Celebrating tradition

Johna Strickland | Argus Observer Ramiro Corona, owner of Tres Coronas Bakery, weighs dough for roscas de reyes, a bread eaten Jan. 6 for El Día de Reyes, or epiphany. A plastic baby is hidden in each rosca to commemorate the Magi's hunt for baby Jesus.

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Each year on Jan. 6, El Día de Reyes, the kings come to town once more.

Ramiro Corona, 35, owner of Tres Coronas Bakery, grew up in Mexico celebrating this Mexican version of epiphany.

“Tonight (Jan. 5) before you go to sleep you put one of your shoes in a special place. You have to be good all year to get a present (in it),” Corona said. “In some places in Mexico, they put a little hay by the shoe so they (the kings) can feed their animals. In my village there were no chimneys so I would ask my mother how they could get in. She said they were magic and could appear and disappear.”

As a child, Angélica Corona - her husband is a cousin of Ramiro Corona - 33, Ontario, left milk and cookies out for the three kings, named Baltazar, Melchor and Gaspar, before going to bed Jan. 5.

“Usually, the ones (cookies) we could afford were animal crackers,” Corona said. “We would say ‘Baltazar has a camel' so we would pick out that animal for him. We think one (king) was rich, one was middle class and one was poor. So years when your parents were not too rich, you would say ‘I must have got the poor one.'”

The origins of El Día de Reyes are obscure. Angélica Corona said she believes the tradition is a blend of Greek, Spanish and Mexican Indian cultures. According to Mexgrocer.com, the holiday began in the south of France with people bringing gifts of dried fruits, nuts, flour, honey and eggs to baby Jesus. \

A crown-shaped sweet roll was baked from these offerings. Hidden in the dough was a porcelain baby to symbolize the Magi's search for Jesus.

This bread came to be known as rosca de reyes, king bread. Ramiro Corona said he makes 80 roscas for his customers each year. The rosca is a sugary bread with candied fruit. Depending on the order, Corona hides as many as 12 plastic babies.

“The sixth is when all the family gets together and eat their rosca,” Ramiro Corona said. “They make a special dinner and at the end they cut the rosca. One person slices the rosca.”

In Angélica Corona's family, each person at the party cuts a slice of rosca. When Angélica Corona makes rosca for family and friends, she hides three figurines.

“We put three of them, representing the three wise men, but at the same time baby Jesus,” Corona said. “The person who gets the baby Jesus (and other dolls) gets to bring the food to share for candlelight on Feb. 2.”

The food for the Feb. 2 party can be hot chocolate and bread, Angélica Corona said, or tamales, but hopefully not the ash filled ones of ancient Native Mexican lore.