Mardi Gras 2015 {King Cake Bread Pudding and Children's Mardi Gras}

This year’s King Cake was going to be a jelly roll style cake in purple, green, and gold.

Only I still haven't gotten past my fear of making a jelly roll cake.
So that doesn't really work out too well.

Alternate plan: King Cake Bread Pudding.

Bread pudding has long been a way to use leftover/stale bread.

Only there’s no such thing as leftover King Cake.

If there is, you're doing something wrong.
So that’s not really going to work out too well either.

No King Cake leftovers to turn into bread pudding.
But I wanted my bread pudding to taste like a King Cake.

So...King Cake Vodka.
Making my King Cake Bread Pudding a reality.

I had plenty of stale French bread, hamburger, and hot dog buns.  The custard was infused with King Cake Vodka, cinnamon, and hints of lemon to give that traditional King Cake taste.

A powdered sugar glaze went on top, along with the colored sugars found on a King Cake.

It tasted like a real King Cake, but was much easier and quicker to make.
(Recipe Below)

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I run Cajun Mardi Gras with the Basile Mardi Gras Association.  The Sunday before Mardi Gras, they host a Children's Run for kids up to 16 years old.

Here's my Mardi Gras

Performing  La Chanson de Mardi Gras (the Mardi Gras Song) before starting the run

All the boys ready to head out

Colorful costumes on a foggy day

Begging like a Mardi Gras should

And catching a chicken--every Mardi Gras' wish for the day

While the adults who run Mardi Gras are fueled by liquid courage, these kids are hopped up on doughnuts.



Print It!

King Cake Bread Pudding

For bread pudding:
8-9 cups cubed stale bread
3 cups milk
1/2 cup King Cake Vodka
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1 heaping tsp lemon zest

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Whisk together milk, vodka, sugar, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and lemon zest in a large bowl.  Fold in the bread cubes.  Pour into an 8 x 8 oven safe dish.  Bake for about 45 minutes.  The bread pudding is ready when a butter knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow pudding to cool before decorating or the colored sugar will melt.

For glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-2 Tbsp King Cake Vodka

Add the powdered sugar to a bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of King Cake Vodka.  Add more vodka, a little at a time, until the glaze is a thick but pourable consistency.

For colored sugar:
(can be made ahead)
¾ cup granulated sugar, divided in thirds
purple food coloring, or red and blue
green food coloring
yellow food coloring

Divide the sugar into three plastic bags.  Add 3-4 drops of yellow food coloring to one bag.  Knead the color into the sugar. Repeat with green food coloring. For purple, I like to use purple food paste to get a rich purple color. Red and blue food coloring can also be used.


Once the bread pudding has cooled, drizzle the powdered sugar glaze over the top.  Decorate with the purple, green, and gold sugars.

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Mardi Gras 2015 {King Cake and Coffee Cocktail}

We caught our first parade of the season over the weekend.

 
 The Krewe of Rio made it's way down the streets of Lafayette, LA.

While not as large and showy as the more famous New Orleans parades, the parades in Lafayette have become much more elaborate than when I lived there in the 90s.

Bellydancers or butterflies?  Both?

I'm not sure, but their twirly, light-up wings looked cool coming down the street.

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So last week when I was all running my mouth about
 "hot buttered spiced rum is the unofficial official drink of Mardi Gras..."
...well, that was before experimenting with King Cake Vodka.
(And before we suddenly got up to almost 80 degrees.)

 

I've changed my mind.  And I'm absolutely allowed to do that.

Just so you know.

In all honesty, King Cake Vodka is difficult to drink on it's own.  It's a strange mix of sugary hyper-sweetness (like king cake) and tear-up-your-throat it's so rough going down.

But it's good for mixed drinks.  (And another trick I have saved up my sleeve for next week.)

While I sipped it straight, I noticed cinnamon and almond flavors.  Something told me it would make a good creamy, cold drink.  Like a White Russian, made with cream, vodka, and coffee liqueur.

And really, what's better with king cake than coffee?
Nothin' that's what.

King Cake & Coffee Cocktail 

made with King Cake Vodka, 

half & half, and coffee liqueur

Print It!

King Cake & Coffee Cocktail

2 oz Pinnacle King Cake Vodka
1/2 oz coffee liqueur
2 oz half and half
Ice cubes

Mix or shake together all of the ingredients.  Pour into a glass and serve.



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Mardi Gras 2015 {Hot Buttered Spiced Rum}

There are little signs of Mardi Gras showing up.
Flags hanging on main streets.

Floats out of storage.

Barricades ready to line parade routes.

Last year Mardi Gras was cold and rainy.
There were icicles hanging from my mask.

This time of year you never know what you're gonna get in Louisiana.  Could be warm and sunny...hot even.  Could be cold and rainy.

Beer is the unofficial official drink of Mardi Gras.  

But incase it's cold and icy like last year, I'm thinking Hot Buttered Spiced Rum might be my unofficial official drink of Mardi Gras.

Bayou Rum out of Lacassine, LA produces a spiced rum that is good for buttering up and mixing with brown sugar and cinnamon.

It comes in a really cool bottle too.  I like the raised state of Louisiana just under the neck.

And the old fashioned cork embossed with a man in a pirogue is my favorite design feature.

A warm mug of hot buttered spiced rum sounds like a good way to start Mardi Gras.

Note: Bayou Rum has not compensated me in any way, shape, or form.  They know nothing of this blog.  I just like their rum.  FYI: they make a satsuma rum too.


Print It!

Hot Buttered Spiced Rum

1/2 cup Bayou Spiced Rum
3/4 cup water
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
cinnamon
2 Tbsp butter, divided

Add rum, water, sugar, lemon juice, a pinch or two of cinnamon, and 1 tbsp butter to a saucepan.  Simmer until bubbling.

Divide between 2 mugs.  Add a pinch of cinnamon and 1/2 tbsp butter to each mug.

 More Mardi Gras...

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