Traditional King Cake

Loved this recipe, excellent King Cake. I did lower the temp to 350 because I braided the two halves together so I knew it would be thick. I did the cream cheese filling but also added raisins, cinnamon and toasted pecans . I made a cream cheese glaze which just brought it all together.

This has been my go-to King Cake recipe for MANY years. The fact that it makes two cakes - one we enjoy at home, and one I take to work - was what first drew me to it. The only thing I adjust for is the filling - I add finely chopped walnuts and brown sugar to the sugar and cinnamon. Everyone loves it and looks forward to it on Fat Tuesday - especially at work, which is at a small career college in NE Ohio. Typically I invite staff and faculty to partake in the King Cake, but one year a student saw it and begged me for a piece. Of course I obliged only to find out she was a transfer student who was displaced by Hurricane Katrina. She cried when she ate it because she hadn't had anything that reminded her of home as much as that piece of cake. I think of her every year. And, it's so good that I can't figure out why I only manage to make it this one day a year! Happy Mardis Gras!

I followed this two years in a row for a traditional Mardi Gras party. I was told it was better than any King Cake served in New Orleans. It was absolutely a full -proof recipe to the tee!

It also stored well during the pandemic when we had to cancel festivities. Everyone thinks it is me, but is is this full - proof recipe.

Anyone not giving it a decent to excellent rating may have not read ALL the directions before beginning and may have made substitutes which won't work when you work with yeast. Certain flours will not mix the same when you are dealing with yeast.....It is a science and this works well! Thank you for all of my compliments!

I just have to find a baby to put in it!

Bread flour glutens are longer and are thus better for kneading dough. But you can also use all-purpose. I would check the oven's actual temperature. Sounds like yours may be hotter than it ought to be. Ovens are notorious for running hotter or cooler than set, especially the way appliances are made today.

This is not a traditional New Orleans king cake recipe.  I followed the directions to the to the tee and ended up with with a doughy mess.  They were beautiful and golden brown outside and a doughy mess inside.  I tested them with a toothpick and the toothpick came out clean.  However, after cooling for about 30 minutes, it sunk in the middle, leaving me with a ugly, deflated mess.  375 for 16 minutes is far too hot and too fast for a cake this big.  I have 2 thermometers in my oven for extra assurance.  My oven was exactly 375.  There are also some inconsistencies between the Southern Living video and this recipe.  When she is mixing the dough, she said to add 1/2 cup of sugar.  However, the recipe says to add 1/3 cup of sugar.  The ingredients only call for 1/3 cup of butter, but it says "spread 1/3 cup softened butter evenly on each rectangle."  So, does each rectangle get 1/3 cup or is that 1/3 cup spread over both rectangles?  What I've tasted of this disaster is far too sweet for what I would consider a king cake.  This recipe more closely resembles cinnamon rolls, especially with the hot and short baking time. 

I followed the recipe to the letter but the taste was king of dough-y. Maybe it needs to bake longer at a lower temperature?

I have made this recipe twice and really love the cake and the filling. I did substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream because I did not have enough sour cream and an abundance of the yogurt! Both times I have had trouble with the sugar weeping or melting overnight, which makes a very messy eating situation. I am making my sanding sugar with Wilton gel colors. I let the cakes cool completely before wrapping in plastic wrap. I hope someone can tell my why my sugar is weeping and what I can do to stop that.

First time making a King cake. Wonderful dough to work with!

I have made this recipe several times and it is remarkably easy and consistently delicious!!!

I've been making this recipe for years for our Mardi Gras party and people always rave about it!

I made this for the first time last year and this year I made it twice. Each time the reviews were excellent. I made them without a heavy duty mixer so it was a lot of trouble (but worth it!). However, I think next year I will tell my husband "no new mixer, no King Cake." LOL

To fishandrun ----- Be sure the temperature of your water (added to the yeast is the correct temp. It should be 115 degrees.) Then let sit 5 minutes. ALSO, make sure your bowl of dough is warm. I cover my bowl with plastic wrap, then wrap a huge heavy bath towel over the top of bowl. In winter time I also pre-heat my oven to 175 degrees, turn OFF the oven, then let it cool off a bit. Place the whole bowl, towel, etc. in the oven (BE SURE YOU TURN OFF YOUR OVEN). I do it for both times the dough needs to be raised. A cold room will deter your dough from rising up. Hope this helps.

I have tried this recipe a couple of times. It seems promising, but I cannot get my cakes to rise! They looked lovely though!

This tasted a lot like the king cakes I've grown up eating! I halved the recipe, and it worked well. I did make some substitutions: used all purpose flour and greek yogurt instead of sour cream because that was what I had on hand. I also made a glaze of butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. This was really good, and I will use this recipe again!

My daughter and I made the cream cheese filled version (and added some cherry preserves), had a great time and it was wonderful! I did all the mixing and kneading in a stand mixer which made the process very easy (I had sworn off making things with yeast some time ago as I always seem to knead the life out of dough). Add a five year-olds decorating sense and you have a delicious party on a plate! We will be making this yearly :^)

This was my first time making the King Cake, and it was very, very successful. The recipe was a bit intimidating at first, but was actually easy when taken one step at a time. I followed the recipe exactly, using regular flour instead of bread flour, and it was a bit more dense.

This is a good solid recipe. I used brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, and chopped pecans for the filling and it was delicious!

I made this two years ago and it was wonderful. Didn't change a thing. Ate myself stupid with it! :)

To Susan: make sure your oven is preheated before baking king cakes. Are you letting it rise long enough, and is your yeast fresh? Is your oven temperature accurate? If it isn't heating to the proper temp, this could be one reason why your cakes are gooey in the center. Just a few things to check... Good luck! :-) I have used this recipe for over 20 years with no problems except for the time I forgot to add the yeast...oops!

Anyone help? My sister makes this recipe with great results. My cakes are always brown on the outside and raw in the innermost area. I am baking these according to directios, but with the same results. Any ideas?

Growning up in New Orleans, this was a staple at our house during the Mardi Gras season. These are not around living up north and having them shipped is expensive and they don't arrive very fresh. This recipe is as close as you can get to the real thing. The only thing I would change is to omit the lemon juice in the glaze. I'll be making my own from now on!

I have a question and maybe someone will answer even though lent has started: What is the idea behind bread flour? It baked very crusty and densely on the outside. The inside dough didn't bake while the surface dough was well-baked without burning. Would it be worth it to try again with all-purpose or is there something else I could be doing wrong?

Fabulous!! I made 5 of these cakes for church and work and everyone loved them!! I will make these every year, whether or not I get the nut. I used regular flour and diluted canned white icing. The result was a very moist, cinnamon bun like cake.

My friends and I are HUGE King Cake snobs and this is the first true crowd pleaser! NOLA approved!

This recipe is fabulous! The cream cheese filling is perfect as written. However, I spread strawberry pie filling on top of the cream cheese mixture. So delicious. My friends and family have enjoyed this cake so much, I'm now making my third recipe in five days. Superb!

I love this recipe. I've been promising myself I'd try to make a real King Cake but every year I've chickened out. This year I DID IT!!! It's wonderful. I do have a couple of changes that I will make the next time. Make sure to PINCH the bottom seam. Also, next time I will decrease the amount of lemon juice. Probably will just use small amount of lemon extract and more milk. I love lemon but with the sugars and powdered sugar in the glaze was just too much. I had added a pinch or two of kosher salt to cut the sweetness but the lemon is just tooo much with all the sugar for my taste.

I made this recipe yesterday alongside my traditional king cake recipe and I have to admit, this one is lighter and easier to work with. The frosting is also very good. The dough rises quick too. This is a great recipe.