Braided Mardi Gras King Cake Recipe

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If you’re looking for a Mardi Gras King Cake recipe that will be the talk of the town then you’ve come to the right recipe.

This King Cake not only looks good but tastes fantastic! It’s a Brioche King Cake with sweet cream cheese filling recipe and is definitely a crowd pleaser.

The perfect King Cake recipe is one that is appealing, sweet, soft, and fluffy. Oh yeah, looks and texture make a difference but it’s the flavor that keeps them asking for more.

The King Cake is a New Orleans Mardi Gras tradition. It is a sweet bread with a tasty filling. The fun part is, inside the bread is a small plastic baby and whoever receives the slice of cake with the baby gets to be King for the day! Or something to that effect. How fun is that!

What is Mardi Gras?

Mardi Gras, a well known celebration in New Orleans, Louisiana, is French for “Fat Tuesday”, reflecting the practice of the last night of eating rich, fatty foods before the ritual of Lent and fasting of the Lenten season. With that said, King Cake is included in this celebration. I’m not going to get into the entire story about Mardi Gras because what you came here for is actually this delicious King Cake recipe but, if you want to read up on Mardi Gras I recommend heading over to this site for detailed Mardi Gras information.

Celebrating Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a bucket must! Meaning, this should be on your bucket list of things to see or do in ones lifetime. Some may think that Mardi Gras is just for “party animals” but actually it is a celebration for everyone! Some things seen at Mardi Gras include days of parades and floats. The parades can start as early as January and last through March. Be sure to check out the Mardi Gras Parade Schedule here. The fun part about the parades are the people on the floats toss carnival colored beads of purple, gold and green into the crowds. The purple color represents justice, the gold represents power and the green one represents faith. This King Cake Recipe will include purple, gold and green sugars tossed atop a frosting to give it its festiveness!

What Makes This King Cake Recipe So Unique?

Seriously, not all King Cake recipes are the same. Trust me! I have seen some recipes that use frozen bread dough claiming it an “easy or quick”. When it comes to a pasty recipe like this I am not going to short cut it because I’m wanting this recipe to be exceptional. So, I have come up with this delicious recipe turning a flavorful brioche bread into a Mardi Gras King Cake with a cream cheese filling. YUM YUM!!

Although this recipe does take some time to make, but let me tell you, it’s well worth it! And I am not kidding. As my saying goes, “Super delicious things come to those who wait”. Anyway, if you’re going to make a King Cake you mine-as-well make one that is as memorable as the Mardi Gras itself.

Braided Mardi Gras King Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese Filling

This recipe I share for making a braided Mardi Gras King Cake will actually make two medium sized braided brioche breads. I suppose you could make just one big cake but I decided to split the dough in half and make two King Cakes. I keep one for myself and give the other one away, take to a party or even share at work as a special and unique treat.

Ingredients

Yeast Starter

• 2 1/4 teaspoon dry active yeast
• 1/3 cup milk warmed to 110 degrees Fahrenheit
• 1 egg
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

Dough

• 4 eggs at room temperature lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups all-purpose flour (hold back 1 cup for reserve if needed) plus have a little extra flour on hand for dusting and rolling out dough
• 12 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 egg beaten for glazing dough prior to baking (optional)

Cheese Filling

• 16 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
• 1/2 confectioners sugar sifted
• 1 lemon (zest and juiced)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Frosting

• 2 cups confectioners sugar sifted
• 3 Tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• King Cake Sugars with baby

Instructions

Yeast Starter

Combine yeast and warmed milk in a medium bowl and allow to rest for a few minutes. Ten add egg and flour and stir until combined and set aside for about 40 minutes.

Dough-Making the Dough

For this recipe I used my KitchenAid stand mixer. Transfer the yeast starter to the mixing bowl and add eggs, sugar, salt and 1 cup of flour. Using the dough hook blend on low speed until all ingredients are blended. The dough will be pretty sticky so gradually add 1 cup of flour and continue blending on low speed until combined. Gradually add one more cup of flour to the mixing bowl (this is the 3rd cup of flour added to the mixer). Slowly add room temperature butter and continue to mix on low speed and bump up to medium speed for about 5 minutes. If the mixture is still pretty sticky add more flour one Tablespoon at a time before adding more. You are looking for the dough to take on a little shape and be less sticky. If it is not taking any type of shape you can slowly add the remaining cup of flour if needed. Then run mixer on medium-high speed for about 15 minutes.

Dough – Prepare for First Proof

Once the dough is ready it’s time to proof. Place dough in a bowl sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm draft free location. Allow dough to rest for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until dough doubles in size.

Dough – Prepare for Second Proof

Gently release dough from bowl out onto a floured surface. Take the edges of the dough and pull them to the center. Flip the dough over and shape into a round ball. Place dough back into bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for 6 hours.

Make Filling

Combine cream cheese, confectioners sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla extract in a large bowl and using a mixer blend until fully combined and smooth. Divide mixture in half and set aside. We divide the filling in half since this recipe will be making two brioche bread King Cakes.

Dough – Shaping Part 1

Remove dough from refrigerator, place on flour dusted surface and cut the dough in half. Put half the cut back into the bowl. Now take the half cut and divide it evenly into thirds. You may want to use a kitchen scale to make sure it is divided evenly.

Working with one third at a time. Place the other pieces into the bowl and place the bowl into the refrigerator.

Place the dough on a floured surface gently roll dough out into a rectangle shape about 13-inches long. Working with half of the filling gently place a third of that half of the filling on top of dough and spread out evenly. Then working with the long end of the rectangle roll dough into a log. Gently massage or roll the dough, being careful to not break the log, until the dough reaches about 23 inches long. Place dough on parchment paper on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator. Work the other two pieces of dough this same way. Then do the same with the other half of the dough so, you will end up with making a total of six filled logs. Remember, we are making two King Cakes and you will need three logs for each cake.

Dough – Shaping Part 2

Now remove three logs from the refrigerator and place them on counter and begin braiding. When done braiding shape dough into a circle and work with ends to mesh together. Place braided dough on baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Do the same with the other three logs.

Dough – Third and Final Proof

Cover rounded braided brioche with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm draft free location and allow to rest for about 1-hour or until slightly doubled. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheight.

Bake

After the third proof and before baking brush on a glaze of egg wash on top of dough. Then place baking sheet with dough in preheated oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 200 degrees Fahrenheight. Be sure to check the temperature with an instant thermometer. When the bread reaches the proper temperature remove bread from oven. Carefully pull parchment paper along with the bread onto on a cooling rack. If you are using a plastic baby then gently insert the baby into the cooled bread in a non-conspicuous area but one you will remember where it was placed. Don’t worry about having a puncture hole in the bread as it won’t really matter because the icing and added colored sugar will cover it up.

Prepare Icing

To prepare icing place confectioners sugar, milk and vanilla extract in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Place bread on cooling rack over a baking sheet with the parchment paper. Drizzle icing on top of bread evenly. Then sprinkle colored sugars (alternating colors) on top of icing before it dries. Using a spatula carefully transfer the King Cake to a serving plate and enjoy!

I AM EXCITED YOU ARE VIEWING JETT’S MARDI GRAS KING CAKE RECIPE AND WOULD LOVE TO HEAR HOW IT TURNS OUT SHOULD YOU DECIDE TO MAKE IT!

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