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How to Make Buttermilk King Cake with Cream Cheese Filling - A Step-by-Step Guide

King cake is a traditional Mardi Gras dessert that is enjoyed throughout the carnival season leading up to Lent. This festive and colorful cake is a staple in New Orleans and other areas with strong Mardi Gras traditions. It is typically a sweet, yeasted cake, often filled with cream cheese or fruit fillings, and topped with a colorful icing and sprinkles.

This recipe for Buttermilk King Cake with Cream Cheese Filling puts a delicious spin on the traditional king cake by incorporating...

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Ingredients

  • 4 cups all-purpose flour (Optional)
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 1 (.25 ounce) package rapid rise yeast
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
  • 3 eggs at room temperature
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • ¾ cup Bulgarian-style buttermilk
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour (Optional)
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese at room temperature
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (Optional)
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 egg
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 4 teaspoons corn syrup
  • 4 teaspoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice, or as needed

Information

  • Prep Time: 35 mins
  • Cook Time: 40 mins
  • Additional Time: 2 hrs
  • Total Time: 3 hrs 15 mins
  • Servings: 12
  • Yield: 1 king cake

  • Mix 4 cups of flour, white sugar, yeast, and salt together in the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
  • Whisk 3 eggs in a separate bowl. Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat and whisk buttermilk into melted butter; heat until an instant-read thermometer reads 120 degrees F (49 degrees C). Whisk buttermilk mixture into beaten eggs and cool the mixture to 110 degrees F (43 degrees C).
  • Beat egg mixture into flour mixture on medium-low speed to make a firm, elastic dough, about 10 minutes. If dough doesn't separate from the sides of the mixing bowl during kneading, beat in 1/4 cup more flour.
  • Turn dough out onto a work surface and knead for 1 minute; form into a ball and place into a buttered bowl, turning dough around to lightly coat with butter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 2 hours.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter the outer edge of an 8-inch cake pan.
  • Stir cream cheese, 1 cup confectioners' sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and nutmeg in a bowl until filling is smooth.
  • Punch down dough and turn out onto a lightly floured piece of parchment paper. Roll dough into a 10x28-inch rectangle. Spread cream cheese filling over the rectangle, leaving a 1-inch border along each edge. Lift an edge of the parchment paper sheet to roll dough into a log shape, starting at a 28-inch edge. Pinch seams closed to seal in filling, keeping roll on the parchment paper.
  • Wrap the filled dough around the outside of the buttered 8-inch cake pan to form the dough into a ring; pinch the edges closed. Use parchment paper to lift the cake and cake pan and slide a baking sheet beneath the parchment. Gently free cake pan, leaving the ring-shaped cake. Whisk 1 egg with water in a small bowl; brush cake with egg wash.
  • Bake king cake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 40 minutes. Let cake cool.
  • Stir 1 cup confectioners' sugar, corn syrup, and milk in a bowl; mix in 1 teaspoon lemon juice, or amount needed to thin icing to a thick but slightly runny texture. Drizzle king cake with icing.

    • Nutrition

    436 cal.

    • Total Fat: 15g
    • Saturated Fat: 8g
    • Cholesterol: 98mg
    • Sodium: 381mg
    • Total Carbohydrate: 68g
    • Dietary Fiber: 1g
    • Total Sugars: 31g
    • Protein: 9g
    • Vitamin C: 2mg
    • Calcium: 52mg
    • Iron: 3mg
    • Potassium: 135mg

    Categories

    Dessert recipes
    Cake recipes
    Pastry recipes
    Baking recipes
    Sweet recipes