King Cake
Categories: All, Cakes, Desserts, Holiday, Recipes
Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Dairy Free, GFCF, King Cake, Mardi Gras
After the Twelfth Night of Christmas, a culinary tradition begins in the South that most folks only associate with Mardi Gras Day in New Orleans – the colorful King Cake. Biblical tradition holds that kings visited the baby Jesus by traveling for 12 days to reach him on what we now call “Epiphany.” Beginning at Epiphany and lasting only until Mardi Gras day, the tradition of a King Cake in the Southern United States has evolved from what was brought by European settlers in the 1700s to what we now recognize as one of the preeminent symbols of the revelry of Mardi Gras.
Today, King Cakes are used to select Mardi Gras Kings and Queens as well as to celebrate the season in households and at parties across the country. King Cakes have many looks, the most classic being a crown shaped pastry dotted with the sugared colors of Carnival: purple, gold and green. Some have fillings, others do not, though they all house a hidden trinket like a plastic (formerly porcelain) baby. The trinket hidden inside each cake adds to its popularity, although the uninitiated often fail to recognize that finding the trinket inside your piece of cake may come not only with privileges (good fortune and/or becoming the King or Queen of the ball) but just as often with responsibilities (bringing the next cake!). King Cake was served at my baby shower by my daughter’s marraine (her Godmother, to you un-cajun-ites!), and I served King Cake at the baby shower I hosted for my daughter’s marraine (mah-rehn) in return.
Until now, I was unable to enjoy anything but the tiny plastic baby trinket I found in my King Cake, as I had never had a gluten-free version. This cinnamon-roll-like creation is fast becoming a family favorite here, as the first one I made was devoured in a single evening! You’ll love it too!
King Cake
Pastry Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup warm water (110 F)
- 1 Tbs. granulated cane sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp. (1 packet) highly active, fast rise yeast (e.g. Red Star® Quick Rise Instant Gluten-Free Yeast)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter or non-dairy alternative (e.g. Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 3 Tbs. granulated cane sugar
- 1/4 cup warm milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
- 3 cups Jules Gluten Free™ All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 2 tsp. gluten-free baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt (1/4 tsp. salt if using non-dairy alternative)
- 2 Tbs. milk (dairy or non-dairy) for brushing on pastry before baking
Filling Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour
- 1 apple, peeled and chopped (optional)
- 2/3 cup chopped pecans (optional)
- 4 Tbs. butter or non-dairy alternative (e.g. Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
Icing Ingredients:
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 1-2 Tbs. milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 1/4 tsp. pure almond extract (optional)
- colored sugar (purple, gold and green)
Prepare the filling by tossing the chopped apples together with the Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, melt the 4 tablespoons butter, and set both bowls aside.
In a small bowl, combine the warm water, 1 tablespoon sugar and yeast; stir and set aside to proof. If the mixture is not bubbly and doubled in volume after 5-10 minutes, toss out and start again with fresh yeast.
In a large mixing bowl, blend the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the milk and eggs and beat until well-integrated. Add only 2 cups of Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour, salt, baking powder and nutmeg and mix well. Stir in the proofed yeast-sugar-water mixture, then add the remaining 1 cup Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour. Beat another 1-2 minutes, until the dough is clumping together and is not too sticky.
Prepare a large baking sheet by lining with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a silicone pastry mat or onto a clean counter dusted lightly with Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour (be sure to have enough counter space, at least 30 inches wide). Roll the dough out to an elongated rectangle 24-30 inches long by 9-10 inches wide. Brush on the melted butter, coating the entire rectangle. Sprinkle the filling mixture on top of the melted butter, spreading to the ends of the rectangle, but leaving 1/2-1 inch without toppings on each of the long sides of the rectangle.
Using a bench scraper or a spatula, gently peel up one of the long sides of the rectangle and begin rolling it as you would a jelly roll. Once the entire pastry is rolled upon itself until no pastry remains unrolled, a 24-30 inch long roll will remain. Gently pull the two ends of the roll together to form a circle or oval. Dabbing the ends of the pastry with water, join the ends together to close the circle. Gently transfer the ring to the parchment-lined baking sheet, or transfer the ring on the silicone baking mat to the baking sheet.
Brush the milk on top of the exposed pastry, then using a large sharp knife, make a cut in the top of the pastry every 2 inches to expose one layer of the roll. Spray a sheet of wax paper with cooking oil, then cover the cake and let rise in a warm spot for 20-30 minutes like a warming drawer or an oven heated to 200º F then turned off.
Preheat oven to 350º F (static) or 325º F (convection).
Remove the wax paper from the cake and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool. While cooling, mix icing ingredients and drizzle over the cake. Sprinkle colored sugar on top of wet icing, alternating colors between each cut in the top of the cake. Once cooled, insert a pecan or toy baby into the underside of the cake to hide it. Serve when fully cooled.
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04. Mar, 2011
[...] you want to learn more about other tasty Mardi Gras culinary traditions, you simply must sample my King Cake and my Beignets, which pay a real tribute to those famous treats that made Cafe du Monde [...]
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30. Jan, 2012
[...] King Cake from Jules Gluten Free [...]
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30. Jan, 2012
[...] King Cake from Jules Gluten Free [...]
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29. Mar, 2012
[...] the King Cake, which is a traditional treat of the holiday, I used this recipe from Jules Gluten Free (so that everyone in my group could have some), except I used gluten-free Bisquick instead of [...]
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06. Feb, 2013
[...] from Jules Gluten Free, has delicious gluten free King Cake recipe that she warns may be devoured in one night. Find the [...]
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25. Feb, 2013
[...] testing out the AP flour from Jules Gluten Free in preparation for trying her king cake recipe. So I decided to do something very basic. We’d been talking about the possibility of [...]
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Linda S. said: on March 9, 2011
This was a delicious recipe. I was quite surprised how easy the dough was to work with and didn’t take very long at all to make this gem. Another keeper! Thanks so much!
Jules said: on March 10, 2011
So glad you loved it! King Cake just looks hard (which is half the fun!), but even if you mess it up a bit, you just cover it with glaze and sanding sugar so no one can tell! ; )
Becki said: on September 3, 2011
Your recipe looks and sounds delicious (and perfect for me to make to send for my son and a classmate with food allergies. Could Ener-G Egg Substitute be used in your recipe in place of the Eggs? Thank you so much.
Jules said: on February 10, 2012
Becki – my apologies, somehow I missed seeing your question! Regarding the eggs, in this recipe I think I would prefer using the flaxseed meal + water egg sub instead of Ener-G. I tend to love Ener-G in cookies, but not so much in cakes or breads. Hope that helps!
Andrea said: on January 6, 2012
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I’m a new orleanian that’s moved out of state. I’ve been making king cakes myself since I moved away, but have never really been all that pleased with my cakes. now I have a newborn that’s lactose intolerant so I was seeking a dairy free recipe and found yours. I just made it to kick off the 2012 season and am so impressed! I think it’s my best cake yet! So happy!
Jules said: on January 6, 2012
Andrea that’s fantastic! So glad you loved the recipe and that it suited you New Orleans roots & your family’s dietary needs!!!
Ashley said: on January 12, 2012
I have never heard of Jules. Could I substitute Bob’s Red Mill All-purpose Gluten free flour?
Jules said: on January 13, 2012
Ashley, Bob’s gluten-free flour is quite different from my blend. For starters, it doesn’t contain any binding agents to hold the final product together (like xanthan gum) and it is made with bean flours that can leave a funky aftertaste in delicate baked goods like this cake. You could use it in this recipe if you added your own xanthan gum, but it still wouldn’t come out looking or tasting just like this one. If you want to read more about my flour, click here! It allows you to make a regular wheat flour recipe without having to add expensive gums and without leaving any aftertaste or grit. I hope you get to make this cake – it’s so fun!
Jennifer said: on February 8, 2013
Does your flour use GMO free ingredients? Especially the corn, rice and potato.
Jules said: on February 8, 2013
Hi Jennifer – my All Purpose Flour is GMO-Free at this time.
BECKY said: on February 11, 2013
Ashley, Once you use Jule’s flour, you will never use Bob’s red Mill again. You use it in any recipe the same as wheat flour and the taste is unbelievable!
Heather said: on January 30, 2012
Hi Jules:
I just used this recipe for a project with my kids and it was very tasty and turned out really cute! Love your blog.
Warm regards,
Heather
Jules said: on February 12, 2013
That’s great, Heather!! So glad you and the kids had fun making AND eating it!
Sherri said: on February 15, 2012
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe! I was only diagnosed 2 years ago and I miss so many things, this being one of them. From the comments about all of your recipes they seem wonderful. Thank you for making our lives tastier!
Jules said: on February 17, 2012
Sherri – so glad you’re ready to start experimenting and bringing old favorites back into your new gluten-free life! Happy I can help with good recipes! Enjoy this one!!!
Karen said: on February 15, 2012
Hi Jules! I love your flour and every recipe of yours that I try always turns out just wonderful. Can’t wait to try this one soon, as soon I get over the bronchitis I have that is. In your directions, you state to use the melted butter for the TOPPING, to be brushed on the dough once it is rolled out into a rectangle. Do you mean the butter for the FILLING? I was a little confused at first! Thanks!
Jules said: on February 17, 2012
Hi Karen – so sorry you’re feeling bad! Bronchitis is NO fun! Hope you’re feeling up to many things soon, including making this recipe!
I’ll go back and look at the recipe – topping and filling are the same thing, but you make a good point, I’ll change to make the term the same so there’s no confusion. Thanks for pointing that out!
Brie said: on February 19, 2012
Hi! I attempted this recipe this morning and my dough was very dry, I couldn’t roll it. Can I use water or milk (this was my test run, I have another to make tomorrow!) To make the dough more pliable?
Thanks Jules! I have 4 bags of your flour at my house so I love these recipes (especially this one, being the Tulane Alumna I am!)
Jules said: on February 20, 2012
Hi Brie – I’m sorry the dough was dry for you. Absolutely, you can use water or milk – dairy or non-dairy – (preferred) to get the dough where you need it to be. Hopefully round two will work out great for you! Happy Mardi Gras!
Rachel said: on February 20, 2012
I made this yesterday for my Celiac group meeting and they gobbled it up! Everyone was raving about how wonderful it was. Thanks for sharing.
Jules said: on February 20, 2012
That’s fantastic, Rachel! So glad you made it (and so nice of you to share!)
Susie said: on February 21, 2012
Jules this looks awesome! I would LOVE and be honored if you joined my Mardi Gras party today! I’m giving pins on Pinterest to all who link up! http://cafescrapper-scrapsoflife.blogspot.com/2012/02/happy-fat-tuesday-mardi-gras.html
carol lange said: on March 1, 2012
Loved the king cake! I was so happy that my two girls could enjoy this treat again! I made it twice, once with your flour and once without. It was much, much better with your flour! I am from New Orleans so I know what I am talking about. My daughter informed me that I cant wait a whole year before I make it again!
Jules said: on March 2, 2012
Carol – I am so happy that your family has been loving this recipe!!! And very cool that you tried the recipe with another flour and that you had better results with mine! Woot woot!
Laissez les bon temps rouler!
Berni Foster said: on February 11, 2013
Well, this was interesting. I find that often gluten free doughs are very fragile but I stumbled upon a way to make it easier to work with. As I was out of chicken eggs, I used 1 extremely large duck egg (a friend has a flock). This made the dough stiffer and easier to work with. Also, I dusted the parchment paper with flour, rolled (pressed actually) the dough out on it, trimmed it, and then lifted one end and used it to roll the dough onto itself. Once it was formed, I just lifted the dough and parchment together onto the baking sheet and voila! I’ve also made this with the cream cheese filling. When I do that. I actually form the ring, then overturn a very large, greased Pyrex casserole dish over it and then flip the cake into the dish to cook. That way, there are no cream cheese explosions. Thanks Jules!
Jules said: on February 11, 2013
Brilliant, Bernice! Thanks for sharing those tips! Enjoy that King Cake!!!
Alexis said: on February 12, 2013
Hi Jules!
Do you have any advice for storing this overnight so it is fresh in the morning?
Jules said: on February 12, 2013
I’ve just wrapped it tightly and stored at room temperature. If you find it is not soft enough, you can quickly microwave it the next day, but it should be good for a day or two, at least. Enjoy!