Laissez les bons temps rouler! !

In keeping with the name of my blog, I'm sharing about some 'roots' today. Next Tuesday is Fat Tuesday, but today was full of Mardi Gras at my house. Last year my dear friend, Chanda and I had both been craving a good king cake. Not being able to find one around these here parts, we decided to make our own. Let me say..It was unbelievably good, especially for our first time to make one. Quoting Dizzy Dean, "It ain't braggin' if you can do it." Well we did it alright! So good in fact, we did it again this year--times 4!! Four king cakes were magically created here today and 1 was completely consumed!!!

I found this card in a king cake I bought years ago. So for those of you unfamiliar with the delicacy, here's some background."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 Epiphany, Twelfth Night, or King's Day.
The main part of the celebration was the baking of a King Cake to honor the three Kings. The cakes were made circular to portray the cirucular route used by the Kings to get to the Christ Child and 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, a pea or a 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 on Mardi Gras Day. The beans, peas, and coins have been replace 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 today at our Second Annual King Cake party, we had gumbo, sweet tea and king cake...perfect combo for this Southern girl and her Texas friend who has lived around the Southeast almost as long as she lived in this great state. While you can find good food lots of places, Southern cuisine, in my opinion, cannot be matched. It's pure comfort for the soul! When it is matched with good company it's almost more than you can stand!!

While I'm not promoting the indulgences of typical Mardi Gras, I do love the food and fun festivities and want this tradition of baking and fellowshipping with good friends to be an integral part of my children's heritage...to take root in their lives. Blessing others and being blessed by them while having them in your home and kitchen is a Southern tradition I am thankful found it's place and took root in my life. It feeds my soul to love and serve those God brings into my life whether it involves the most extravagantly festive meal or the most basic ham sandwich. Giving of our time and ourselves are roots that give us wings.