Our Time at Beignet Fest 2022

"Well keep em' comin' til I pass out!"

-Big Daddy, The Princess and the Frog

Above is a basket of crawfish beignets topped with crawfish cream sauce, prepared by The Vintage. It was absolutely delicious. And this was just one of dozens of recipes available at Beignet Fest 2022.

All proceeds of Beignet Fest go to the Beignet Fest Foundation. Their mission is to celebrate, embrace, and enhance the lives of children with developmental delays and disabilities by presenting them as whole beings, and to support organizations that do the same.

Now some fun facts about the history of this sweet treat! Prior to 1958, we called them donuts. But now, New Orleans has the beignet. Like so many other aspects of the city, the pastry has its origins in France. The recipe traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to Canada, where it managed to catch a boat down the Mississippi River into Cajun country and New Orleans. Beignets are famously served alongside coffee, specifically café au lait, and are often doused with powdered sugar. Most days we have them for breakfast or as a dessert for their sweetness.

Beignet Fest is a chance for local restaurants to show off their special beignet recipes. As gorgeous as City Park is with its towering oak trees, summer is summer. You can count on working up a sweat, but there are plenty of beignet options to lift your mood.

Above we have a chocolate praline beignet. Below is a peanut butter and jelly beignet. Both are from Loretta's Authentic Pralines. And this is not all! Over a dozen vendors showcased their version of a beignet at the festival.

Once you've had your fill, there is a booth where you can vote for your favorites. The two categories are savory and sweet. But don't forget to relax for a minute and listen to performances. A large stage provided us an opportunity to enjoy Water Seed, a local Billboard Top 20 Recording Artist!

Couldn't make it to Beignet Fest this year? Don't fret! There are plenty of places where you can get your hands on beignets year round, including Café Du Monde, also located in City Park. A New Orleans favorite, this chain could only be here in the Big Easy and one other country you would never guess... Japan!

Take our movie and TV show tour through the French Quarter to learn more and see where your favorite actors and actresses got their own plate of beignets:

https://www.bloodmoontours.com/services