Mardi Gras King Cake

I have never eaten or made a King Cake, so I decided to give it a try today. I found a recipe on Pinterest and altered it only using the ingredients I knew our family liked. (Here is the original: https://zagleft.com/recipe/traditional-mardi-gras-king-cake-recipe/) 

Ingredients: 

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 eggs

1 cup milk

2 Tbsp yeast

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 drop lemon essential oil

1 drop orange essential oil

4 cups flour

3 Tbsp butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 Tbsp milk

Colored sugar sprinkles

Start by creaming the sugar, salt, and butter. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Meanwhile, warm the milk in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Add the yeast, stir, and let it sit for about 5 minutes.

 Add the vanilla, orange, and lemon to the mixer. Then add the milk and yeast mixture. 

Add in the four cups of flour, one cup at a time. A dough will form that looks like the picture below. Oil the bowl, cover the dough, and place in a warm location for 1 - 1 1/2 hours or until doubled. 

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. Spread the dough with about 3 Tbsp softened butter. Mix the 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon together and sprinkle on top of the butter.  Using a pizza cutter, cut the rectangle into three sections. 

Fold each section in half (longways) 

Braid the three pieces of dough.

Fold the ends of the braids together, forming a circle. 

Place the ring on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover and let rise in a warm location for about an hour (or until doubled). 

Bake at 370 degrees for about 15 minutes. 

Mix the 1 cup powdered sugar and 2 Tbsp milk together and drizzle over the warm cake. Add the colored sugar crystals on top. 

Slice and eat warm.