Well, it's not as if I have literally been reflecting matters of life and death since last Wednesday, especially not with all the recent springy weather. This Friday I had my sunroof open. Today I had my car windows down as I ran errands. I basked in the sunshine. I did not once use the car sunroof when I lived in the desert, but I now use it every so often to augment winter sunbreaks (my Seattle sister's term). This sunbreak is just about over, though, with a winter storm warning to last through the week. The past few weeks, we have had snow during the week, then warmer weather toward week's end, which foiled Fiance's and my plan to explore local cross-country ski trials. So we are hoping this week will not end in weather warm enough to melt all the snow (though this is the last time I will say that this year...after this week, it is all pray for spring pray for spring pray for spring).
Back to Mardi Gras. Being one who loves to embrace other cultures, particularly when it comes to food, I made a traditional King Cake...this is a Louisiana thing. It apparently originated in France. I have had delicious King Cake before, and mine came out okay, but like many yeast-based creations of mine, was a bit dense, 
and by Day 2, a bit brick-like. King Cakes can be shared from the Feast of the Epiphany (always on January 6th) up to Mardi Gras (this year February 17th), and I shared mine 2 weeks before Mardi Gras. It went over well, because even after a ridiculous amount of preparation and baking, it tasted exactly like a cinnamon roll, and who doesn't like a cinnamon roll? But next time, I will follow the recipe I found on some "work smart not hard" person's blog which went something like this: open one of those cylindrical cans of raw cinnamon rolls, shape it into an oval, bake, ice, and sprinkle with some sugar you bought already colored gold, green, and purple (that's right, I used food coloring to custom-color my sugar!). Though if you are a glutton for punishment, check out the Southern Living recipe I used at http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1152929. I actually have a hard copy of the recipe, clipped from my grandma's magazine - the hard copy tells you how to make your own colored sugar: simply add a few drops of food coloring to a small bowl of sugar and wisk until combined.
and by Day 2, a bit brick-like. King Cakes can be shared from the Feast of the Epiphany (always on January 6th) up to Mardi Gras (this year February 17th), and I shared mine 2 weeks before Mardi Gras. It went over well, because even after a ridiculous amount of preparation and baking, it tasted exactly like a cinnamon roll, and who doesn't like a cinnamon roll? But next time, I will follow the recipe I found on some "work smart not hard" person's blog which went something like this: open one of those cylindrical cans of raw cinnamon rolls, shape it into an oval, bake, ice, and sprinkle with some sugar you bought already colored gold, green, and purple (that's right, I used food coloring to custom-color my sugar!). Though if you are a glutton for punishment, check out the Southern Living recipe I used at http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1152929. I actually have a hard copy of the recipe, clipped from my grandma's magazine - the hard copy tells you how to make your own colored sugar: simply add a few drops of food coloring to a small bowl of sugar and wisk until combined. But since I live in Detroit and not New Orleans, I would be remiss not to mention the paczki, the ubiquitous Polish Mardi Gras treat. I went to the nearby Looney Baker in Livonia (if you are ever in town you must get their apple 
cider donut...mmmm) to pick up paczki for the Fiance and I to share. The girl who helped me at the counter said they had been extremely busy trying to meet all the special orders for paczki that come in that time of year. Hmmm, I thought, these paczki must really be something! To be honest, I was a bit disappointed, though this should not reflect on the excellent Looney Baker (which sports a blow-up Homer Simpson eating a donut during the Christmas season). The paczek (singular form) is basically a jelly donut, though you can also get a custard-filled. The difference, as far as I can tell, is better ingredients, but I have never been a fan of jelly donuts, so alas, I did not have any point of comparison. I sincerely apologize if this critique offends paczki fans - I have had only one experience with the paczki so far, but will gamely give it a try next year - who am I to pass up a donut?
cider donut...mmmm) to pick up paczki for the Fiance and I to share. The girl who helped me at the counter said they had been extremely busy trying to meet all the special orders for paczki that come in that time of year. Hmmm, I thought, these paczki must really be something! To be honest, I was a bit disappointed, though this should not reflect on the excellent Looney Baker (which sports a blow-up Homer Simpson eating a donut during the Christmas season). The paczek (singular form) is basically a jelly donut, though you can also get a custard-filled. The difference, as far as I can tell, is better ingredients, but I have never been a fan of jelly donuts, so alas, I did not have any point of comparison. I sincerely apologize if this critique offends paczki fans - I have had only one experience with the paczki so far, but will gamely give it a try next year - who am I to pass up a donut?
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