I've always loved the idea of King Cake, but I've never really loved the taste of King Cake. A lot of King Cakes tend to be on the dry side. Most also have colored crystallized sugar on top, which looks pretty but has a gritty texture.
Last year I made King Cakes using a recipe I found on epicurious.com. They were beautiful and tasted pretty good, but were still a little dry and sprinkled with crystallized sugar.
So, this year I found a recipe in the Cookin' Up a Storm cookbook for a French style King Cake, which is made using puff pastry instead of a yeast dough. It's MUCH easier to make, and I think it tastes a lot better. Here's how to make it.
First, the custard filling:
Beat together 3 tbsp. flour, 1/2 c. sugar, and 3 large eggs. Stir in 1 tsp. vanilla and 1/4 c. praline liqueur. In a medium saucepan bring 1 1/2 c. milk just to a boil, then slowly pour into egg mixture, while stirring. Pour back into saucepan and cook until mixture thickens, stirring almost constantly. Cover and cool in refrigerator (can be made a day ahead).
Thaw out a store bought package of puff pastry until it's pliable but still cold. There should be two sheets in the package. Unfold them and lay one on top of the other. Roll the dough out into an oval or circle, depending on the shape of your pan. Cut the dough to round off the corners, and cut an oval or circle out of the middle.
Bake at 375 for 25 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Using a serrated knife, cut apart the two layers.
Spread mixture of 1/2 c. brown sugar, 2 tbsp. praline liqueur, 2 tbsp. milk, and 1/2 c. pecans over top layer and bake for about 5 minutes or until mixture is brown and bubbly.
Meanwhile, spread custard filling on bottom layer and hide plastic baby/dried bean/almond in the custard.
Place top layer on bottom layer. (If this isn't for Mardi Gras you could just stop here and have a beautiful, delicious dessert to go with coffee. Maybe put a little praline liqueur in the coffee, too...)
If you want it to look more festive mix up milk and confectioner's sugar into a "drizzleable" consistency, separate into three bowls, and color purple, green, and gold. Drizzle onto cooled King Cake.
Happy Mardi Gras!