by Dawn Smith-Pfeifer, NDFB Director of Content and Communications
You just never know what you’re going to get in the mail. Not too long ago, Emily from our Fargo office texted a photo to me of this package:
She asked me if I had ordered a king cake. I responded, “I don’t know even what this is!” To be completely honest, I had no idea what a king cake was. Or how “Manny Randazzo” got my name. But when you get an unsolicited king cake, all the way from Matairie, Louisiana, well, you really just want to share the news.
Although there was no explanation for why I received the cake, there was a nice flier inside that explained the history of the king cake. I’m sharing part of it here:
“Bethlehem is where infant Jesus first showed himself to the world. As a symbol of this Holy Day, a tiny plastic baby is placed inside each king cake. The king cake tradition is thought to have been brought to New Orleans from France in 1870.”
According to the flier, king cakes are decorated in royal colors: Purple, which signifies justice, green for faith and gold for power. “These colors were to resemble a jeweled crown honoring the wise men who visited the Christ Child on Epiphany.”
I shared the cake at a meeting, but there was such much food there were lots of leftovers, so I gave some to my son. He reported he found the baby in the section he received. (#igotthebaby) so technically he was “king for a day.” (I hope it was a good day for him!) He also says it was pretty tasty! So, Manny Randazzo, you and your family king cake recipe get a thumbs up from a bunch of Nodakers.
I also want to say thanks for the Manny Randazzo cup, Mardi Gras beads and doubloons! While I will just be at home on this “Fat Tuesday” I wish you all a great Mardi Gras celebration! We’re just hoping for spring to arrive up here in the north country really soon!
This post first appeared on My NDFB Life, Friday, February 25.