What is a Mardi Gras king cake and where can I buy one?
MARDI Gras was first celebrated in the United States in 1699 near what is now New Orleans, Louisiana.
The celebration kicks off on a different day every year before the Catholic Lent season begins, and this year the celebrations will get underway on Tuesday, March 1.
What is a Mardi Gras king cake?
A Mardi Gras king cake was first created in celebration of Three Kings Day, the day, according to the Catholic faith, when three wise men brought the baby Jesus gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
The tradition of celebrating Mardi Gras with the cake was brought to the US by the French in the 1870s.
A Mardi Gras king cake looks like an oversized donut with a hole cut out on the middle.
It can be made with the consistency of bread, or more along the lines of an actual cake and will have icing and colored sprinkles covering the outer layers.
These colors are not random. Given the cake is used to celebrate Mardi Gras, also known as Fat Tuesday, the final day to consume greasy and unhealthy food before the observance of Lent, each color represents some aspect of the holiday.
A Mardi Gras king cake is covered with green, yellow, and purple sprinkles with purple representing power, yellow representing justice, and green to symbolize faith.
Hidden inside the cake is a tiny plastic baby to represent Jesus, and for the person who finds the baby in the cake, it is said to bring them luck or prosperity for the upcoming year.
Where can I buy a Mardi Gras king cake?
For anyone celebrating Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras king cakes can be found at almost any bakery and in many local supermarkets around the country.
These cakes sell for about $60 online or in stores, but for those who don't want to spend the money, there are recipes online to make your own Mardi Gras king cake.
The provided CBS News with an exquisite that they say comes highly recommended.
When did we start celebrating Mardi Gras in the US?
MARDI Gras was first celebrated in the United States in 1699 near what is now New Orleans, Louisiana.
When the foreign explorer Jean Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville landed found himself about 60 miles south of New Orleans on March 2, 1699, he realized it was the eve of Mardi Gras in France.
In honor of the holiday, he dubbed the area Pointe du Mardi Gras and subsequently held a festival.
Mardi Gras became an official US holiday in Fort Louis de la Louisiane, now called Mobil, in 1702 and moved upward to New Orleans, which was also founded by de Bienville.
However, the festivals did not have the same high level of energy they have today with parades, fireworks, and beads.
The governor in the 1790s, Marquis de Vaudreuil, held grand balls in celebration of the holiday, which has stood the test of time and the tradition still exists in many areas across the US.
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