Rachael Ray

Mardi Gras is coming up - Tuesday, February 16 - the last day of the Carnival season and the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Not able to make it to New Orleans this year? Have a Mardi Gras celebration for the whole family! The timing could not be more perfect as mid-February is prime cabin fever time - for parents and kids. Invite some friends over and have your own Mardi Gras - parade and all. Just because you have kids doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate New Orleans-style and have fun with the whole family - just keep your shirts on:-)!

• Decorate the house using balloons and streamers in traditional Mardi Gras colors - purple, green gold (representing justice, faith and power).

• Have a the kids parade through the house just like the streets of New Orleans:

1. Give each child a noise maker, or better yet, they can make their own. Take two small clear plastic cocktail glasses and fill one with pennies, beans, rice or buttons and tape the other cup to it, rim to rim. The kids can decorate with stickers, glitter glue, etc.
2. Make some masks - buy some plastic-coated colored party plates and cut out masks from the plates with holes for the eyes. Kids can decorate with feathers, plastic jewels, ribbons etc. Punch holes in the back and use an elastic string to wear the mask or glue a wooden dowel so the kids can hold the masks in front of their faces.  Here is a link to a website where you can print out your own mardi gras masks. The kids also can be the Mardi Gras king or queen for the day and decorate hats or tiaras.
3. No Mardi Gras parade is complete without beads (from the Dollar Store or Party Store) - called “throw me beads” in New Orleans. Throw to the kids as they have their parade through the house!
4. If you’re really feeling ambitious, the kids can make a float (or floats) with big empty boxes - decorate with paints, paper, glitter, etc.  Kids can parade their floats through the house.
5. Play some zydeco music for a festive soundtrack for the parade.

• After the parade, sit down to a Mardi Gras feast - set a festive table decorated with confetti in purple, gold and green and sprinkle chocolate coins all over the table. The traditional food is very kid-friendly - i.e., chili, rice and beans, gumbo and jambalaya. These are also all cost-friendly meals that you make as spicy or mild as you like to suit your family’s tastes. See Rachael’s Mardi Gras recipe compilation here for inspiration.

• The highlight of Mardi Gras is the traditional King Cake - which typically has (kids will love this) a plastic baby inside and whoever gets the piece with the toy has good luck for a year. King Cake is a  sweetened yeast bread baked in a ring cake decorated with purple, green and gold sprinkles (see below for a traditional King Cake Recipe). You can make it fun and make your own version of a King Cake - or make “King Cupcakes” and everyone gets a toy inside - just make sure the toys are heatproof and the kids know the cakes have something inside - not to be eaten! You can really play it safe and bake cupcakes first and insert a toy through bottom of each cake after baking.

Article continues below...

Happy Mardi Gras!

King Cake Recipe (from allrecipes.com)

• PASTRY:
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 2/3 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• FILLING:
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 2/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• FROSTING:
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 tablespoon water

1. Scald milk, remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup of butter. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water with 1 tablespoon of the white sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
2. When yeast mixture is bubbling, add the cooled milk mixture. Whisk in the eggs. Stir in the remaining white sugar, salt and nutmeg. Beat the flour into the milk/egg mixture 1 cup at a time. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. When risen, punch down and divide dough in half.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease 2 cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
5. To Make Filling: Combine the brown sugar, ground cinnamon, chopped pecans, 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup raisins. Pour 1/2 cup melted butter over the cinnamon mixture and mix until crumbly.
6. Roll dough halves out into large rectangles (approximately 10×16 inches or so). Sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough and roll up each half tightly like a jelly roll, beginning at the wide side. Bring the ends of each roll together to form 2 oval shaped rings. Place each ring on a prepared cookie sheet. With scissors make cuts 1/3 of the way through the rings at 1 inch intervals. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Push the doll into the bottom of the cake. Frost while warm with the confectioners’ sugar blended with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water.