Wednesday, January 7, 2009

New Orleans Carnival Season Begins


From Yat.com:
The Feast of the Epiphany is a day of closure for most Christians in the United States. It's traditionally the day when the visit to the Christ Child by the Three Wise Men is celebrated, marking the end of the Christmas season. The tree and decorations come down, and household life returns to a more normal routine, as the kids go back to school until Easter break.

The scenario is a little bit different in New Orleans. While the rest of the country is breathing a collective sigh of relief that the holidays are over, New Orleanians are just getting their second wind to begin The Big Party -- Carnival. It all begins on Twelfth Night, January 6th, with the bal masque of the Twelfth Night Revelers, and the Uptown streetcar ride of the Phunny Phorty Phellows.

The Twelfth Night Revelers have held the official kick-off to the Carnival season since January 6, 1870. Theirs is not the traditional tableau-style ball held by other krewes. The members of the krewe mask, but the centerpiece of the celebration is the the ladies of the court are selected. A giant king cake is rolled out onto the floor of the ballroom, and the ladies selected to be maids of the court all gather round. Each is given a piece of the cake, and those pieces contain one gold and several silver beans. The young lady who receives the gold bean is named the queen, and the others become the maids of the court. The cake originally was a traditional king cake, but the logistics of making sure that the right lady was chosen queen prompted the krewe to switch to a wooden replica what looks more like a classic wedding cake.

In New Orleans and south Louisiana, king cakes are omnipresent in homes, in offices, at churches during the coffee hour, everywhere. The usual tradition in offices is that someone volunteers to supply the first king cake, and thereafter, the person who gets the tiny plastic baby in their piece of cake is responsible for the cake in a week's time.

Laissez les bons temps rouler!

22 comments:

  1. Tobias, I'm told that the "Laissez...." expression is not idiomatically correct French, that it's strictly a Cajun French usage. However, it serves well to get the point across that we should all let the good times roll.

    I remember the old version of the song "C'mon Baby Let the Good Times Roll" from the 1950s by Shirley and Lee. Janis Joplin recorded the same song later, but I like the old one better.

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  2. GM, I think the grammar is correct either way. My version in the subjunctive echoes the famous words, "Que la lumiere soit!" Perhaps a bit high handed, but one really does want those good times!

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  3. Tobias, it always sounded good to me.

    David, mention tasty food, and you're likely to show up. I often think of food posts as David bait.

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  4. Enlighten this poor ignorant transplanted Texan in New York. Apart from having plastic babies and gold and silver beans in it, can any type of cake be a king cake? Or is there a traditional recipe?

    Like David, just say "pastries" and I come running, even though I have to watch my cholesterol these days and *sob!* cut back on my sugar consumption.

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  5. Les acadiens connaisent pas le subjonctif.

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  6. ...can any type of cake be a king cake? Or is there a traditional recipe?

    Counterlight, the answer to the first question is "no". The answer to the second question involves entry into the king cake recipe wars. What's authentic and traditional, and what's not?

    I think of the traditional king cake as a coffee cake shaped into a roll, which is then twisted and shaped into an oval. Some have ginger in the cake recipe, and others don't.

    Then the cake is drizzled with icing and topped with a paste of a sugar mixture in the Mardi Gras colors of gold, green and purple. The sugar mixture should have a gritty, sandy texture, rather than a smooth icing texture.

    Some folks add fillings to the cake, but traditionalists say that's not proper.

    Here's one recipe.

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  7. Ormonde, that is exactly right. The Cajuns keep it simple.

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  8. A few weeks ago, I pickedup cheap the book
    The story of French, the language that travelled the world. by Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow (Quebeckers) I have found it fascinating and often thought of you and Toujoursdan while reading. Sadly my schoolboy French in a country far far away does not understand all the subtleties.

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  9. Brian, please don't assume that I understand the subtleties of the French language or of Cajun French, but I am aware that the Cajuns do not use the subjunctive. That's about as far as my understanding goes regarding the subtleties.

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  10. David, mention tasty food, and you're likely to show up. I often think of food posts as David bait.

    As are posts about good beer and attractive members of the fair sex ;)

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  11. As a Jewish mother, I'm compelled to ask: has anyone ever choked on one of those plastic babies? :p

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  12. PJ, as a Jewish mother, who's not Jewish, I almost added, "...if you don't choke or break a tooth," but I thought that would be a downer. That's true. I am not making it up.

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  13. OK Mimi, here's the real question: Is there a decent mail-order king cake to be had by those of us in the outlands? The utter crap I've encountered in Atlanta would make you cry, and I'm not so great with the yeast myself.
    Any favorites you care to plug?

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  14. OK, John D, I'd recommend Haydel's Bakery. They ship overnight, and they're not cheap, but they're good. You hear jazz music as you place your order. I'm listening right now.

    Bon appetit!

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  15. Do you live in New Orleans Mimi? Other than 2 hour stopovers I've never been to America but this November I'm plucking up courage to go to my first American SBL Meeting because it's in New Orleans and from what I've read about the people and culture, I kinda thought I'd like it.

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  16. Steph, I am a native of New Orleans. I lived there until I was about 23 years old but have not lived there since. I live about 65 miles SW of NO, in Thibodaux, La. I still miss living there after 50 years. At least, I get to visit often.

    I think you'd like it, too, Steph, but then, I'm prejudiced. What is SBL?

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  17. The Annual Society of Biblical Literature Conference. I've been to the international one in Europe (Vienna last year and Rome coming up this year) I haven't been to an American one yet ... I'm a bit frightened of Americans but I think New Orleans sounds right up my alley!

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  18. Steph, I believe you'd enjoy it. Some of us Americans are really very nice. New Orleans is the most European city in the US.

    If you decide to go, email me, and I'll tell you more about the city.

    I see that my king cake photo is gone. Maybe it was under copyright. I'll have to look for another.

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  19. Oh I'm definitely going - I'm already booked up for a group dinner there... I'll email mail you closer to November - thanks! It's the NRA and other Texan type right wing rednecks and warmongering bullies I'm afraid of. But I get the feeling there aren't any of those in NO ...

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  20. Good, Steph! If you have spare time, maybe I could meet you in NO to have a meal together.

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