Al.com: King Cakes are a sure (and tasty) sign of Carnival

By David Holloway | dholloway@al.com

on January 28, 2013 at 1:49 PM, updated January 28, 2013 at 2:45 PM

Click here to view the story on al.com.

MOBILE, Alabama -- Mardi Gras is steeped in mystery and intrigue, a celebration marked by odd customs that can seem odd to folks unfamiliar with our brand of revelry.

Standing on a corner, for instance, and having strangers hurl trinkets and foodstuff to you from passing floats is an unusual way to get ready for the solemnity of Lent. As my good friend Wendell Quimby likes to say “It ain’t for everybody” and we know this and we like this.

But one of the more endearing and unusual customs of Mardi Gras involves a delicious cake that is only available during Carnival.

The King Cake goes on sale, according to legend, around New Year’s Day and is offered throughout the Carnival season. But come Ash Wednesday, when the 40 day lead up to Easter begins, the cake pans are packed away until next year.

Though the King Cake dates back to the 1600s, it is a relative newcomer to the Coastal Alabama party. It is widely held by folks who know (me) that the King Cake was first introduced to Alabama’s Mardi Gras celebration about 1959.

The man who is credited with bringing this tasty cake to the party is the late Fred Pollman of the famous bakery that still bears his family name. Mr. Pollman had visited the Crescent City and he discovered the locals there were all about a brioche cake that was decorated with the colors of Mardi Gras – purple, green and gold.

He fiddled with the recipe and, made it a tad lighter and less dense and he rest is history. It is often sold with a variety of fillings, from cream cheese to jellied fruit; among purists, though, the plain version is also very popular.

Yeah, but what’s the deal with the baby?

A tiny, pink, plastic baby is often hidden within the cake and the finder is then bound by custom to bring a King Cake to the next social gathering of the season. Some commercial bakers now opt not to include the tiny baby inside the cake, choosing to include it with the cake so you can put it in if you like.

King Cakes are widely available from a number of outlets, both in person and online. But if for some reason you don’t have access to one you can make it yourself at home. Be advised, it is a detailed and lengthy process but the cake is delicious.

Take heart, gentle readers. The folks over at Windmill Market in Fairhope, Ala., are going to show you how it’s done. They are hosting a series of King Cake-cooking classes, the next of which is Thursday, Jan. 31.

“Our cooking classes are small and intimate groups where everyone gets a chance to get their hands dirty and get in the middle of the cooking,” said Maggie Lacey with Windmill Market. And if you don’t want to get your hands dirty, she said you can just sit back and watch while enjoying a glass of wine.

“We offer private classes at any time for groups of 8 or more at no additional charge,” she said, adding that if the class is a success they will immediately plan more.

For information on the classes you can call the market at 251.990.8883. 

Recipe Files from September Produce Club

Much-belated recipes from September Produce Club are featured below -

Curried Okra with Chickpeas and Tomatoes

Chicken Stew with Okra 

Red Potato Skewers with Garlic and Mustard

Recipe Files From August Produce Club

Much-belated recipes from August Produce Club are featured below -

Goat Cheese Quiche with Hash-Brown Crust

Thai Basil Shrimp ‘n Okra

 Boiled Peanuts

Kale Goes to the Spa for a Massage?

A Produce Club customer shared this "Massaged Kale" recipe with us, and while we can't stop giggling about the name, I think the end result is the real thing. She recommends replacing the mangoes with local satsumas, as tasty this time of year as any citrus anywhere! And with kale just beginning to roll off the local trucks, this salad is right on time.

We have other great kale recipes on this blog as well so be sure to search for those recipes from last season's Produce Club Recipe Files!

Massaged Kale Recipe

Ellen Mitchell: An all Alabama diet, is it even possible?

Mobile Press Register (via al.com)

"In an attempt to explore Alabama produced food and the people that supply it, Mobile-based business reporter Ellen Mitchell will eat only food that is grown, raised or caught in Alabama for five days. 

On the first day of her project, she visits Oak Hill Tree Farm in Grand Bay and talks to owner Brian Keller about his hydroponic lettuce, the trend of eating local and the struggle to find a variety of Alabama produce this time of year.

The haul for the day includes cucumber, zucchini, squash and of course, lettuce."

Click here to see the article online and read the subsequent days challenges. 

Eating Rules

One of our customers and friends (Thanks Paul!) shared a blog with us that we enjoyed so much we had to share. Called "Eating Rules," it is informative, entertaining, and the photography is beautiful to boot! I especially enjoyed their post, "10 reasons to keep backyard chickens"... as if you needed a reason! But take a look anyway and you will be convinced.

Click here to read "10 Reasons to keep backyard Chickens" at Eating Rules.

I was also impressed by their "October Unprocessed Challenge." Blogger Andrew Wilder decided to go an entire month back in 2009 without eating any processed foods, and says of the experience:

It was revelatory. My expectations and sense of taste were re-calibrated. I started to identify individual ingredients in the foods I ate. I didn’t crave those salty snacks. I found myself often in the kitchen, excited to see what I could cook next. Above all, I simply felt better.

Gathering friends and supporters along the way, the Unprocessed October Challenge has grown each year to have participants from all across the country. I only wish we had found out about this sooner! What an exciting and worthy challenge. Perhaps the Windmill needs to sponsor a similar unprocessed challenge???

Click here to read the story and sign up to participate!

Local Produce with Alescia Forland of Loxley Farm Market

We recently interviewed Alescia Forland, owner of Loxley Farm Market, about everything having to do with local produce. Unfortunately the sound quality is terrible- you can hear the questions but barely the answers. We plan to re-record asap, but for now, crank up the volume and have a listen. We learned so much about why local is ALWASY best!

Breaking Out of Guacamole to Become a Produce Star

By ANNE MARIE CHAKER, Wall Street Journal,  September 19, 2012

When the waitress at the Perkins restaurant said they were out of avocados, Nicole Breedlove walked out, got one from her car and sliced it up at the table herself.

"I was getting the salad for the avocado," says the 43-year-old Silver Spring, Md., mother, who was on a road trip with her family. "It's the substance of the meal."

The avocado is experiencing a sharp rise in sales in grocery stores and casual restaurants. Anne Marie Chaker on Lunch Break looks at how the industry got behind this rise and why consumers are responding and embracing the idea of "the healthy fat." 

Not long ago, avocados were beloved in Super Bowl guacamole but seldom encountered the rest of the year. Now, the fruits are having a mass-market breakthrough, as supermarket sales surge and restaurant chains spread them and slice them on sandwiches and salads.

In consumers' minds, the avocado has been transformed from exotic "fatty food" to everyday source of "heart-healthy" fats. "We fought the health message for years and years. A fat was a fat was a fat," says Mike Browne, marketing committee chairman for the Mexican Hass Avocado Importers Association, a Fallston, Md., marketing group. Now, he says, "the stars have aligned."

More Choice, and More Confusion, in Quest for Healthy Eating

Photo by Dustin Chambers for The New York Times

Like many small and midsize farmers, Greg Brown has not pursued organic certification 

because he concluded that it was too costly relative to his profits.

By KIM SEVERSON

The New York Times, Published: September 8, 2012   

ATLANTA — Lisa Todd’s grocery cart reflects the ambivalence of many American shoppers.

Ms. Todd, 31, prowled the aisles of a busy Kroger store here last week. Her cart was a tumble of contradictions: organic cabbage and jar of Skippy peanut butter. A bag of kale and a four-pack of inexpensive white wine. Pineapples for juicing and processed deli meat.

The chicken, perhaps, summed it up best. A package of fryer parts from Tyson, the world’s largest poultry producer, sat next to a foam tray of organic chicken legs.

The conventional food was for her boyfriend, the more natural ingredients for her.

“We’re not 100 percent organic, obviously, but I try to be,” she said. “He doesn’t care, so I’m trying to maintain happiness in the relationship.”

Like many people who are seeking better-tasting, healthier food, Ms. Todd had heard about a recent study on organic food from Stanford University’s Center for Health Policy.

Based on data from 237 previously conducted studies, the Stanford report concluded that when it comes to certain nutrients, there is not much difference between organic and conventionally grown food.

But it also found that organic foods have 31 percent lower levels of pesticides, fewer food-borne pathogens and more phenols, a substance believed to help fight cancer.

For Ms. Todd and countless other shoppers, the study just added to the stress of figuring out what to eat. And it underscored the deep divisions at the nation’s dinner table, along with concerns among even food purists about the importance of federal organic standards.

Click to read more. 

Candidate Forum a Success

Thanks again to everyone who came out to our first ever candidate forum August 23 and supported their favorite candidate for Mayor and City Council! We learned a lot, survived the heat, and made it through in record time given the number of candidates on stage. And the Fiddler Farm peanuts were great!

Thanks also to Miller's Grand Evenets, who donated all the chairs for the crowd free of charge. And to Dr Music in downtown Fairhope who donated an incredible sound system for the night's event. We appreciate your support of our efforts to make the WIndmill Market a place where people can gather, exchange ideas, and meet their neighbor.


Below is an article that ran in the Fairhope Courier prior to the event...

Windmill Market hosts final forum of Fairhope election season

Posted: Monday, August 20, 2012 2:43 pm 

By Mike Odom 

The Fairhope Courier courier@gulfcoastnewspapers.com

FAIRHOPE, Alabama—With turnout heavy for the first three public candidate forums of the city campaign season, the one this Thursday could draw upwards of 100 people to The Windmill Market.

The Thursday forum will be the last chance to see all candidates on stage together prior to the Aug. 28 city election for mayor and City Council.

Flyers for the event say the event is an opportunity to “hear their platforms and ask your tough questions.”