Homemade Gluten-Free King Cake (Beginner-Friendly Recipe!)

Name: Gluten-Free King Cake (beginner friendly!)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 16
Cuisine: New Orleans
Ingredients: 4 cups Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix*; 3 teaspoons instant yeast (1 packet); 1/4 cup sugar; 1/4 cup butter, melted; 3 large eggs, room temperature; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1/2 cup milk, warmed (no hotter than 115F); 3/4 cup water, warmed (no hotter than 115F); 1/3 cup brown sugar; 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 1 cup powdered sugar; 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 tablespoon milk; Green, purple, and gold sprinkles or decorative sugar

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If you’re here to find an easy recipe for a gluten-free king cake that satisfies even the toughest critics, you’re at the right place.

My family and I live in New Orleans, so we’ve enjoyed my share of king cakes from every bakery in town. When it came to creating this recipe, it took many tries and different mixes to create a gluten-free king cake recipe that tastes great and has a texture similar to the classic.

The best part is that you don’t need to be an experienced gluten-free baker to make this king cake. Since I first published this recipe in 2014, many have used it to celebrate a little bit of New Orleans gluten-free.

If you’re local to New Orleans and have seen the outrageous prices on gluten-free king cakes in town, this will save you a ton of money!

King Cake Tradition

In New Orleans, the King Cake tradition goes back to when the French brought their celebration of the Epiphany, or the 12th night, on January 6th, which historically marks the arrival of the three wise men/kings in Bethlehem delivering gifts to baby Jesus.

Growing up in Spain, we only enjoyed King Cake on January 6th; but here in New Orleans, king cake is enjoyed beginning January 6th through Mardi Gras day.

To carry on the tradition, you’ll often find a small, plastic baby hidden inside a king cake (I’ve linked some options below for you).

What Does King Cake Taste Like?

Traditional king cake tastes a lot like brioche (sweet bread) and a cinnamon roll.

Locally, different bakeries have a “signature flavor” to their traditional king cake dough. Some have more vanilla; others add almond, more cinnamon, less cinnamon, but ultimately it’s a cinnamon-flavored dough.

The distinction is that a king cake is also covered in icing colored in green, purple, and gold. However, many king cakes are covered in white icing and covered in green, purple, and gold sprinkles or colored sugar.

Best Gluten-Free King Cake

The best gluten-free king cake will have an airy texture and feel like you’re taking a bite of sweet cinnamon bread. It’s not as dense as a cinnamon roll but has all the sweetness of one.

I tried many gluten-free flour mixes to create this recipe to achieve a good gluten-free texture. I keep trying new “bread mixes” to update this post, but I’m firm that the two I recommend below work best for this recipe.

The most difficult part was figuring out whether I should use a mix or mix my gluten-free flours, how to shape the cake into its traditional shape, and well, whether or not the whole thing would taste and feel like the real thing.

I first developed this recipe for my son in 2007 and published it on this website first in 2011. Since then, I’ve updated the post with tips and have been testing many gluten-free flour mixes. The ones I recommend in this post are the only ones I can stand by their results with this method and recipe.

I’ve learned that each gluten-free flour mix has different amounts of protein, starch, and fiber. They each act differently when the yeast tries to activate and rise the dough. Therefore, each mix will yield a different king cake -from inedible and dense to falling apart crumbly.

gluten free king cake with a slice pulled out of it

Gluten-Free King Cake Ingredients

There are three sets of ingredients to make this gluten-free king cake: the dough, the filling, and the icing/glaze.

For the Cake:

Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix
Instant yeast
Sugar
Butter
Eggs
Vanilla extract
Warm milk
Warm water

For the cinnamon filling:

Brown sugar
Ground cinnamon

For the icing/glaze:

Powdered sugar
Vanilla extract
Milk
Green, purple, and gold sprinkles or colored sugar

Baking Tip: Why do we use warm water and warm milk?
Both the water and milk need to be warmed up (warm, not hot) to activate the instant yeast.

Best Gluten-Free King Cake Mix

After trying many gluten-free bread mixes, I continue to use Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix for this recipe. You will need one 19-ounce bag, or 4 cups, for the dough and an additional for flouring the surface.

I’ve also had success with King Arthur Flour Bread Mix following this recipe and method.

You can find both of these on Amazon (which I’ve linked for you), at many traditional grocery stores, and Whole Foods.

Does it feel like batter or dough?
Because it’s bread and made with yeast, it’s technically considered dough. It’s much thicker than batter but wetter and sticker than traditional bread dough.

Which Gluten-Free Flours Can You Use for King Cake?

To make a great gluten-free king cake you’ll need to mix a protein-rich gluten-free flour with starch and lower protein flours for volume.

Pamela’s mix uses a combination of Sorghum Flour, Tapioca Flour, White Rice Flour, Sweet Rice Flour, Brown Rice Flour; all of which have a purpose when mixed. I don’t recommend mixing your own flours to make a gluten-free king cake.

How to Make a Gluten-Free King Cake

You can make the batter for the gluten-free king cake recipe the night before and do an overnight rise in the refrigeratoror, the same day with a 1.5 to 2 hour rise on the counter, at room temperature. The printable recipe card below includes both methods.

Prep
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
Combine ingredients
In a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the gluten-free flour mix, instant yeast, sugar, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, ½ cup warm milk, and warm water.
Make the sugar mix
Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
Mix the dough
Using the hook attachment or one attachment of a hand mixer, combine the ingredients and mix, for about 3 minutes, until a wet sticky dough forms. Stop a few times to scrape the sides of the bowl, and continue.
Transfer to a zip bag
Transfer the batter inside a gallon-sized zip bag or large piping bag. Push the batter down to make a cylinder and twist.
Shape
Slice a 1″ hole in the corner of your zip bag and carefully squeeze the batter giving it a round shape on top of the parchment paper, making a round circle.
Make it sweet
Generously sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the circle batter until it’s all covered.
Cover
Once again, carefully distribute the batter over the cinnamon-topped base by squeezing the batter out of the bag, spreading it in a zig zag motion. With wet fingertips, manually spread the batter to cover all the cinnamon-covered spaces.
Rise
Whether you choose to allow the batter to rise in a warm place in the kitchen for 1.5 hours to 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator, this king cake must rise.
Prep for Baking
Preheat oven to 350F and brush a few tablespoons of milk over the top of the king cake
Bake
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, until the bread’s internal temperature is 200F.
Cool down completely
Allow the king cake to cool down to room temperature. Meanwhile, prepare the icing.
Decorate
Once cooled, transfer the king cake onto the serving platter or board you’ll be using. Hide the king cake baby, distribute the icing and sprinkle the colored sugars.

Watch this video to see how to make a gluten-free king cake, step-by-step.

How Much Does Gluten-Free King Cake Rise?

Gluten-free bread doesn’t rise as much as traditional bread dough, but after 2 hours of rise time on the counter or overnight in the fridge, you’ll notice that it’s grown in size. The cake will expand (rise) in place, directly on the baking sheet, both in height and width.

How to Make a Dairy-Free King Cake

You can make this king cake recipe dairy-free by doing the following substitutes:

Traditional Ingredient	Dairy-Free Substitute
butter	coconut oil or vegetable oil
milk (in dough)	coconut milk (canned), original almond milk
milk (in icing)	any dairy-free milk

How to Make Egg-Free King Cake

This recipe calls for 3 eggs and the maximum I recommend replacing in any baked recipe is 2. This recipe was not developed to use an egg replacer. You can read more about egg substitutes in baking in this post.

How to Decorate a King Cake

It’s best to decorate your gluten-free king cake on the platter or board you’ll use to serve it. Once the cake is glazed, it’s very difficult to move. Make sure to watch the step-by-step video showing you how to transfer it out of the parchment paper the easy way.

Hiding the baby
If you’re hiding a “king cake baby” inside your gluten-free cake, it’s best done before glazing. The easiest way is by lifting the cake and pressing it inside the dough from underneath. See the video for details.

Glazing
Before spreading the sugary glaze over the king cake, you’ll need to ensure that it has cooled down to room temperature. Otherwise, if the king cake itself is warm, the heat will cause the glaze to run off and not set.

Sugaring
After glazing, wait for the glaze to stop running off the sides completely before sprinkling the colored sugar over the top. You’ll want to do this before the glaze firms up (dries up) so the sugars stick to the glaze.

Once the glaze firms up, the sugar will also stay in place. Again, watch the video for this step.

To decorate a King Cake, you need:

Homemade King Cake Glaze (in the recipe card)
Mardigras Decorating Set (sugars and baby)
Sanding Sugars (multiple colors) or,
Edible confetti (if not using sugar)
Hidden baby (a good one to use year after year)

GF King Cake Icing/Glaze

The glaze for a gluten-free king cake is made by combining powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla for flavoring. The consistency is runny and easy to spread over the top of the king cake.

While not a big deal, it should be noted that if you use traditional vanilla extract (brown-hued in nature), you’ll see a slight tint to the glaze. If you want a perfectly white glaze, you’ll need to use clear vanilla extract.

How to Hide the Baby in a Homemade King Cake

Traditional king cakes sold in New Orleans include a hidden plastic “baby” inside. It’s important that you do not place the baby in the cake before baking since it’s made out of plastic and it’s not designed to withstand heat.

As shown in the video above, simply lift the king cake up from the platter or board, and hide the baby by pushing it into the cake from the underside.

Gluten-Free King Cake (beginner friendly!)

overhead of king cake with green, yellow, and purple sprinkles

Print Recipe

★★★★★

4.9 from 17 reviews

If you’re looking for an easy gluten-free king cake recipe to make at home, this recipe is perfect for beginners to make. You can rise it overnight or on the counter, both methods below.

Author: Laura Fuentes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours
Yield: 16
Category: Dessert
Cuisine: New Orleans

Ingredients

King cake dough:

4 cups Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix*
3 teaspoons instant yeast (1 packet)
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup butter, melted
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup milk, warmed (no hotter than 115F)
¾ cup water, warmed (no hotter than 115F)

Cinnamon filling:

⅓ cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Frosting:

1 cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk
Green, purple, and gold sprinkles or decorative sugar

Instructions

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the gluten-free flour mix, instant yeast, and sugar.
Add the melted butter, eggs, vanilla, ½ cup warm milk, and warm water.
Using the hook attachment or one attachment of a hand mixer, combine the ingredients and mix, for about 3 minutes, until a wet sticky dough forms, stopping a few times to scrape the sides of the bowl.
With a large spoon or spatula, transfer the batter inside a gallon-sized zip bag or large piping bag. Push the batter down to make a cylinder and twist.
Slice a 1″ hole in the corner of your zip bag and carefully squeeze the batter giving it a round shape on top of the parchment paper, making a round circle.
Generously sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the circle batter until it’s all covered.
Continue to distribute the batter over the cinnamon-topped base by squeezing the batter out of the bag, spreading it in a zig-zag motion. With wet fingertips, manually spread the batter to cover ll the cinnamon-covered spaces
Rise: allow the shaped cake to rise in a warm place in the kitchen for 1.5 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Do not skip this step, pick one.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Brush the top of the king cake with a few tablespoons of milk over the top of the cake for moisture.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, until the bread’s internal temperature is 200F.
Remove from the oven and allow the king cake to cool down to room temperature.
Once cooled, combine the powder sugar, vanilla, and milk in a medium bowl.
Spread the frosting over the top of the cake in a thick and even layer. Once the glaze is semi-set, sprinkle with colored sugar or sprinkles.

Equipment

Edible Confetti

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King Cake Baby

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Sanding Sugars (all colors)

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Pamela’s GF Flour Mix

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Mardi Gras Decoration Kit

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Notes

Both Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix and King Arthur Flour Bread Mix have consistently yielded the best results.

Make the dough dairy-free by using melted coconut oil or dairy-free baking sticks instead of butter, canned coconut milk, or unsweetened dairy-free milk (not the light kind, you want a thick texture to the milk), or coffee creamer instead of the milk in the dough. For the frosting, you can use any dairy-free milk alternative.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 slice
Calories: 234
Sugar: 15.1 g
Sodium: 19.1 mg
Fat: 3.8 g
Saturated Fat: 2.1 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Carbohydrates: 45.8 g
Fiber: 1.4 g
Protein: 3.8 g
Cholesterol: 42.7 mg