. Each year, I go with a different filling. This year, I opted for Tofutti cream cheese whipped with powdered sugar and strawberry pie filling:

You're supposed to hide a baby in the cake and whoever finds it in his or her slice is king or queen for the day. And they have to bring the cake next year. Here's the little guy before he was rolled up and baked into a cake:

Sadly, I've no idea who found that baby! My co-workers devoured all but a slice of that cake today, and the remaining slice is the end piece, where the two parts of the cake were squished together. I know it can't be in there because I put him closer to the center. Somebody must not want to bring the cake next year because they're being pretty hush-hush about the baby.

Oh well! I'm sure I'll bring the vegan king cake again next year anyway! Now, off for some vegan gumbo and Abita beer. Laissez les bons temps rouler!