Pina Colada King Cake

I love a party. Never have been to Mardi Gras but I have a dear friend, Lisa Beasley Thaxton who lives in New Orleans. She was the one that told me that king cakes come in many flavors. I tried making a bananas foster one yesterday and the filling was too wet. It was a disaster. So today I made a Pina Colada King Cake and it was a success. 

Ingredients:
For the Cake

3 1/2 cups of flour

1/2 cup of sugar

1 package of rapid rise yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 teaspoons of vanilla, coconut or pineapple extract

1 cup warm milk, not hot

6 Tablespoons butter, melted

Put all dry ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer. Add egg, warm milk and butter. Using your dough hook attachment, mix on low for 2-3 minutes, scraping any flour off the sides of the bowl in the dough. Continue to mix on medium speed for 8 minutes. Transfer dough to a large well oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Put in in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size. On a floured surface, roll dough into an 8″ x 20″ rectangle. Add filling. 

Filling:
1 8 ounce block of cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sweetened coconut 

3/4 cup crushed pineapple, squeezed dry

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla, coconut or pineapple extract

Blend together and spread on top of rectangular dough leaving an inch all the way around. Roll dough toward you and make an oval. Pinch ends together and make sure your center hole is large. It will close up while baking. Cover with foil and and let dough double in size again. It could take an hour. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Once doubled, place on baking sheet seam side down and brush with an egg wash (beaten egg). I baked my cake on parchment paper. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown. 

Glaze:

2 cups of powdered sugar

2 teaspoons of either coconut, vanilla or pineapple

4 Tablespoons of milk or more to get a thick consistency 

Yellow, green and purple sugar

Plastic baby (do not bake in cake!)
Mix ingredients together and put on warm, not hot cake. Sprinkle on the colored sugars and let the recipient hid the baby.