I bought one of these wonderful confections today and I’m sitting here trying not to gorge myself on it. Anyway, tis the season of the King cake. Anyone else having one?
http://www.greatestcities.com/1810pic/555/CP14555.jpg/King_Cake.bmp
Just had one delivered to work from one of our New Orleans TV stations (I’m in advertising). It’s the first time I’ve tried one, and I thought the cake itself is just ok (basically just cinnemon coffee cake with a sugar glaze) but it’s a good time trying to find the baby inside. What a creepy concept.
The one I got has this awesome icing and cream cheese filling. I am very easily impressed when it comes to baked goods. 
No, no, no. You’re supposed not find the baby so you don’t have to be the one who buys the cake for next year!
Really? I thought the baby meant good luck for the following year. Having to buy the next cake doesn’t seem very lucky to me. 
It’s both. Traditionally, whoever finds the baby is king or queen for the day but they’re also responsible for throwing the next party.
Styles of cakes vary from something not much fancier than iced cinnamon bread to cream cheese filled or fruit filled confections with caramel icing. All varieties have their fans.
The babies vary, too. Some are just little pink plastic things, but I’ve seen little golden metal kings, porcelain figurines, and shiny metallic plastic babies.
If you’re throwing a full-fledged Mardi Gras party, as Lute shares, whoever gets the baby is the king or queen of the party. They may or may not have to throw the next party, though.
The person who gets the baby from a cake brought in to work is expected to bring the next cake. This, of course, leads to some people sneaking back into the break room to re-hide the baby.
Sadly, liability concerns have affected bakeries. Few now hide the baby for you, but rather put the baby in with the cake for you to hide. Others don’t even include a baby anywhere at all, though, which is a shame.
You can always tell the New Orleans kids: they’re the ones poking at their cake before they take a bite.
And finally, as the Mardi Gras season runs through the pre-Lenten season of Epiphany, the baby is representative of the baby Jesus, and supposedly the kings representative of the wise men.
Hmm? Epiphany is one day (January 6) and Mardi Gras is one day (the day before Ash Wednesday, this year February 28). Did I miss a memo?
While Mardi Gras itself is just one day, the whole season runs from Epiphany to the day before Ash Wednesday.
The one I get annually and take to the office on Mardi Gras (purchased at Taylor’s Bakery for the locals) has the awesome icing in appropriate colors (purple, green, and yellow/gold) but is more of a cinnamon coffee cake sort rather than having cream cheese filling. Where did you get yours? The link in the OP?
Haydel’s makes an incredible king cake. I want to be with it.
BAAAHHH!!!
I dont like water-logged cake!!
What? …runs
Wait… did I read Cream Cheese filling?
OH Damn…
OK DAMNIT… lol
I didnt get anyone buying me a valantines day ANYTHING
So maybe I just want to buy a King Cake for myself in the KC Missouri area. Whats the best place online?
The church calendar is full of seasons. The Advent season before The Christmas Season. Christmas until Epiphany. Epiphany until Lent. Lent until Easter. Easter until Pentecost. It’s not just one day.
From your link “For many Protestant church traditions, the season of Epiphany extends from January 6th until Ash Wednesday, which begins the season of Lent leading to Easter. Depending on the timing of Easter, this includes from four to nine Sundays. Other traditions, especially the Roman Catholic tradition, observe Epiphany as a single day, with the Sundays following Epiphany counted as Ordinary Time.”
Gotcha, it’s a Protestant thing. 
–gigi, RC
Yeah, there are a lot of Protestants who really would like to pretend that the RC Church just didn’t exist, or probably don’t even know that the RC Church developed the church calendar for the Christian Church. As you well know, judging from the wink-and-nudge, Mardi Gras is a most very Catholic celebration.
Try the bourbon king cake (I think that’s Hayden’s, too). Cream cheese filling, and a hint of bourbon flavor. Good gawd, that’s some good eatin’! The typical office has at least two dozen king cakes per year - they’re addictive!
I got mine at Crawford’s downtown. The ones from Taylor’s are good too, although I remember them having some kind of filling. Hmm.
Mmmmm, king cake…and trying to not find the baby. A year ago, when I was still living in New Orleans, we had a multitude of king cakes in our office, and anyone who found the baby would sneak back into the break room and re-hide it. And we had everything from the simplest to the fanciest. They’re all wonderful!