Mardi Gras King Cake

Mardi Gras ... Fat Tuesday, a day to release your inhibitions and fulfill your hidden desires and needs. To let loose and have fun. One New Orleans tradition for Mardi Gras is King Cake. Baked inside each King Cake is a tiny plastic toy representing the Christ child, the rebirth. The person that finds the toy gets a special prize of decadence, plus is responsible for the next year's King Cake. Three colors dominate the Mardi Gras theme ... purple, green, and gold. Purple represents justice, green for faith, and gold for power. 

King Cake

Ingredients:

2 boxes Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix (16 ounce box)
1 cup granulated sugar (for creating filling)
3 teaspoons cinnamon (for creating filling)
8 ounces unsalted butter

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.

2. Cream the butter, sugar, and cinnamon together until soft enough to spread easily.

3. Follow directions to the max on the Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix box. Take one half of the dough onto a floured surface, roll into a 36 inch log, 2 inch diameter, split roll lengthwise, spread open and coat with half the butter, pie filling and pecans on top of the dough, then seam it back together. Repeat complete process with other half of dough.

4. You can fill it with apple, blueberry, peach or cherry pie filling, cream cheese and chopped pecans with cinnamon sugar. Use your imagination and let your mind flourish. Braid the two dough log rolls together, interwining to create a lattice form.

5. Place dough lattice roll seam sides down on greased large baking sheet pan, and curve lattice roll, pinching the ends together to make oval ring. Cover, and let rise in warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until a straw inserted into the dough comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool.

Glaze:

4 cups powdered sugar (sift out the lumps)
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/8 cup water

Colored Sugar Sprinkles:

2 cups granulated sugar (big crystals)
6 drops purple food coloring
6 drops green food coloring
6 drops yellow food coloring