A New Orleans tradition, this King Cake Recipe is a simple version you can make at home. Great for breakfast, snacking, or dessert, you can't go wrong serving it up around and before Mardi Gras!
Warm the milk in the microwave in 15-second intervals until it reaches 105-110°F.
Place the sliced butter into the body of a stand mixer and pour ½ cup of the milk on top, set aside.
Place the remaining ⅓ cup milk into a small bowl and stir in the yeast. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes until foamy. If the yeast is not foamy after 10 minutes, the yeast is dead, and you need to start over with fresh yeast.
Add the yeast mixture to the stand mixer along with the egg. Stir to combine with the hook attachment.
Add the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the bowl. Stir to combine until it starts to form a dough on the stir setting.
Turn the speed up to low or speed 2 and knead for 10 minutes. The dough will come together after a few minutes, it should mostly clean the sides of the bowl, and the bottom of the dough may stick to the bottom of the bowl.
After 10 minutes, the dough will be smooth but slightly tacky still.
Spray a large bowl with cooking spray and place the kneaded dough into the bowl. Spray the top with more cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place to double in size, about 1 – 1.5 hours.
When the dough is almost ready, make the filling by stirring together the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Pour in the melted butter and stir to combine.
Punch down the dough to release the air bubbles.
Roll out the dough into a rough 24×10-inch rectangle on a clean, lightly floured work surface. Sprinkle the filling all over the dough, leaving a ½-inch border along the edges. Place the plastic baby, if using, in a random place on top.
With a long side of the dough facing you, tightly roll the dough to form a log and pinch the seams together.
Line a large sheet tray with parchment paper.
Place the dough onto the sheet tray, shape it into a circle, and pinch the ends together well to seal. Cover with plastic wrap and rise again until about doubled 1 – 1.5 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Take the plastic wrap off the cake, and using kitchen shears or a knife, slice about ⅓ of the way through the dough to expose the layers, do this in 8 spots, equally spaced. Do not cut the dough all the way through.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown. Tent with foil after 15 minutes to prevent over-browning. Let cool for 10 minutes on the sheet tray. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Once the cake is cool, make the icing by whisking together the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla until smooth. The glaze should be thick but pourable. If it is still too thick, add up to another tablespoon of milk.
Place the wire rack with the cooled cake over a sheet tray or parchment paper to catch any drips, and pour the glaze evenly over the cake. Immediately add the sanding sugar colors in any pattern you wish. Let set for at least 30 minutes to set before slicing and serving.
Notes
Easily double this recipe to make two cakes.
Other spices and fillings can be used. See my tips above on which I recommend.
This can be frozen, see my tips above on how to store.
You can bake it with or without the baby, or don’t use it at all. See above how to hide the baby after baking.
If you can’t find gold sanding sugar, yellow will work too.
I love to enjoy a slice warmed, see how long it takes to microwave in the above text.
The dough is kneaded for a more extended period of time than other bread doughs because it will keep it on the softer, more tender side. The cake texture becomes a cross between cinnamon rolls and a cake.