King Cake

Food Network Kitchens

Recipe courtesy Food Network Magazine

Picture of King Cake Recipe Photo: King Cake Recipe
Rated 4 stars out of 5
  • Rate This Recipe
  • Read 11 Reviews
Total Time:
12 hr 55 min
Prep
45 min
Inactive
11 hr 30 min
Cook
40 min
Yield:
12 servings
Level:
Difficult
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Ingredients

For the Cake:

  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 2 1/2 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
  • 2 large egg yolks, plus 2 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for greasing the bowl

For the Filling and Glaze:

  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • 1/4 cup bourbon
  • 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup toasted pecans, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons grated orange zest
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 dry bean or plastic King Cake baby (available at party-supply stores or mardigrasday.com)
  • 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
  • Purple, green and gold sanding sugar, for decorating

Directions

Make the cake: Heat the milk in a saucepan until scalding; transfer to a food processor, add the yeast and pulse to combine. Add 1/2 cup flour and the egg yolks; process to combine. Pour the remaining 2 cups flour evenly over the yeast mixture; do not process. Put the lid on; set aside for 90 minutes.

Add the 2 whole eggs, granulated sugar, lemon zest, salt and nutmeg to the food processor; process to make a slightly textured dough, about 1 minute. With the machine running, slowly add the butter to make a smooth, sticky dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly buttered bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place for 3 hours. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead briefly; form into a ball and return to the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Make the filling:

Plump the raisins in the bourbon in a small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat and add the brown sugar, pecans, vanilla, cinnamon, orange zest, salt and the bean or plastic baby; mix until combined and set aside.

On a floured surface, roll the dough into a 20-by-7-inch rectangle, with the long edge facing you. Spoon the filling in an even layer over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border along the top and bottom. Fold the bottom and then the top edge over the filling to make a tight roll; pinch to seal. Transfer the roll seam-side down to a parchment-lined baking sheet; tuck one end into the other to form a ring. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place until the roll doubles in size, about 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the cake until firm and golden brown, about 40 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Make the glaze:

Mix 3 tablespoons water with the confectioners' sugar; brush 3 tablespoons glaze over the cake. Sprinkle with bands of colored sugar; drizzle with more glaze.

Photograph by Lara Robby/Studio D

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Newest Ratings and Reviews

Read all 11 reviews

  • on March 12, 2011

    Flag

    Oh My Goodness was this cake/bread GOOD or what!!! I dont think I'll be able to wait till next year to make it again. Got lots of compliments.
    I followed it as close as I could. Used a Food Processor and realized I should have used my KitchenAid. Used Brandy instead of Bourbon and used ground Nutmeg instead of fresh. This filling might not be authentic but it was out-of-control good. I did use WARM milk for the yeast and doubled the filling as others here recommended. And I'm glad I did.
    Try this recipe, you won't regret it.

    people found this review Helpful.
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  • on March 08, 2011

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    I thought this king cake was very good! I have been making king cakes for a couple years now since my best friend is from NOLA and doesn't get to make it home very often. I have not had a traditional New Orleans king cake but these are good.

    One alteration I made was that I only cooked it for 30 minutes. My oven doesn't usually run hot but at 30 minutes it was done.

    Also I am confused why people are so upset about the filling. I watched a special about a bakery in NOLA that specializes in King Cakes and they showed a plethora of filling options. I think the filling is an opportunity to make it your own. I did omit the raisins but otherwise I followed the recipe to the letter.

    Happy Mardi Gras!

    people found this review Helpful.
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  • on March 11, 2010

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    I made this for a Mardi Gras party, and it came out delicious. The dough was very simple to make and was tender, flaky, and slightly chewy. The filling was also fantastic. I did not have bourbon, so I used Jack Daniels whiskey instead, which worked fine. I omitted the raisins after reading many complaints about them being an inauthentic addition. Next time I will double the filling because it was skimpy on the filling to begin with and some of it also leaked out during cooking.

    people found this review Helpful.
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