King Cake Bars
The perfect way to celebrate Mardi Gras at home is with food of course! These King Cake Bars are the ideal way to have a happy treat on Fat Tuesday.
King cake is eaten between January 6 and Fat Tuesday in honor of Epiphany, or Twelfth Night, which historically marks the arrival of the three wise men in Bethlehem who delivered gifts to baby Jesus.
We recommend that you have Cajun Crawfish & Shrimp Macaroni & Cheese for your main course and then for dessert King Cake Bars. Although they are a little too thin to hide something in them, the magic is still found in the gold, green, and purple glaze and sprinkles.
King Cake Bars Recipe
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 min
Yield: 6-7
Ingredients:
1 ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice
Filling:
11/2 cup pecans
1 cup lite brown sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp. Rum
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons cinnamon
Glaze:
1 ½ cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tbsp. Rum
Colored sugar, green, purple, and yellow
For the Crust:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Line a 9×10 baking dish with parchment paper.
Add the butter and sugar in a bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment.
Mix to combine on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Reduce the speed to low, add in the flour, salt, and lemon juice.
Mix to combine until a soft dough ball forms.
Take ⅔ of the dough and press it evenly into the lined pan.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until the crust is a golden brown.
Filling:
In a medium bowl add all of the filling ingredients and toss until
pecans are evenly covered.
Remove the bottom crust from the oven once baked, pour the pecan
filling on top and spread all over the crust.
Carefully roll out the remaining 1/3 of the dough and place it on top
of the filling.
Bake until the top layer is a golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow cool to room temperature.
For the Glaze:
Combine the powdered sugar, rum, milk, and vanilla and whisk together
until you have a smooth glaze.
Sprinkle all colored sugar on top and enjoy!
Fun Fact: If you are wondering what day Fat Tuesday will be there is a simple trick to figuring it out. Fat Tuesday is always the day before Ash Wednesday and Ash Wednesday is always 46 days before Easter.
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