King cakes! We love them, we can’t get enough of them. It doesn’t matter what variety or the flavor. If there’s one near, your mouth waters for a slice.
With the start of the carnival season, you might be more likely to enjoy a king cake while at work than at home!
“Yesterday we had quite a few businesses come in,” says Nicole Domingue. “They left here with three or four in their hands.”
Domingue has been with Rickey Meche’s Donut King for 25 years.
Saying they make a lot of king cakes is an understatement!
Nicole explains that Rickey Meche’s Donut King can turn out anywhere from 16,000 to 20,000 during a season.
And those thousands of king cakes can be shipped anywhere and everywhere in the U.S. Some folks even take it upon themselves to ship the cakes worldwide.
“We have people ship to Iraq and to the troops,” says Domingue.
So how does Rickey Meche’s Donut King make its king cakes? It starts with the dough that’s mixed and allowed to rise. Once the dough has proof it’s rolled out and sprinkled with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon. The dough is then cut strips and it’s ready for construction.
After rolling, Domingue explains that three strips of dough are braided together to form the king cake.
Then it’s time for the part that makes Meche’s cakes so special, the deep fry.
A few minutes it’s out of the fryer, and workers smother the still warm cakes in glaze!
“We use buttercream icing,” says Domingue. “A lot of people find it makes it so much different.”
The cakes continue to cool before meeting their final flare of carnival coverings. It takes a bit of artistic talent to make these king cakes look their best.
Another alluring part of the king cakes at Meche’s, the fillings! Flavors like strawberry, cream cheese, bavarian, chocolate are only a small offering, and the combinations are endless.
The cakes are finished off with some mardi gras decoration, the baby, and then, voila
And why does Nicole think Meche’s is the best?? It’s just simple.
“Because it’s good,” says Domingue.
