Rouses_FINAL-November-December-2017

GINGERBREAD “ROUSES”

Ginger Root Ginger itself comes from the bumpy root of the ginger plant, which can be found in almost any yard in South Louisiana. Beneath those striped green tropical leaves lies a spice that can be both sweet and savory. Queen Elizabeth I of England is credited with the invention of the gingerbread man — now a holiday staple.

of sugarcane in the area, there’s no doubt LeJeune’s ginger cakes contribute to the continuance of that moniker, as the sweet smell of the ginger cake wafts through the town. A TRUE CAJUN DESSERT Acadian Bakery in Lafayette calls its ginger cake “a true Cajun dessert.” Using a recipe that dates back to current owner Anthony Broussard’s great-great-grandmother, this bakery’s cake has a strong molasses and ginger flavor. Anthony’s mom Bonnie — whose parents Bill and Margaret Anderson started the bakery in 1980 — says, “Our ginger cake is not a gingerbread. It’s more like what was called a Rock and Roll in the ’50s and ’60s.” The inspiration Bonnie refers to was more of a cake roll or log with a creamy filling. Today, Acadian’s cakes — also sold at Rouses Markets throughout Acadiana, in Iberia, East Baton Rouge and Ascension parishes — resemble baked turnovers and come either plain or topped with white icing.

Anthony bakes the cakes three days a week, starting around 4 a.m. The dough for the ginger cake has to be made in advance and chilled before going through the mixer and sheeter, or roller. It’s then cut and baked at 400 degrees for 18 minutes. Once the cakes cool, Anthony ices some of them by hand, leaving the remainder without icing, then moves the cakes on down the line to be machine wrapped. One batch of dough makes 2,000 cakes and uses five pounds of ginger, but that’s all the Broussards are willing to reveal about their recipe. Acadian Bakery is a true family business. Anthony’s sister Kristen Soileau makes the pralines and works in the office with their mom, Bonnie, while both women’s husbands help out when needed. Kristen and Bonnie admit that, after all these years, they’re a little tired of eating ginger cakes, but “all of the grandchildren say their favorite is the ginger cake,” says Bonnie. “ Everybody loves the ginger cake.”

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