MICHIGAN K.I.D.S. | WWW.DNIE.COM Thursday, March 3, 2011 KING CAKE RULES THE DAY P aczkis or King’s Cake? Which treat do you want to eat next Tuesday? It’s a tough call. For years, the traditional Polish doughnuts (pronounced POONCH-key) ruled on Fat Tuesday, the day before the Lenten fasting season begins for Christians. But a few years ago, a new pre-Lenten treat arrived in Southeast Michigan: King Cake. The sugary, cinnamon-laced coffee cake reigns in New Orleans, Louisiana, home of the country’s largest Mardi Gras celebration. Will Paczki Day also come to be known as King’s Cake Day? Who knows? More and more bakeries, including Kroger’s, are selling both treats, which are both delicious. Here’s the Yak’s recipe for a mock, or imitation, of King’s Cake. Easy King’s Cake What you need • 1 (8-roll) tube of Pillsbury reduced fat cinnamon roll dough, available at the supermarket. • 1/4 cup each of green, purple and yellow sugar (the official colors of Mardi Gras). Green and purple sugars are easy to find in the baking section of the supermarket. Yellow is not. Make your own yellow sugar by adding yellow food coloring to plain sugar and mixing well. • Add store bought or your own handmade Mardi Gras decorations: green, gold and purple beads, little plastic masks and crowns and a little plastic baby doll. What to do 1. Make the cinnamon rolls by following the instructions on the package. 2. When the “cake” or rolls are done, remove them from the oven and spread them with icing. Arrange them close together on a platter so they look like a cake. Immediately sprinkle with all the colored sugars. Add the decorations. Photo by Eric Seals The Yak has lots of experience eating paczkis and even helping to make them! Photo by William Archie King Cake is a sweet treat fit for a king or a queen. By Patricia Chargot Note: In New Orleans, the doll is baked into the batter. Whoever gets it in his or her slice wins a prize. Don’t try this at home, though. The plastic might melt, or someone could swallow the doll! For fun, devise a contest to see who gets the cinnamon roll with the doll. Give that person a small, inexpensive prize, perhaps the decorations so he or she can make a King’s Cake next year! 5