King Cake

Growing up in south Mississippi, I ate king cake every year during Mardi Gras. When I moved to Nashville it became very difficult to find king cake... or someone who even knew what it was. Last year I was determined to have king cake once again. I ordered one from Paul's Pastry and had it shipped from Picayune, MS. This year my craving for king cake returned, but thanks to local organic grocery store, The Turnip Truck, I was able to have a fresh, blueberry king cake after just a quick trip downtown. I will admit, I was a little hesitant to try The Turnip Truck's version. They use carrots, beets, and spinach juices to color the sugar, but I'm so glad I blocked that part out and tried a bite. It was delicious.We continued our 2011 Nashville king cake tasting with a king cake from Merridee's Breadbasket, a wonderful bakery/deli in downtown Franklin. This time Keith and I decided to share and we had the fam over for a New Orleans style dinner. Merridee's king cake did not disappoint in appearance and it had the baby baked inside as it should be (The Turnip Truck doesn't honor that tradition for legal reasons); however, Merridee's only does one version- cinnamon. I can't speak for everyone that tried it, but my tastebuds crave the cream cheese/fruity filling.

In case you were wondering, Nick and Aimee ended up with the baby. That's 2 years in a row. Dorrolls, next year's Mardi Gras celebration/king cake tasting is at your house!