Mardi Gras Dessert Recipes

A great use for leftover rice, these beignets feature raisins and cinnamon and are great for a Sunday brunch.

I grew up eating king cake in NOLA but never really LIKING it. I finally decided to give it a go myself and have to say that this is, hands down, the best I've ever eaten. A conglom of several recipes, it's great with coffee, not too sweet, not too bready, with a rich, tender crumb and the traditional lemon/nutmeg flavors of a genuine NOLA king cake. Best eaten same day but pretty darn good the day after (if there are leftovers!). Enjoy, y'all!

Delicious candy and pretty easy to make.

These beignets take on a wholesome aspect as they're cooked in an air fryer. You will need a silicone egg-bite mold, available through retailers like Amazon®.

Make your own colored sugars and save yourself a lot of money over the holiday season. This recipe is easy and can be kept in the jars for months.

Also known to a friend as Jewell Cake, named after her mother, this cake is a tower of moist cake layers with icing and is no easy feat to take on! However, this recipe helps simplify it a bit!

Traditional Danish buns with a custard-type cream and chocolate icing are always eaten by children on Fastelavn, which falls around Shrove Tuesday.

As kids, we always put in a heart-filled request for these on Christmas Eve. It was quite a family affair - my mom would make up the dough, my dad would roll them out and cut them and then after frying them up, us kids would take turns shaking them in a paper bag with powdered sugar! I finally got to go to New Orleans and I was excited to get to try 'the real thing' at the famous Cafe Du Monde...I was SO HAPPY because my husband and I both said our recipe was a near carbon copy of CAFE DU MONDE! We've made this recipe for over 40 years and I promise it won't disappoint!

Had these in New Orleans and loved them, so I tried different combos and liked this best.

This is the best bread pudding I've ever eaten! My husband wants me to make it every weekend for Sunday brunch.

My family loves this pie at Thanksgiving, Christmas or really any holiday of the year. So put on some jazz, pour yourself some java, and have a piece of this delicious dessert. The chocolate chips and the bourbon add a delicious change to the normal pecan pie. Top with whipped cream and enjoy.

This is my mom's recipe for Rice Pudding. It's the best I've ever tasted and it gets rave reviews from everyone I serve it to. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon, if desired. For creamier pudding, use short or medium grain rice.