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A unique twist on the traditional king cake! It’s a mini king cake in cookie form topped with icing and the traditional purple, green and gold sprinkles. It’s just what you need for any Mardi Gras party! It’s my favorite time of year! Right after the Christmas holidays and into the New Year! Here in New Orleans, we don’t have to wait long to enjoy another holiday. We go straight into the Mardi Gras season. That’s right, January 6th every year, we celebrate King’s Day which is the kickoff to our king cake season. The cinnamon delicious bread covered in sugar or icing and sprinkles. Nowadays there are so many different flavors and combinations, even savory ones like crawfish boudin. The traditional king cake is still my favorite. I’ve been trying my hand at many different Mardi Gras dessert recipes like my Gluten-Free King Cake Donuts and Mardi Gras King Cake Macarons, but you can also find some other delicious Mardi Gras Dessert and Drink Ideas here. Nothing like having your favorite snacks and king cake out on the parade route and now you can have these adorable king cake cookies! (If you’ve never come to New Orleans for Mardi Gras or coming for the first time, find out everything you need to know here in my Mardi Gras Guide). These adorable cookies are king cake in cookie form. Perfect for taking to the parades or at a Mardi Gras party. King cakes do not have a normal cake-like consistency but more of a bread consistency and topped with icing and/or colored sugar crystals. These cookies taste like a king cake but the texture is more a soft fluffy sugar cookie with swirls of cinnamon twisted through it. Although it looks hard to make especially the twist, it’s actually very simple and I will teach you how to make your cookie look just like a king cake too. I will certainly be making these for our next mardi gras party and bringing them out to a parade. These are super easy to make and you can whip these up in less than 20 minutes. The cookie base is essentially a fluffy sugar cookie. Think of those Lofthouse frosted sugar cookies and that is the cookie base we are working with here. You can add a sprinkle of cinnamon in the dough to allow the cinnamon to really add flavor to the dough. Start by using softened butter and sugar and mix together until fluffy. Add egg and egg yolk and beat until incorporated. Egg and egg yolk provide structure. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat on low, until well combined, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. Sour cream provides a wonderful amount of moisture to the cookie. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.) Slowly mix dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Here is where you can add some cinnamon. I don’t recommend over 1/4 tsp. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight for best results. This helps make the dough more pliable and easy to work with for rolling out the dough. You don’t have to if you are in a pinch but just note the dough may stick to your hands more and not roll as well. While the dough is chilling, it’s time to make the cinnamon filling. In a small bowl, melt butter and then add sugar and ground cinnamon. Stir or whisk thoroughly until combined. You can also finely chopped some nuts like pecans and add them to your cinnamon filling. Once the dough is finished chilling, grab a baking mat and sprinkle a little flour or cornstarch on it to prevent the dough from sticking to the mat. Scoop out with your hands about 2 tbsp of dough and start rolling it into a snake on your mat. For normal size cookies, you’ll want your snake size to be about 12 inches long and a 1/2 inch wide. Once you have the dough to the correct size, brush the cinnamon sugar across the top of the dough. Then, take each end of the dough and bring them together making sure the cinnamon sugar is sandwiched in between. Gently press the sides of the roll together. Next, take the ends of the now sandwiched roll and twist each hand the other way allowing the dough to twist. Do this two to three times or until desired twists are in the dough. Pull the two ends together to form a circle with the dough and lightly press the dough ends together. Set king cake cookie dough on the cookie sheet. Repeat the process. Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to turn golden (NOT brown) on the edges. You can remove them before they turn golden like I did. This helps the cookie not become crisp or hard. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on the sheet. Cookies will continue to cook while they cool. Repeat with any remaining dough. Let the good times roll this mardi gras season with these king cake cookies! A soft sugar cookie with cinnamon filling topped with icing and purple, green and gold sugar sprinkles. A fantastic mardi gras dessert to bring to any mardi gras parade or party! In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until nice and fluffy. Add egg and egg yolk and beat until incorporated. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat on low, until well combined, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients.( flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.) Slowly mix dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour for best results. Bake for 9-13 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to turn golden (NOT brown) on the edges. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on the sheet. Cookies will continue to cook while they cool. Repeat with any remaining dough. In a small bowl, melt butter and then add sugar and ground cinnamon. Stir or whisk thoroughly until combined. Mix together, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla and lemon juice to desired consistency. Icing should be a thick but piping consistency. Similar to cinnamon roll icing. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a baking mat or smooth clean surface, sprinkle a little flour or cornstarch on the mat. Scoop out about 2 tbsp of cookie dough and roll it into a long snake shape. It should be about 1/2 in thick or less and about 12 inches long. Use a brush to spread a layer of cinnamon filling on top of the cookie dough. Fold cookie dough roll in half gently pressing it together. (Your cinnamon filling should be pressed together on the inside.) Using your hands, twist each end of the cookie dough in the opposite directions, giving it a spiral or braided effect. Bring both ends together to make a circle and press gently the ends together. Transfer your king cake shaped cookie to cookie sheet/baking sheet. Repeat until all cookie dough is used. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Remove from the oven. Cookies will continue to cook while they cool. Once cookies are cooled, add icing on top and sprinkle with colored sugar crystals. Need more delicious recipes? Go here Want to spice up date night? Go here Starting a bucket list? Go here Itching to travel? Go here Visiting New Orleans? Go here Feeling crafty? Go here Share with friends! 
King Cake Cookies
How to Make a King Cake Cookie
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Mardi Gras King Cake Cookies
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
Cinnamon Filling
Icing
Instructions
King Cake Cookie Dough
Cinnamon filling
Icing
Assembly
Mardi Gras King Cake Cookies
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes
Servings 18 Cookies
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