Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras King Cake Monkey Bread
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I have been blessed to visit New Orleans both before and after Hurricane Katrina blew through it and absolutely LOVE the city. The people. The food. The Music. There really is no other place like it on earth. This is my homage to Fat Tuesday – our Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras King Cake Monkey Bread.
If you have heard about Mardi Gras, then you should know all about the legendary King Cake and its recipe. King Cakes are used in numerous countries in celebration of the ending of the Christmas period while others do it in celebration of the beginning of the Lenten season. The tradition of the King Cake started over 300 years ago. It featured a sugar coating atop a dry French bread, but as times changed, it was made differently in some countries.
The King Cake Tradition
The King Cake has a link to early Christian culture where the name itself was derived from Biblical Kings. Epiphany, as celebrated in the early Western liturgical tradition, starts on January 6 and is a celebration of Jesus (as a baby) being visited by the Magi. King Cake is used as a festive part of the day before Lent begins and continues every Tuesday throughout the season. Some countries celebrate the period as a carnival break and also indulge in eating this delicious treat. It is also a popular treat on the table at Christmas in some countries like Switzerland, France, Portugal, Greece, Quebec, and Belgium. For those who engage in activities like King Cake parties, there is usually a cake trinket, and those who get it have to purchase for the next event. The King Cake dates back to 1870 when it was brought from France into New Orleans and as such a long history is associated with it.
Making the King Cake
The original King Cake is a dry French dough that is finished with a sugar-coated topping, a hollow center, and various colored sugar. Thousands if not millions of King Cakes are eaten during the period, for example, New Orleans that consume a lot of King Cakes during the time. King Cakes may also be made from puff pastry and filled with numerous fillings to include almond, chocolate, apple, and more). Once the cake is baked and presented, a small figurine is usually hidden in the center of it. However, each baker customizes what they want to use for the filling. You should also consider using the colors purple, which represents justice, green for faith, and golf for power.
Do you bake the baby in the King Cake?
If you have been around a King Cake serving, then you will know there is a baby or bean inside, and one person will receive it. When the dough is being set for baking, you will try to sink the baby or bean in. Yes, the cake is baked with the baby as it is a way of enhancing and creating more fun for the festivities.
Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras King Cake Monkey Bread
You will need:
3 – 7.5 oz cans refrigerated cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting
1/2 C (1 stick) Unsalted Sweet Cream Butter
1 C brown sugar
1 C sugar
1 bundt pan, sprayed with baking spray
1 pouch each of purple, green and gold nonpareil sprinkles
purple, leaf green and golden yellow gel food coloring
3 disposable piping bags
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- Spray your bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray heavily, and set aside.
- Open the cinnamon rolls and lay each roll out onto a cutting board
- Cut each cinnamon roll into quarters
- Add about 1/2 of the cut cinnamon rolls into a large ziplock bag and 1/2 C sugar
- Shake until coated
- Add the coated cinnamon rolls into the bundt pan
- Repeat step with the remaining sugar and cinnamon rolls
- In a small sauce pan, combine the butter and brown sugar. mix until melted and combined.
- Pour the brown sugar and butter mixture over the dough balls in the bundt pan.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, until dough appears to be a golden brown.
- Let the monkey bread sit for about 3-5 minutes before placing your serving dish on top.
- Place your serving dish on top of the bundt pan and carefully flip the bundt pan over so that the serving dish is now sitting on the counter.
- Leave the bundt pan on top of the monkey bread for about 5-10 minutes before carefully removing is
- Once removed let the monkey bread continue to cool while you mix colors.
- Using all 3 of the cream cheese frosting, add a few drops of purple gel coloring to one of the cream cheese containers.
- Do the same with the green coloring and the golden yellow
- Mix until all is combined.
- Scoop the cream cheese icings into their own piping bags
- Cut the tip off each piping bag
- Drizzle each color over the monkey bread
- Pour the sprinkles into a bowl and mix so that they are combined
- Sprinkle some of the mixed sprinkles on top of the monkey bread
- Let the monkey bread cool for about 15 more minutes so that the cream cheese icing can harden a little bit.
Print off our Mardi Gras King Cake Monkey Bread recipe HERE:
[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:40]
Other New Orleans Style recipes of ours you might enjoy:
Crock Pot Red Beans n Rice Recipe -7 Weight Watcher Smart Points
15 Mouth Watering Recipes to Celebrate Mardi Gras
**Knock Off** Famous Daves Corn Muffins
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