New Orleans King Cake

The most delicious way to celebrate Mardi Gras. I really love New Orleans king cakes and the traditions that go with them (who got the baby?). Unfortunately it's really challenging to find people in Portland that share my love of king cakes or have even heard of them. They're missing out! So I decided to bake one for my friends and share it at a Superbowl party. 

It starts by making a pretty simple dough with an active yeast packet, and placing it in a bowl to rise for a couple hours.

Once the dough is ready, roll it out into a large rectangle and spread the filling EVENLY over it. I didn't really follow this part exactly but it's very important that the filling is spread evenly right up to the very edges of the cake or it will end up a little lopsided like mine. Oh well...

Once the dough has been rolled tightly, use a ramekin to help shape the dough and connect the two ends of the roll. Using scissors, cut slits in the top of the dough all the way around. In hindsight my cake kind of came apart where I attached the two ends, next time I might connect it better.

After baking, remove the cake from the oven but leave the ramekin in the center. Cover generously in frosting while still warm.

This is the best part. Sprinkles. Remove the ramekin first and get creative. Traditional Mardi Gras colors are purple, green and gold. Since this cake was technically for a Superbowl party I just went green and gold (go Packers!). This is the step where I would usually add the baby, but I couldn't find one in time so this cake had to do without.

Bad Gus-Gus!

The cake came out really wonderful, like a large cinnamon roll made to share. Unfortunately at the party one guest took more than his share of the cake. Bad dog Gus! Never leave the cake out on low coffee tables. I guess it's just that good.

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King Cake Recipe

Makes 1 cake.

     Pastry

     All-purpose flour - 1 1/2 cups

     Bread flour - 1 1/4 cups

     Active Dry Yeast - 1 packet - .25 oz

     Sugar - 1/4 cup

     Butter - 1/8 cup

     Salt - 3/4 tsp

     Eggs - 1 egg

     Milk - 1/2 cup

     Nutmeg - 1/4 tsp

     Warm water - 1/3 cup (110 degrees F / 45 degrees C)

     Filling

     All-purpose flour - 1/2 cup

     Brown sugar - 1 cup

     Cream cheese - 8 oz

     Cinnamon - 1 tbsp

     Chopped pecans - 2/3 cup

     Frosting

     Confectioner's sugar - 1 cup

     Cream cheese - 8 oz

     Butter - 1/4 cup

     Milk - 1/4 cup

     Lemon juice - 1 tsp

1. Scald the milk by bringing it to almost boiling, then remove from the heat and melt in the butter. Set aside and allow it to cool to room temperature
2. Dissolve the yeast packet in a small bowl with the warm water, using a thermometer to check the temperature. Add 1/2 tbsp of the white sugar. Let it dissolve until thick and bubbly, about 10 minutes.
3.  Whisk in the milk/butter mixture to the yeast until fully combined. Whisk in the egg. Add the remaining sugar, salt and nutmeg. Add the flours one cup at a time on low speed until the dough starts to pull together. Switch to the dough hook and knead on low for until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.
4. Form the dough into a ball and place in a large lightly oiled bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 2 hours. 
5. Roll out the dough to be a long rectangle, roughly 16" in length. 
6. Mix together the cream cheese, brown sugar, cinnamon, pecans and flour until fully incorporated. Use a spatula to evenly spread the filling on top of the dough. 
7. Roll the dough tightly and attach the ends of the roll to make a circle. Transfer to a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a ramekin in the center of the circle to maintain the desired shape. 
8. Make cuts in the top of the dough at 1" intervals. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
9. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Once the dough has risen, bake until the top is evenly golden brown, about 25 minutes. 
10. Make the frosting by combining the cream cheese, butter, milk and lemon juice. Add confectioners sugar slowly until mixture is desired consistency. Frost the cake while still warm.