King Cake

If you’ve ever celebrated Mardi Gras (or wished you were in New Orleans during Carnival season), then you already know: King Cake is the star of the show. It’s soft, buttery, lightly sweet, swirled with cinnamon filling, and topped with a simple vanilla icing and the iconic purple, green, and gold sanding sugars.

This homemade King Cake recipe is a beautiful, traditional version that’s perfect for a Mardi Gras celebration—whether you’re hosting a party, bringing a festive dessert to share, or just want to bake something fun and seasonal at home. And because this recipe comes from America’s Test Kitchen: The Perfect Cake cookbook, you can count on it being a reliable, well-tested bake.

It’s the kind of cake that looks impressive on the table, but it’s actually very doable—especially if you break it into simple steps: mix the dough, chill, fill, shape, rise, bake, and decorate. Once the icing and colored sugar go on, it instantly becomes that classic Mardi Gras King Cake everyone recognizes.