These cinnamon-pecan King Cake Cookies are made without gluten, oil, eggs, or dairy products and sprinkled with the colors of Mardi Gras.
Mardi Gras season officially began on January 6, and though the parades don’t start to roll in New Orleans until mid-February, I already have Mardi Gras–or more specifically King Cake–on my mind. I haven’t had a piece of King Cake in years, but that doesn’t stop me from craving the sugar-laden, gaudy confection. Even more than the flavor, I miss the fun of sharing a king cake with friends. And, of course, the sprinkles!
So when it was my turn to host my book group this past Monday, I decided to sprinkle a little Mardi Gras into the occasion by baking a batch of cinnamon and pecan cookies and giving them the purple, green, and gold treatment. Since one of our group members can’t eat gluten, I made them with two of the gluten-free flours I had in my pantry, but I’m sure that there are better blends that a more experienced gluten-free baker could come up with; feel free to use your own favorite combination.
As you probably know, King Cake is served at parties during Mardi Gras, and hidden inside each cake is a plastic baby or a bean. The person who finds the baby is responsible for bringing the cake to the next party. Because I was worried that one of my friends might break a tooth if I put anything inside a cookie, I decided to skip that part of the tradition. But as my daughter E was helping me decorate the cookies, she came up with the idea of putting a raisin or a pecan half into one before baking. Genius! I wish I’d talked to her about it before I’d baked the cookies.
A word about the sprinkles: I used food coloring to color raw sugar, which is tan, causing my sprinkles to be not quite the colors I wanted. But the large crystals do add an interesting crunch to the cake-like cookies, so if you’d like to color your own, just add a little food color to the sugar and mix it in with your fingers. Don’t worry–the food color rinses off easily so you won’t have Mardi Gras fingers for long.
Everyone in my book group seemed to like the cookies, though it was hard to tell how many they ate because E kept sneaking in and stealing them. She agreed with me that the gluten-free flours gave them a slightly grassy taste that we’re not used to, but she liked them enough to give them 4 out of 5 crumbs on her Num-Crumb Scale™. Real King Cake is yeast-raised, more like a giant, round cinnamon roll than a regular cake, and though these cookies are cake-like, they’re really only similar to King Cake in spirit (and color scheme). If you’re interested in making the real thing, check out Kittee’s Vegan King Cake, which looks downright delicious.
Gluten-Free King Cake Cookies (Cinnamon-Pecan Cookies)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup pecan halves
- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free All Purpose Baking Flour
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2-1 teaspoon cinnamon to taste
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 8 ounces extra-firm tofu not silken
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons water approximately
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1-2 drops vanilla extract
- water
- purple, green, and gold sugar sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Process the pecans in a food processor until finely chopped but not powdered. Remove crushed pecans to a bowl and add the tofu to the processor. Process until almost smooth.
- Mix the pecans, flours, xanthan gum, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the tofu and vanilla and begin to stir. Add water by the tablespoon until all the dry ingredients are incorporated and a heavy dough forms. Be careful not to add too much water.
- Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to drop rounded tablespoons of dough at least two inches apart on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Flatten each cookie slightly with a fork. Bake for 10-16 minutes or until edges are golden and middles seem done. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before transferring each cookie to a wire rack. Allow to cool before decorating.
- To decorate, put 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar in a bowl. Add a couple of drops of vanilla extract (be careful not to add too much or it may make your icing dark). Add water one teaspoon at a time, stirring well and stopping when you have a thick but spreadable icing. If it’s too runny, it will run right off the cookies, so if you add too much water, add more confectioners’ sugar. Spread the top of each cookie with icing and sprinkle immediately with each of the colored sugars.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Please pin and share!
Celebrate a Vegan Mardi Gras:
- Real Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
- Tofu Jambalaya
- Chickpea Gumbo at A Veggie Venture
- Crispy Cajun Chickpea Cakes by Vegan Dad
- Maque Choux on What Do I Know?
cholling
January 20, 2011 at 9:08 amActually, I believe they used a nut in the king cake before plastic babies came along. I’ve never been a fan of plastic in my food to begin with.
SusanV
January 20, 2011 at 9:14 amI didn’t know about the nuts, but I did know that they used to use figurines (porcelain?) before plastic. Those figurines are collectible now. Wish I had one!
Wendy
January 20, 2011 at 9:10 amGorgeous!
Kathleen @ Kat's Health Corner
January 20, 2011 at 9:18 amThese look SO delicious! I love your daughter’s idea. She is so smart! 🙂
Carpensm @ A Life Without Ice Cream
January 20, 2011 at 9:56 amThose cookies look fantastic! I’m not gluten-free but dairy-free, I might have to give these a try. I’m also really impressed with the sugar! I love the colours and it would be so much fun to make your own.
Thanks for the inspiration!
Karen
January 20, 2011 at 10:17 amIs the tofu pureed? It seems to me that trying to incorporate a block of extra firm tofu into the dough with a mixer would not work very well.
For gluten free baking my favorite substitute for wheat flour is finely ground millet flour (Bobs Red Mill brand). It subs easily cup for cup and with the addition of 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum per cup of flour it is not crumbly. Also no grassy flavor or weird gritty texture. I find that gluten free baked goods using xanthan gum have a better texture when they are mixed more than a typical wheat dough because the xanthan gum needs to be activated by the mixing. Thanks for this fun recipe.
SusanV
January 20, 2011 at 10:26 amSomehow the line about pureeing the tofu got left out, but I’ve added it back now. Thanks for pointing that out!
I need to try millet flour. Sounds like it would be perfect here.
Trish @I_am_Succeeding
January 20, 2011 at 11:40 amLOVE the colors!!
Tom
January 20, 2011 at 11:47 amSusan. Quick question. If I was not concerned re gluten and wanted to make this with regular flour would 1 cup white whole wheat flour or 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour work as well? Just curious the role of the xanthan gum and if I dont have that use what? Ground flax? Is the xanthan a binder?
Thanks They look good. I love your baked goods!! 🙂 I have tons of vegan cookbooks but always default to your recipes!! 🙂
SusanV
January 20, 2011 at 11:51 amThanks, Tom! Just use 1 cup of either flour (or 1/2 cup of each) instead of the gluten-free flours and omit the xanthan gum. You may need to add a little less or more water, and you should avoid over-stirring.
mary (what's cookin' with mary)
January 20, 2011 at 12:01 pmWhat an incredibly beautiful picture Susan!
Georgia
January 20, 2011 at 12:52 pmThese look fun! We had a Mardi Gras Day at work, and I wanted to do a takeoff on the King Cake that was single serving. I ended up doing cupcakes with purple, green, and gold frosting, and for the “baby,” since we obviously couldn’t deal with the liability of a potential choking hazard, I put a sticker of a baby on the bottom of the cupcake wrapper, and whoever got it won a prize.
Happy Bunny
January 20, 2011 at 6:13 pmWow – looks good!
Archana
January 21, 2011 at 4:54 amI am bookmarking this!
Maria
January 21, 2011 at 6:54 amThese look so colorful and good 🙂
Susan I have been reading your blog for a long time and really enjoy it. I remember you mentioning quite a while ago that you were working on a book. Is that still on the works?
Best wishes
Maria
Peggy
January 21, 2011 at 10:21 amI love the King Cake tradition and these little mini cookies version sounds awesome!
Gluten Free Diva
January 21, 2011 at 10:31 amLooks lovely Susan. So colorful! The “grassy” taste recognized by E is an acquired taste. Gluten free flours definitely impart a different flavor than their wheat counterparts. The fun part of gluten free baking is that there are so many options for combinations. And each combination gives you a different taste and texture. Thank you for posting a GF recipe – us GF folks appreciate it!
Megan
January 21, 2011 at 12:01 pmThese look awesome! Will definitely be making these in February!
Sarah @ Flavoropolis
January 21, 2011 at 2:43 pmThese photos are gorgeous. I just started a new blog, and I’ve read your photography tips and will definitely be incorporating them. Thanks!
Richy
January 22, 2011 at 12:16 amOh, I’m always looking for more gluten-free recipes since there are few in my family. This looks great! Thanks!
Jill @ Vegan in the Kitchen
January 22, 2011 at 11:09 pmGreat idea! They are adorably festive and look so tasty!
Jenn@eatcakefordinner
January 23, 2011 at 12:15 amWhat a great idea – they are so cute. Love your photos!
lisa
January 23, 2011 at 6:44 amwhat a photo! i have to say that, in my haste, i often jump right to the recipe and miss your lovely prose, but i’m glad i read it this time. i couldn’t figure out why those sprinkles looked so unusual to me. what a FABULOUS idea to color raw sugar.
sonya
January 23, 2011 at 3:53 pmThese are beautiful and I look forward to making these. Where did you purchase the colored sugar. The decorative sugar available in my local supermarket have confectioner’s glaze.
SusanV
January 23, 2011 at 4:05 pmHi Sonya, I made the colored sugar. See the introduction to the recipe for details.
moonwatcher
January 24, 2011 at 10:48 amHi Susan,
What a delightful version of this tradition. I know my mother’s French Canadian one, but not the New Orleans version of it. And gluten free to boot! The colors in the photo are awesome, too. Now my only question is what book was your book club discussing?!
Thanks for another inspirational recipe and photos!
moonwatcher
Lorin
January 24, 2011 at 1:22 pmNice. I don’t usually see recipes for baked items that call for firmer tofu (which is what I’m likely to have around). I’ll give this one a try!
Melomeals: Vegan for $3.33 a Day
January 26, 2011 at 1:33 pmThese look so good!
Shiela Marvel
January 26, 2011 at 3:32 pmWow! This looks so gorgeous and festive. I may change the color-theme for the cookies and do this for Valentine’s!
Kelly
January 26, 2011 at 5:43 pmWhat a great idea! I love making King Cake this time of year since, sadly, I can’t make it to NOLA for carnival. Unfortunately, a whole king cake is a bit much for just me and the mr., so these are perfect! Maybe I can sneak a baby in the batch somewhere…
Thanks for the recipe!
Christianne
January 27, 2011 at 6:55 pmThank you for posting this delicious looking recipe. I live here in the big easy and i have not even smelled a king cake yet. I live in lakeview and there is a McKenzie’s that opened up and sells it’s original brioche type cake. I am also t hinking of trying a glfr puff pastry to create the original gallette de roi filled with almond paste for Mardi Gras Day.
In the mean time I am looking foward to trying these gems real soon!
Merci Chere!
April
January 28, 2011 at 10:29 amI made these the other day for my (non-vegan) husband, and he basically ate the entire batch in one sitting! They do get really moist (as you said) after one day, but the few we had left were still really yummy the next day. I made a few without nuts (my son is allergic) and those turned out great too. I used regular decorating sugar and they really turned out cute. Thanks for the recipe!
Paul
January 30, 2011 at 7:44 amMardi-gras fingers … how weird and fun does that sound!
maya
January 30, 2011 at 8:38 amcame looking for a good muffin recipe this morning & found these cookies. and while these cookies do look good, but i have to say that your photographs of them are stellar! 🙂
Karen
January 30, 2011 at 5:01 pmOh my goodness that looks incredible!! :0) I’m a Louisiana native, too! :0)
Get Skinny, Go Vegan.
February 27, 2011 at 4:20 pmSeriously???? Gluten Free & Vegan & Mardi Gras??
Wish I would have set up a booth for the rescue selling these at all the crazy Mardi Gras Festivities in St. Louis!! LOVE IT!!
Aurea
March 3, 2011 at 12:34 pmI recommend some cookies, cake, brownies or muffing, they have fun doing these little things. I do them in my house with my kids on gluten-free. Comes a gluten-free flour is called Chia Seed Flour is excellent, I recommend it 100%, has omega 3 and many nutrients for children. I was watching on You Tube and have many things to do for children. This company is called Nuchia Foods and you can get easy http://www.nuchiafoods.com.
Get Skinny, Go Vegan.
March 9, 2011 at 7:04 pmDid anyone make these for Mardi Gras?? I really don’t eat sugar & try, try, try, to stay away from flour but these are looking so good!! Just wondered if anyone served them to a “norm” audience without telling them they were vegan. I find that usually works best so they don’t have some idea in their heads that vegan means not totally delicious.
Christopher Kandrat
March 28, 2011 at 12:58 pmSome of the best cookies I’ve had in awhile, thanks for the recipe!