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Haydels Bakerys King Cake Recipe Recipe

Ingredients

How to make it

  • In a mixer at first speed combine 1/3 cup granulated sugar, salt, and shortening until well creamed. 
  • Add eggs and continue to cream. 
  • Dissolve the yeast in the milk and add the flavors. 
  • Once dissolved add to creamed mixture and continue to mix. 
  • Add flour and mix until dough tightens. 
  • Remove from mixer and kneed into a ball.
  • At this point sprinkle some flour on top and cover with a clean kitchen towel. 
  • Allow the dough to rest for 1½ hours
  • While the dough is resting mix your colored sugars. 
  • Start by taking one cup of sugar and your yellow food coloring.  
  • Mix by hand with a wire wisk in a metal bowl until the sugar turns yellow. 
  • Pour you yellow sugar into a separate bowl and put off to the side. 
  • Repeat this process mixing green then purple.  (By doing them in that order you only dirty one mixingbowl)  
  • When dough has rested roll out into an oblong piece.  
  • Brush on canola oil covering the entire piece. 
  • Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar liberally over the whole piece. 
  • Once the dough is covered with the cinnamon sugar and oil, fold it in half lengthwise. 
  • Cut into 3 strips and braid the dough. 
  • Gently roll the dough by starting at one end and working all the way down to the other end. 
  • This will make the dough a nice long piece that can then be shaped into a circle. 
  • Once shaped place on a baking pan covered with piece of parchment.  
  • Allow the dough to rest again until it doubles in size. 
  • At this point take a spoon and alternate sprinkling the three colored sugars on top of your circular piece of dough.
  • Bake at 370 degrees F for 12-15 minutes until dough is golden brown.  Then laissez les bon temps rouler
  • This recipe did not include a glaze for the top which I love!

Reviews & Comments 10

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    " It was excellent "
    trigger ate it and said...
    Thank you for the history that alone is worth a 5.
    Sounds like a delicious and colorful cake that I would love to have.
    Bookmarked
    Five forks and a smile:)
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  • dmajor 15 years ago
    Our students love this season! We have king cake parties each week and the kids are excited to see who gets the baby! Now you can get king cakes during the year( Christmas they are shaped like Christmas trees or Candy Canes) They have become a year round treat for many. King cakes come in many varieties of flavors(or fillings) I like my king cake plain or with just cream cheese. I have seen some strange fillings ranging from strawberry to Maple Pecan and chocolate chip! You name it, they will make it! Haydels makes such a moist king cake with a wonderful icing and a special porcelain doll!
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    " It was excellent "
    grizzlybear ate it and said...
    Love it......Great Post.......big 5 for this one
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    juels ate it and said...
    Great info here, thanks! The cake sounds delicious and beautiful with all those colored sugars!
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    lacrenshaw ate it and said...
    VERY nicely done! History and all. Let the good times roll, indeed, dmajor! I'll be rolling right along with you...
    Lorraine
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    " It was excellent "
    krumkake ate it and said...
    What a delicious sounding post, and I LOVED the history you included! Enjoy the Carnival while all of us northerners think of all the fun (and warmth) you're having...and thank you for a really interesting post! Krum
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    " It was excellent "
    jett2whit ate it and said...
    A friend once told me the story about the king cake baby...very interesting. I love the texture of this cake. Thanks for posting all of the info.
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    gagagrits ate it and said...
    Thanks for the history lesson....:)
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag
    " It was excellent "
    debbie919 ate it and said...
    Thanks, Deb...I never knew too much about King Cakes, and really enjoyed reading this! Very interesting and informative...=)
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  • dmajor 15 years ago
    Taken from WWL's website: To many Carnival purists, it is near sacrilege to eat a slice before Twelfth Night, the feast of the Epiphany, also known as King’s Day – January 6. On that date Christians commemorate the visit of the three wise men, or Magi, to Jesus’ manger in Bethlehem. The king cake originated in Europe as part of the religious celebration. Borrowing a Spanish custom (which some say 16th century France adopted as well), the Creoles served the cake at balls held on the sixth. Inside was tucked a small object, usually a ring, a bean or later a pecan. The person who got the lucky slice became king or queen of the ball, and chose someone from the crowd as their partner. The two would reign as monarchs of the party, and would be responsible for hosting the next ball. Sound familiar? The custom has changed over the years, but the premise is the same.

    King cakes (now most often topped with purple, green and gold sugar to represent the colors of Carnival) have become common sights in the workplace, at schools, parties – really anywhere 3 or more people are gathered this time of year. The beans, rings, porcelain dolls or pecans inside them were replaced by plastic baby dolls after World War II. The credit for that idea goes to the late, lamented McKenzie’s Pastry Shoppes. Some say the baby was to represent the Christ child. Another story has a more practical explanation. McKenzie’s owner got a good deal on some of the little pink dolls, found out they wouldn’t melt if baked in a cake, and thought they worked better than porcelain dolls, beans or pecans. Before long, most of the bakeries in town were using them. And the babies became a Carnival symbol themselves.

    If you ever ate a slice of McKenzie’s king cake, you probably remember it as somewhat dry slab of dough, simply topped with sugar. Icing came later, followed by all kinds of toppings and filling. Bakers’ creativity ran wild, and now you can get a king cake stuffed with nearly anything imaginable. You can also have it shipped worldwide, and ordering one is easier than ever, thanks to the internet.

    Two Carnival organizations use the king cake to crown their royalty. The high society ball of the Twelfth Night Revelers includes the custom of hiding a gold bean inside a wooden version of a cake. Though the recipient is selected beforehand, the choice remains a mystery, since the queen does not know until she’s handed a “slice.”

    Members of another group, the Phunny Phorty Phellows, enjoy king cakes on board the streetcar January 6, as they take to the streets to proclaim the arrival of the Carnival season. The man who selects the piece with the baby inside is proclaimed “the Boss.” The woman who does the same, is his queen.

    Everything old is new again in the world of king cakes. In recent years, French bakeries in the area have begun selling cakes like the ones made in France: made from a brioche dough and containing an almond paste filling. It looks different but tastes wonderful.

    Whatever the recipe, king cakes are a delicious piece of the past, and ever present sign of the season. Just remember the cardinal Carnival rule: you get the baby, you buy the next cake!
    Was this review helpful? Yes Flag

The Cook

dmajor Slidell, LA

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