A Mardi Gras King Cake is an essential part of the festivities! This classic version features brioche-style bread filled with cinnamon. It's delicious!
Prep Time30mins
Cook Time25mins
Rising Time4hrs
Total Time4hrs55mins
Course: Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Cuisine: American, Cajun
Keyword: cinnamon, king cake
Servings: 12servings
Calories: 551kcal
Author: David
Ingredients
For the Cake
4cupsall-purpose flour
⅓cupgranulated sugar
2¼tspinstant dry yeasti.e. one packet
1tspsalt
1tspcinnamon
1large egg
1cupmilk
6Tbspunsalted butter
For the Filling
¾cupbrown sugar
¼cupgranulated sugar
2tspcinnamon
6Tbspstick unsalted buttermelted
1cupchopped pecans
For the Glaze
3cupsconfectioners sugar
5tbspmilk
greenyellow, red, and blue food coloring
Instructions
For the Cake
Sift the flour into bowl of a countertop mixer.
Add the sugar, yeast, salt, cinnamon, and egg to the bowl.
In a small saucepan, heat the milk and butter until melted and warm (just warm, not hot!)
Pour the liquid mixture into the mixer and, using a dough hook, mix for 2 minutes on low speed.
Continue mixing on medium speed for 5-6 minutes.
Cover and place bowl in a warm (~80 degrees) place for approximately 2 hours, or until dough has doubled in size.
Turn the dough onto a countertop and roll into a 36" by 8" rectangle. (If you dust the countertop with a small amount of flour, it will keep the dough from sticking.)
Spread the cinnamon filling evenly across the dough.
Starting with one long edge, roll the dough until you have a 36" roll of dough.
Working down the long edge, seal the dough so that none of the cinnamon mixture escapes during baking. (Tip: Rub a small amount of water on the edges that you join together. This helps create a tight seal.)
Attach the two ends of the dough together to create a large oval shaped ring.
Cover dough loosely and place in a warm place for approximately 2 more hours, or until dough has doubled in size again.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until top of cake is golden brown in color.
Let cake cool slightly and then decorate the cake with the three colors of glaze.
For the Filling
Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and stir until well-combined.
For the Glaze
Using 3 medium-sized bowls, measure 1 cup of confectioner's sugar into each.
Add 1-1.5 tablespoons of milk to each bowl and stir. (If mixture is too sticky, add an extra 1/2 teaspoon of milk. If it is too loose, add an extra 1/8 cup of confectioner's sugar).
Once the mixture reaches a desirable consistency, add several drops of food coloring to create the traditional purple, green, and gold colors.