Recipe courtesy of DM Cuisine, Ltd.
Mardi Gras Cake
- Yield: 12 to 14 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 14 servings
- Calories
- 375
- Total Fat
- 10
- Saturated Fat
- 6
- Carbohydrates
- 65
- Dietary Fiber
- 3
- Sugar
- 35
- Protein
- 7
- Cholesterol
- 84
- Sodium
- 182
- Total: 2 hr 30 min
- Prep: 2 hr
- Cook: 30 min
Ingredients
1/2 cup warm water
2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons sugar
3 1/2 to 4 1/2 cups unsifted flour
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon mace
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 cup warm milk
5 egg yolks
1 tablespoon orange flower water
1 stick butter, cut into slices, softened plus 1 tablespoon
1 egg slightly beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 small plastic baby doll
Icing, recipe follows
Colored sugar (green, purple and yellow)
Icing:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 to 6 tablespoons water
Directions
- Pour the warm water into a small shallow bowl and sprinkle yeast and 2 teaspoons sugar into it. Allow the yeast and sugar to rest for 3 minutes and then mix thoroughly. Set bowl in a warm place for 10 minutes or until yeast bubbles up and mixture almost doubles in volume.
- Combine 3 1/2 cups flour, remaining sugar, nutmeg, mace and salt and sift into a large mixing bowl. Stir in lemon zest. Separate center of mixture to form a hole and pour in yeast mixture and milk. Add egg yolks and using a wooden spoon slowly combine dry ingredients into the yeast mixture. When mixture is smooth, beat in 8 tablespoons of butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue to beat 2 minutes or until dough can be formed into a soft ball. Place ball of dough on a lightly floured surface and knead like bread. During the kneading, add 1 cup more of flour sprinkled over dough. When dough is no longer sticky, knead 10 minutes more until shiny and elastic. Using a pastry brush, coat the inside of a large bowl with 1 tablespoon softened butter. Place dough ball in the bowl and rotate until entire surface is buttered. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and place in a draft-free space for 1 1/2 hours or until dough doubles in size.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and place on lightly floured surface. Punch the dough down. Sprinkle cinnamon over the top. Pat and shape dough into a cylinder. Twist dough to form a curled cylinder and loop cylinder into buttered baking sheet. Pinch the ends together to complete the circle. Cover the dough with a towel and set in draft-free space for 45 minutes until dough doubles in size. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Brush top and sides of the cake with egg wash and bake on middle rack of oven for 25 to 35 minutes until golden brown. Place cake on a wire rack to cool. If desired at this time hide the plastic baby in the cake.
Icing:
- Combine sugar, lemon juice and 3 tablespoons water until smooth. If icing is too thick add more water. Spread icing over cake. Immediately sprinkle colored sugars in rows consisting of 2 rows each of green, purple and yellow.