Happy Fat Tuesday! The History of the King Cake

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Each year we celebrate Fat Tuesday with a King Cake…


People always ask me … “What is a King Cake?”

Basically the King Cake celebrates the Wise Men’s journey to seek out Baby Jesus (no the wise men did not have cars so it took awhile to get to Bethlehem 😉

So as not to humiliate myself by trying to explain the rest of the details…here is more info I found elsewhere…

“The King Cake is believed to have originated in France around the 12th century. These early Europeans celebrated the coming of the three wise men bearing gifts twelve days after Christmas calling it the Feast of the epiphany, Twelfth Night, or King’s Day.

The main part of the celebration was the baking of a King’s Cake to honor the three Kings. The cakes were made circular to portray the circular route used by the kings to get to the Christ Child, which was taken to confuse King Herod who was trying to follow the wise men so he could kill the Christ Child. In these early King Cakes a bean, pea, or coin was hidden inside the cake. The person who got the hidden piece was declared King for the day or was said to have good luck in the coming year.

In Louisiana, Twelfth Night also signifies the beginning of the carnival season which ends with Mardi Gras Day. The bean, pea and the coin have been replaced by a small plastic baby to symbolize the Christ Child. The person who gets the baby is expected to carry on the carnival festivities by hosting the next King Cake party. “


So remember…tomorrow…Gym and Then Church for Ash Wednesday…but today…enjoy some King Cake!

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