Making a king cake from scratch shouldn’t intimidate you, it’s much easier than you may think! It’s basically a giant cinnamon roll dressed up for Mardi Gras!

Here’s my recipe, have fun with it, it won’t be perfect and may not look neat, but it’ll taste delicious, I promise!

Dough:

• 1 (8oz) container sour cream
• 3 TBSP sugar
• 2 TBSP unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 (¼ oz) envelope active dry yeast
• 1/4 C warm water (100° to 110°F)
• 1 large egg (lightly beaten)
• 3 to 3 1/2 C bread flour

Cinnamon/Sugar Filling:

• ⅓ cup unsalted butter (softened)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 3 TBSP ground cinnamon

Glaze:

• 1 C powdered sugar
• 1 TBSP butter or cream cheese, softened
• 1 TBSP milk
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract
• Purple, green and gold sprinkles

1. For the dough, add the sour cream, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat & cool down the mixture to 100° to 110°F
2. In a glass measuring cup or small bowl, stir together yeast and 1/4 cup warm water, and let stand for 5 minutes. The yeast should become foamy and be ‘activated’ after that time.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, add the sour cream mixture, yeast mixture, eggs and 1 cup of flour. Give a quick stir with a spatula and then turn the mixer on medium speed. As the ingredients start to come together, reduce speed to low, and gradually add the remaining flour until a soft dough forms.
4. Once the dough forms, lower the speed setting and allow the dough to knead until smooth and elastic (this can take up to 10 minutes).
5. Place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a linen cloth or plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place (85° is ideal) for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
6. While dough is proofing, make the cinnamon/sugar filling. Mix the ingredients together in a small bowl.
7. After the dough is finished proofing, divide the dough in half.
8. Roll each portion into a long rectangle using a rolling pin. Spread 1/2 the cinnamon/sugar butter evenly on each rectangle.
9. Fold each dough rectangle in half long ways, and add the remaining cinnamon/sugar butter.
10. Roll the dough rectangles up long ways.
11. Place the dough rolls parallel to one another, pinch the tops together, and twist the dough rolls over each other to give a braided look. Bring the other ends around together to form a ring, ensuring to make a good seal at the seam.
12. Cover and let rise in a warm place again, 20 to 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
13. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
14. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until golden.
15. If the outside is golden, but the inside is still gooey, lightly cover with foil and bake in 5 minute intervals, checking carefully in between until cooked through.
16. After the cake is done baking, allow to cool most of the way.
17. Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix the glaze ingredients until smooth & creamy.
18. Pour glaze evenly over warm cake; sprinkle with colored sugars, and alternate colors.
19. Let cool completely & serve.

Check out the Instagram reel here:

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

Basically, you crush up your extra fun-sized candy bars and use them to make the most delicious cookies. I use my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, but any one will work. You replace the chocolate chips with the crushed candy, and voila!

1. Unwrap, and refrigerate the candy for an hour.
2. Make your dough as per the recipe.
3. Crush the candy bars using a food processor or chop by hand.
4. Add to your dough (use the same measure as the chocolate chips in the recipe)
5. Mix carefully with a spatula.
6. Bake as per recipe.
7. Enjoy!

I love to make several batches and freeze the dough for Christmas movie nights, holiday cookie swaps or just a fun dessert for the kids!

Watch my Instagram Reel here. Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

The kit includes the cookie cutters, two piping tips and piping bags. It’s linked below.

I decided to use my favorite sugar cookie recipe because I’m not a fan of gingerbread. It was simple and really went pretty smoothly. The bottom stars are pretty big so they needed a little extra cooking time, but other than that, it was a breeze!

I loved the idea of having something besides a cookie tray to take to a party this year or give as a gift. You could use gingerbread, sugar, shortbread or any other cookie recipe; decorate them or keep them plain.

If I make them again, I will probably double my cookie recipe and make two stars of each size to make the tree I bit taller. Also, I’ll save some powdered sugar from the icing recipe, and sprinkle it over the tree once it’s stacked to create the look of freshly fallen snow instead of using sprinkles. Overall, I liked the way it turned out, especially for my first go!

The tree and was a hit at the Christmas party we took it to and I like changing things up a bit! I hope you have a chance to try it yourself and love it as much as I do!

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

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Jamie