5 King Cakes to Help Celebrate Spooky Season in New Orleans
Happy Halloween! This summer we photographed king cakes from 75 of our favorite mostly-New Orleans area bakers for The Big Book of King Cake. Along the way, we ran into a few spooky seasonal king cakes.
I know, I know. Some of you don’t want to eat, see, or hear about king cake until Twelfth Night. I respect that. As someone who appreciates tradition, I probably even agree with you. But I also have two counterarguments.
1) While interviewing bakers it became clear that many local bakeries rely on king cake sales to sustain them throughout much of the year. If a few extra days here and there of sales can help keep the lights on, I’d take a healthy local business over rituals. 2) Traditions are always changing. For a long time, king cake was exclusively eaten on Epiphany. Today, we eat it throughout Carnival season because earlier generations broke tradition
In breaking tradition, they actually created another tradition. The “return” king cake party became a thing. The person who found the baby, bean or other fève once only had to buy the king cake for next year. Thanks to the popularization of the return party, they had to bring it to the party next week. (Today it’s to the office the next day.)
My point is things are always changing. Still, things are special when they’re rare, so I see the argument for limiting king cake consumption to a certain season. (You could always call this New Orleans Halloween Ring Cake if you wanted!) Whatever you want to call it, here is our list for New Orleans’ Top 5 Halloween King Cakes:
5. Gambino’s Bakery
When you’re The King of King Cakes, you don’t get time off. Gambino’s Bakery is obviously hard at work creating plenty of their Halloween variety. If you haven’t been to Gambino’s, you’re missing out on a piece of history. The bakery was founded in the early 1920s by Beulah Ledner, who invented the doberge cake for hungry Tulane and Newcomb College students. Joe Gambino bought the bakery from her in 1946, and the Scelfo family has owned it since the 1970s. But you can still get a lot of the same treats the bakery’s been making for generations.
Stop in for some Halloween king cake, or Beulah’s doberge!
4. Nonna Randazzo’s Bakery
There are few names more closely associated with king cake than Randazzo. Since the original Randazzo’s Hi-Lan Bakery opened in 1965, various family members have created off-shoots that proudly carry on the Randazzo name. Nonna Randazzo’s Bakery is one of the most popular with bakeries in Chalmette, Covington, and Mandeville.
All Randazzo’s bakeries put the sugar under the icing. (Many say it helps dull the crunch of the sugar.) There’s another tradition that only Nonna Randazzo’s still sticks to. Instead of using sprinkles on top of the icing, they use nonpareils like the original Randazzo’s Hi-Lan Bakery used to do. During various holidays, they’ll feature seasonal nonpareils, including this Halloween-themed variety!
3. Sugar Love Bakery
Sierra Dee is the mastermind behind a lot of king cake innovations, including this fun Halloween version. It features blood-red icing, a plastic cleaver sticking out from the dough, and even a green zombie baby.
There are tons of fun Carnival variations you’ll find at Sierra’s Sugar Love Bakery this Carnival, as well. They include king cake hot chocolate bombs, a king cake charcuterie board, and her famous king cake on a stick!
2. Caluda’s King Cake
Our photo shoot at Caluda’s this summer was one of the most memorable. When we got there, they had nearly two dozen varieties of king cake waiting for us. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. They feature special flavors of their moist, delicious cake each week during Carnival season. It’s no surprise, then, that the father-son duo at Caluda’s also does a Halloween version of their beloved king cake!
1. Not Too Fancy Bakery
The Carnival season cake from Calvin Virgil’s home bakery was one of the great surprises while putting the book together. The memory of his buttery croissant dough still makes my mouth water. In combination with the caramel drizzle and cream cheese filling, his Not Too Fancy Bakery makes for a great king cake. During Halloween time, he adds some seasonal flair -- including candy corn, (plastic) bugs, and chocolate chips.
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Happy Halloween everyone! If you’re a king cake fan, you can buy your copy of The Big Book of King Cake by clicking on this link. It will look great on your bookshelf, coffee table, or in the (very large) stocking of that special king cake lover in your life. And follow us on Instagram for more king cake-related content!