by Angie
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Celebrate Mardi Gras at home with this fun and Easy Cinnamon Roll King Cake! Made with cinnamon rolls, topping with icing and Mardi Gras color themed sugar for easiest king cake ever!
Recipe At Bottom of Post
I fell in love with King Cake, New Orleans and Mardi Gras probably 17 years ago when I went to New Orleans for the very first time. I instantly fell in love with the city, culture and holiday. While king cakes around New Orleans are pretty easy to find, we don’t have anywhere around here that makes them. So, I improvise with this Easy Cinnamon Roll King Cake .
What you’ll need for this Cinnamon Roll King Cake: (amounts in recipe card below)
- refrigerated cinnamon rolls
- Icing from refrigerated cinnamon rolls
- Purple Sanding Sugar or Purple Sprinkles
- Green Sanding Sugar or Green Sprinkles
- Yellow Gold Sanding Sugar or Yellow Gold Sprinkles
- Plastic baby or coffee bean for inside the cake (optional)
These are the cinnamon rolls that I use but you can use any kind that you like. You could also make this with homemade cinnamon rolls if you wanted to.
I got these Mardi Gras sanding sugars and the little plastic babies for the king cake from Amazon but you can also find these colors at your local craft and grocery stores in the baking sections
If you can’t find colored sugar or sprinkles for your king cake, I have a tutorial on my other blog on how to make DIY colored sugars for desserts.
How to make Cinnamon Roll King Cake:
Preheat oven to 350F.
Open cinnamon rolls and set icing packet aside.
Take 1st can of cinnamon rolls and roll each cinnamon roll into a thick snake. Connect cinnamon rolls end to end to create a large circle on a prepared baking sheet.
Roll each cinnamon roll from 2nd can into a thick snakes.
Cross them over the first layer of cinnamon rolls to look like a braided rope.
Do the same for the 3rd can of cinnamon rolls up cross them over in the opposite direction. Use your hands to redefine the circle shape of the cinnamon roll braid.
Bake in preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Don’t over bake them.
Remove from oven and let cool slightly. If adding the traditional king cake baby to the cake, do this now.
Just find an opening in the braid and push the little plastic baby or coffee bean inside.
Pour cinnamon roll icing into a bowl and heat in microwave for about 10 seconds.
Pour icing over cinnamon roll cake.
Sprinkle wet icing with purple, green and yellow cold sprinkles.
Now you’ve got a semi homemade, easy, peasy Cinnamon Roll King Cake!
It’s cinnamon rolls, so technically it’s perfect for breakfast, brunch or dessert!
Also, don’t forget, according to tradition, whoever finds the baby in their piece of king cake, will have good luck for the rest of the years and they’re in charge of making/buying the king cake next year.
QUICK GLANCE Cinnamon Roll King Cake FAQ:
- What is King Cake? King cake is a cinnamon flavored cake that is eaten around Carnival season, which starts January 6 and goes through Mardi Gras. Carnival is the season to enjoy treats before Lent begins.
- Why does King Cake have a baby in it? In the traditional king cake, a toy baby symbolizing Jesus is hidden in the king cake before or after it is baked. This is/was a way for the people of New Orleans to celebrate their Christian faith. The baby in the King cake symbolizes luck and prosperity for whoever finds it.
- What flavor is a traditional King Cake? Cinnamon or Vanilla
- What is the symbolism of the king cake? King cake colors represent the following: purple representing justice, green representing faith, and gold representing power.
- Do I have to put a plastic baby into the cake? You don’t have to. You can also use a coffee bean if you can’t find a plastic baby.
More Mardi Gras recipes that you’ll love:
Easy Cinnamon Roll King Cake
Easy Cinnamon Roll King Cake
Yield: 8-10 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Celebrate Mardi Gras at home with this fun and Easy Cinnamon Roll King Cake! Made with cinnamon rolls, topping with icing and Mardi Gras color themed sugar for easiest king cake ever!
Ingredients
- 3 cans refrigerated cinnamon rolls
- Icing from refrigerated cinnamon rolls
- Purple Sanding Sugar or Purple Sprinkles
- Green Sanding Sugar or Green Sprinkles
- Yellow Gold Sanding Sugar or Yellow Gold Sprinkles
- Plastic baby or coffee bean for inside the cake (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F.
Open cinnamon rolls and set icing packet aside.
Take 1st can of cinnamon rolls and roll each cinnamon roll into a thick snake. Connect cinnamon rolls end to end to create a large circle on a prepared baking sheet.
Photos in post for reference.
Roll each cinnamon roll from 2nd can into a thick snakes. Cross them over the first layer of cinnamon rolls to look like a braided rope.
Do the same for the 3rd can of cinnamon rolls up cross them over in the opposite direction.
Photos in post for reference.
Use your hands to redefine the circle shape of the cinnamon roll braid.
Bake in preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until nicely golden brown.
Don't over bake them.
Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
If adding the traditional king cake baby to the cake, do this now. Just find an opening in the braid and push the little plastic baby or coffee bean inside.
Pour cinnamon roll icing into a bowl and heat in microwave for about 10 seconds.
Pour icing over cinnamon roll cake.
Sprinkle wet icing with purple, green and yellow cold sprinkles.
Notes
Prepared Baking Sheet = A baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicon baking mat.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 193Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 2gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 5mgSodium: 301mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 2gSugar: 15gProtein: 3g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 2/8/2021 - Numbers may vary depending on ingredients and brands used
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