Celebrate Mardi Gras a few weeks early with a festive baking class! Join Terie Dreussi-Smith and Jackie Ansley for a masked celebration and learn to make Mardi Gras favorites to serve at your own Fat Tuesday gathering on Tuesday, February 9, 2027.

We’ll bake New Orleans–style pecan King Cakes and Café du Monde–style beignets, often called the most elegantly simple doughnut. Café au lait, inspired by Café du Monde, will also be on the menu. You’ll receive a Mardi Gras French phrase sheet, generously prepared by Kathy McElvenney, former New Orleans resident, and OLLI Italian instructor.

Then we’ll step into the “Mardi Gras Café,” complete with our baked treats, festive masks, themed décor, and lively Zydeco and Dixieland music. Wear your beads if you have them—and be ready for a possible dance or two! A special bubbly surprise awaits, and whoever finds the baby in their slice of King Cake wins a prize.

Please bring: An apron and a to-go container for any goodies you’d like to take home.
Please note: Eat lunch before class.