The 2023 Mardi Gras season is upon us!
Besides the parades, parties, beads and boozing, there's another Mardi Gras tradition that revelers crave every season.
It's the majestic king cake.
For those who don't know, Mardi Gras didn't originate in New Orleans. Nope. Mardi Gras got its start in Mobile, Alabama. And there's a bakery along the Alabama Gulf Coast where business is booming this year all because of its award-winning king cake.
This king cake is unlike one you've ever seen before. It's a savory — not sweet — crawfish king cake.
We're talking four pounds of homemade dough and four pounds of big, juicy crawfish.
The place to find such a creation? A shop called Gourmet Goodies in Daphne, Alabama.
Crawfish King Cake
Last year around Mardi Gras, owner Laura Stafford and her business partner Barbara Sylkatis were toying with the idea of creating a different type of king cake — one they'd never made or tasted.
"I said 'let's do a crawfish dressing and do it inside of the king cake and let's do a cream sauce on top of it and garnish it and we'll see where it goes.' Well, it went nuts!" Stafford said.
In early January 2023, a customer ordered crawfish king cake and, without telling the store's staff, he entered the cake into the King Cake Extravaganza contest in New Orleans.
"He said, 'I didn't even tell you, but I'm taking your king cake to the contest and I was like, 'umm, ok' and I really didn't think anything about it," said Stafford. "I didn't really even know there were king cake contests!"
More than 150 king cakes from five southern states -- Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas -- competed in the King Cake Extravaganza.
After three days of fierce competition, Stafford's savory sensation was a big winner!
"He called me and said 'you won best in the state, best new contender, number one in the savory category and you won the bronze number three overall!' I said, 'are you kidding me?' I was floored," Stafford exclaimed.
Less than a month later on Jan. 27, 2023, Gourmet Goodies' king cake took home another award in the 5th annual King Cake-Off in Mobile, Alabama.
As word spread across the southeast of their multi-award winning crawfish king cake, Stafford says they're selling out as soon as they make them.
"We were sold out in less than an hour yesterday," Stafford said.
What's in 'Gourmet Goodies' Crawfish King Cake?
"Our motto is 'go big or go home' so our king cakes here are HUGE," Stafford said with a big laugh.
They start with four pounds of crawfish in each cake. The whole cake weighs eight pounds.
"Barbara and her team make the dough. Me and my team make the crawfish dressing," Stafford said.
They use the crawfish to make a crawfish dressing/filling to add inside each one. The recipe for the dressing, though, is top secret.
"It's like a traditional homemade dressing and then we've got a whole bunch of secret stuff we put in it and it's loaded with crawfish," Stafford added.
Once the dressing is added, they roll the dough (see the photos below) and form it into a large circle.
Then they put the whole thing into the oven for 30 minutes. Once it's finished baking, they let it cool for just a bit.
Then, they pour a generous helping of homemade crawfish creole cream sauce all over it.
For the grand finale, it's topped with scallions and crispy crumbled bacon, completing this eight pounds of Mardi Gras deliciousness.
How Much is a Crawfish King Cake?
Each crawfish king cake costs $75 and can feed 20-25 people. However, if you want a smaller size, you're in luck!
"We also make crawfish king cake bombs. Each one has four ounces of dough and four ounces of crawfish and they're just as decadent as the big crawfish king cake," Stafford said with a smile.
Crawfish king cake bombs come four to a pack for $20.
In case you're wondering, Gourmet Goodies does make sweet king cakes, too.
"We have several flavors. We have cinnamon sugar. Our stuffed king cakes include: Alabama Sweet Heat, cinnamon cream cheese, apple, strawberry cream cheese, raspberry cream cheese, churro, banana pudding and creamy pecan praline," Stafford said.
They even make king cake minis, as well.
The folks at Gourmet Goodies have already accomplished so much in the short time they've been open and they're grateful for their success.
"What has been so wonderful is just how precious our customers have been and the people in our area who've rallied behind us, encouraging us. This is incredible," Stafford said. "I was reading my devotion last week and an excerpt in it said 'decades are built in days' and to 'seize the day that you're in because you don't know if it'll change your destiny for decades to come.' I think that may be what's happening here and I'm just so thankful."
Mardi Gras
History of the King Cake
King Cakes are linked to the Christian holiday of Epiphany, also known as Three Kings Day.
A big part of the Epiphany celebration is the baking of a King’s Cake to honor the three Kings. The cakes are typically made circular to portray the route the kings used to get to the Christ Child. In the early days, a bean, pea, or 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.
Why Is There a Plastic Baby In a King Cake?
The plastic baby is meant to symbolize baby Jesus. Whoever finds the baby (or whatever hidden item is baked or embedded in the cake) in their slice is crowned "king" or "queen" for the day and is also said to have good luck.
It also usually means that person is supposed to provide the next king cake or host the next party, so the celebrations continue throughout the season.
When is the 2023 King Cake Season?
The 2023 King Cake season started on Twelfth Night or Epiphany, which was January 6, and lasts through Mardi Gras on February 21, 2023.
