The Queen of Kings
A New Orleans baker is the life of the party with her “big easy” take on a Mardi Gras classic.
AKING CAKE IN NEW ORLEANS ISN’T JUST DESSERT—IT’S A
WAY OF LIFE. Most of us may be accustomed to seeing the vibrant tricolored cake for a week around Mardi Gras, but for a New Orleans resident like Joy Wilson, king cake season starts in early January on Epiphany, also known as Kings’ Day, and ends in a flurry of delight on Fat Tuesday.
Joy is better known as Joy the Baker, the unambiguous name of the blog and Instagram account where she shares her recipes with almost half a million followers. Since moving to New Orleans over six years ago, she’s been awestruck by the creative spins that local pastry chefs put on the classic king cake.
“Once I went to a party where everyone brought a king cake, either homemade or from some fancy bakery,” Joy says. “There were probably 50 people at this party, and so many types of cake.”
Seeing all that variety inspired Joy to experiment with the recipe for her blog. She’s tried fruit fillings, pull-apart king cakes and even a savory twist with smoked sausage. This easy one-pan version is her favorite way to introduce new bakers to the pure fun that is making one of these Mardi Gras marvels.
“It’s the kind of cake that you might throw together when you know you have company coming over in an hour,” she says. “It’s coffee cake meets king cake, and it’s simple and delicious.”
Every king cake started with a yeasted dough, which Joy has decades of practice making. But for more novice bakers, using yeast can be intimidating. Joy doesn’t think there is any reason to fret.
“Here’s the thing—you just gotta do it!” she says, “People who don’t work with yeast a lot might have some in their pantry, but it’s probably too old.”
This easy version calls for rapid-rise or instant yeast, but for success with other yeast cakes, Joy suggests putting the yeast in a little warm water with some sugar before incorporating it into the recipe. When a small layer of foam forms at the water’s surface, you know that the yeast is alive and ready to make a soft, fluffy cake. If you don’t see any bubbles, send that yeast to the trash and make a trip to the store for a fresh packet.
Joy shares tips like this at her gorgeous New Orleans event space called Bakehouse. Her classes have gone virtual, so hopeful bakers can learn the ins and outs of special recipes like homemade pies, buttermilk biscuits and fresh pretzels from anywhere with an internet connection.
Of course, Joy has to share this local delicacy with her students. “We do two king cake classes every year, and they always sell out,” she says. Because if you’re going to make a king cake, there’s no better baker to learn from than the queen herself.
“Once I went to a party where everyone brought a king cake.”
There’s no rolling or braiding and barely any resting for this yeasted cake. It comes together in one bowl and one dish (the pan it bakes in) and bakes in a cold oven. —Joy Wilson, New Orleans, LA
Prep: 20 min. + standing • Bake: 25 min. + cooling • Makes: 8 servings
11/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
3 tsp. quick-rise yeast
2/3 cup warm whole milk
(110° to 115°)
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted 2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
FOR THE CINNAMON MIXTURE
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar 11/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted 1 pinch kosher salt
FOR THE ICING
1 cup confectioners’ sugar 1 to 2 Tbsp. whole milk 1 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract Optional: Colored sugar or sprinkles, plastic baby
1. Grease an 8-in. round cake pan with butter. Add dry ingredients including yeast to the cake pan and whisk to combine. Add milk, melted butter, oil and beaten egg. Whisk to combine, and use a spatula to coax any flour from bottom edge of pan.
2. Allow batter to rest in the pan for
10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together brown sugar, cinnamon, melted butter and salt until the mixture is moistened and sandy.
3. Top batter evenly with cinnamon mixture. Use a butter knife to swirl the cinnamon sugar into the batter.
Allow to rest for 5 more minutes.
4. Place cake pan in a COLD oven; set temperature to 350°. Bake until lightly browned and firm in center, 25-30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack 20 minutes. Combine icing ingredients in the same bowl used to make the cinnamon mixture; drizzle over the warm cake.
5. If desired, sprinkle with purple, gold and green sugar, and insert a plastic baby. 1 PIECE 369 cal., 14g fat (6g sat. fat),
48mg chol., 113mg sod., 58g carb.
(38g sugars, 1g fiber), 5g pro.