For most folks the holidays are over, but in New Orleans, they're JUST BEGINNING.  Yep.

Friday night, January 6, is Twelfth Night! That means it's the start of carnival season, and officially the coolest day of the year to eat king cake. But you should strive to eat a piece of king cake at least once a week every week leading up to Mardi Gras. Pick up a cake at your favorite place, take it to school/work/home, and slice it all up at once so you can see who gets the baby. If you get the baby, you bring the next cake.

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It's time to start shakin and bakin...Mardi Gras is March 8, so there's still time to get in lots of slices of king cake.  I suggest you try making one, if you're into really big, scrumptious art projects that go great with coffee.  I also believe that a warm Sunday afternoon is the perfect time to try it.

I've made this RECIPE several times now, and I declare it pretty foolproof. The dough has wonderful flavor from the nutmeg and lemon zest added to it (plus a ton of butter).  I'm not going to repost the whole recipe here, because I've never made any changes to it--I'm no tinkerer when it comes to baking.  But I do have some hints about how to form and shape it without ending up covered in gloopy dough.  Thanks to Paul for taking dozens of photos!

P.S.  Get some Cafe du Monde or French Market coffee for this!

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