In the absence of parades and other in-person Carnival festivities, New Orleanians filled the void with king cake. So much king cake. New varieties continued to hit the market (Brennan’s eye-catching “Pink Parade” of strawberry cream cheese was hard to miss), a coffee table book was created to capture the magic behind the cake craft, and the king cake community mourned a vital member.
Writer Matt Haines first gained local media renown in 2017 for trying more than 80 varieties of king cake and documenting his assessments in a spreadsheet. Subsequent king-cake-related research deepened Haines’ expertise, and after this year’s Carnival season, he began looking to showcase that interest.
“I was blown away that there had never been a coffee table book about king cake,” Haines said. By late May, he was scheduling shoots with photographer Randy Krause Schmidt for “The Big Book of King Cake,” which captures traditional and newfangled varieties of the Carnival treat from a broad range of makers.
For Haines, the most important part of the endeavor isn’t the cake – it’s the bakers who make it. “During king cake season, the revenue many bakeries make sustains them for the year,” Haines said. “To be able to support them…and make it feel like a thriving time of year was really nice.”
Though Haines has a long list of favorites, highlights include a cinnamon cream cheese version from Tartine, the chocolate variety from Bittersweet Confections and the cannoli king cake from Nor Joe Importing Co. Haines was also “blown away” by cakes from home bakers S.S. Sweets (crawfish) and Not Too Fancy Bakery.
King cake lovers were saddened to learn of the passing of Will Samuels in September. Samuels co-founded the King Cake Hub, a one-stop-shop for king cakes from across the region. According to posts on the Hub’s social media accounts, the business will return in 2022, carrying on Samuels’ legacy.
Fingers remain crossed that 2022 will see New Orleanians back to enjoying their favorite Carnival treat – in its many forms – along the parade route.
@brennansnola
@tartinenola
@bittersweetnola
@norjoeimports
@chef_rena_ray (S.S. Sweets)
@nottoofancybakery
@kingcakehub
