Description
Festive New Orleans tradition, Mardi Gras King Cake, brings Louisiana’s carnival spirit to your table with sweet cinnamon swirls and colorful sugar. Celebrating community and joy, you’ll savor this delightful pastry that connects friends and family through delicious celebration.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 3.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 2.25 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast
- 2 eggs
- 0.75 cup warm milk (110°F / 45°C)
Sweeteners and Spices:
- 0.25 cup granulated sugar
- 0.5 cup brown sugar
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 0.5 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1.5 cups powdered sugar
Fat and Liquid Ingredients:
- 0.25 cup unsalted butter (melted)
- 0.25 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 0.5 teaspoon vanilla extract
Decorative Ingredients:
- Green colored sugar
- Purple colored sugar
- Gold colored sugar
- 1 small plastic baby (optional)
Instructions
- Awaken the yeast by dissolving it in warm, fragrant milk. Allow the mixture to bloom and become frothy, releasing its potential for about 5 minutes.
- Create a foundational mixture by combining dry ingredients in a spacious mixing vessel. Incorporate the aromatic eggs, velvety melted butter, and activated yeast mixture until a cohesive dough emerges.
- Transform the dough through vigorous kneading, working it until silky and elastic. Nestle the dough in a warm sanctuary, permitting it to expand and double in volume over approximately one hour.
- Craft a luxurious filling by blending brown sugar, warming cinnamon, and creamy butter into a harmonious spread.
- Gently coax the risen dough into a generous rectangle, then lavish the cinnamon mixture across its surface with careful precision.
- Roll the dough into an elegant cylindrical form, then artfully shape it into a circular crown, ensuring the edges are securely fused.
- Allow the shaped cake a final restful period of rising, giving it time to become light and voluminous.
- Heat the oven to a perfect 350°F, creating an ideal environment for transformation.
- Bake until the cake achieves a golden, luminous complexion, signaling its readiness.
- Construct a silky glaze by whisking powdered sugar with milk and a hint of vanilla extract.
- Cascade the glossy glaze over the cooled cake, then embellish with traditional Mardi Gras-colored sugars in vibrant green, regal purple, and festive gold.
- For an authentic touch, discretely tuck the symbolic plastic baby within the cake’s interior.
Notes
- Take time to activate yeast properly by ensuring milk is warm (not hot) to help it foam and create a soft, airy texture.
- Use room temperature ingredients like eggs and butter to help the dough mix more evenly and rise consistently.
- For a gluten-free version, substitute all-purpose flour with a cup-for-cup gluten-free blend and add xanthan gum for better structure.
- Experiment with alternative fillings like cream cheese, nuts, or fruit preserves to customize the traditional king cake flavor profile.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 12
- Calories: 245
- Sugar: 12 g
- Sodium: 143 mg
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 36 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 37 mg