King Cake

(Serves 10-15). Put the milk in a small bowl and add the flavoring. Dissolve the yeast in the milk and set aside for a few minutes until foamy. In a large bowl, cream well together the sugar, salt and shortening. Add the beaten eggs and continue creaming. Blend in the yeast mixture and add the flour slowly, kneading constantly until the dough is smooth and pliable, about 10 minutes. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for about an hour and a half or until double in size. Roll the dough out in a rectangular shape and brush the surface with vegetable oil. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar. Seal in the sugar by folding the dough in half lengthwise. Cut the dough into three even strips, sealing the edges and then braid the strips together. Form the braided dough into a circle and let it rise until double in size. Preheat the oven to 375 and mix the purple, green and yellow food-coloring pastes with 4 tablespoons of sugar each; put the colored sugars on the cake just before it goes in the oven. Bake for 12-15 minutes. An alternate choice is to frost the baked and cooled cake with white icing and then sprinkle on the colored sugars.