Image courtesy of Ian McNulty
 
King cake season is upon us, as retailers prepare these traditional desserts for anxiously-awaiting customers. Some shops choose to go less traditional routes with their king cakes, such as Piety and Desire Chocolate in New Orleans.

The chocolate shop specializes in beer king cakes. It takes brioche braids with cinnamon and adds new twists to the formula. “Dat Double IPA” is made with Clean Slate IPA, produced at nearby Wayward Owl Brewing.

Another scrumptious flavor is “Da Broad Street Band,” which has a chocolate ganache made with rum from Roullaison Distilling. It’s laced with caramel made from Broad Street Cider & Ale hard cider.

Piety and Desire Chocolate’s unique king cakes are not limited to alcohol flavors. “Da Crown” has purple and green bonbons along the exterior of the cake, with gold-colored candied kumquats added. It also has a pink peppercorn glitter on the outside, with a ganache made with Earl Grey tea on the inside.

Whole versions of these cakes are available for $33-$39, with individual slices available on weekends.