If you are coming from the South of Germany, you are quite used to get cake for Three Kings, but here in Berlin, you have to make it yourself. I was the other day in a bakery around the corner, and they did not even know that kind of cake :P In Spain you can also get a cake for this holiday – it’s called Roscón de Reyes and a bit different to the German version ;)
So I don’t know – do you know Three Kings Cakes? They are pretty common in Switzerland and the South of Germany – France has its version with marzipan, Portugal, Mexico, and even in the US in New Orleans they have a special cake for that holiday. This one here is one you would find in Spain. Some of you might have noticed that I have some Spanish stuff here from time to time – happens when you have a Spaniard at home that requests traditional foods ;P
Last year I made a King’s Cake aka. Dreikönigskuchen as I used to have it at home – this year I decided to make the Spanish version (by request).
They are quite different – both based on a basic yeast dough, but very different in texture and flavor. The one I know since I am a kid, is like a regular sweet braided loaf, just shaped differently. The Spanish cake I made this year has much more flavor – orange, lemon, and orange blossom water and also a nice whipped cream filling…
Not only the flavors are different here – also the whole story around the cake and it’s traditions. In the German or Swiss King’s Cake you can find a little plastic/ceramic figure, or if you don’t have one, you can use a hazelnut or almond – you hide it in the cake and the one that finds it is the king of the day (and sometimes gets a little gift). In Spain, you can also find a figure in the cake but besides that a dry bean is placed in the cake. Here is also the one that finds the figure the lucky one – if you find the bean, you have to pay the cake for the next year ;)
Since I did not have a figure nor a dry bean, I only used an almond. The one that finds it is the lucky one – no one has to pay next year’s Roscón here – I am the one baking anyways :P
Happy Three Kings Day!
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the dough:
3 1/2 cups (450g) all-purpose flour (plus more if necessary)
0.9 oz. (26g) fresh yeast
1/3 cup (80ml) milk, lukewarm
1/2 cup (100g) Zucker + 1 tsp.
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (120g) butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
zest of 1 organic orange
zest of 1 organic lemon
2 tbsp. orange juice
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. orange blossom water
1 tbsp. rum (optional)
For the decoration:
1 egg yolk
candied fruits (e.g. orange, lemon, cherry)
coarse sugar
almond slivers
For the filling:
7 oz. (200g) whipping cream
1 little ceramic figure and a dry bean (or hazelnut/almond)
Für den Teig:
450g Mehl (Type 550) plus ggf. etwas mehr
26g frische Hefe
80ml lauwarme Milch
100g Zucker + 1 TL
1/2 TL Salz
120g weiche Butter
2 Eier
1 Orange, Abrieb
1 Zitrone, Abrieb
2 EL Orangensaft
1 EL Zitronensaft
1 EL Orangenblütenwasser
1 EL Rum (optional)
Für die Dekoration:
1 Eigelb
Kandierte Früchte (Orangen, Zitronen, Kirschen)
Hagelzucker
Mandelsplitter
Für die Füllung:
200g Schlagsahne
1 kleine Königsfigur und eine trockene Bohne (oder eine Haselnuss/Mandel)
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a depression in the middle. Crumble the fresh yeast in that hole, add 1 teaspoon of sugar and the lukewarm milk and mix with only a small amount of the flour until the yeast has dissolved. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the yeast rise for about 10-15 minutes.
2. Add the remaining sugar, salt, butter in small pieces, eggs, zest of lemon and orange, the juices, orange blossom water and rum (optional) and knead until you get a nice smooth dough (about 4-5 minutes) – add some more flour if the dough is hard to work with. The dough will be quite sticky and soft. Form a ball and place in a lightly geased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour – the volume of the dough should almost double.
3. Knead the dough on a floured surface one more time and form a ball – make a hole in the middle of that dough ball with your thumb. Carefully make it bigger by pulling the ring of dough apart until you have an oversized donut – make sure the hole is big enough, cause the dough will rise while baking and you want that hole to stay open. Place on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment and cover with a kitchen towel to let rise one last time for about 20-25 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 390˚F (200°C). Brush the dough ring with whisked egg yolk and decorate with candied fruits, coarse sugar and almond slivers as you like. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 25-30 minutes – check after 15 minutes and cover with aluminum foil if the top gets too dark. The roscon should get a nice golden color on top. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely.
5. Beat the whipping cream on high speed until stiff peaks form. Transfer to a piping bag with star tip. Cut the roscon in half horizontally and press the figure and bean (or hazelnut/almond) into bottom part of the cake at any place. Pipe the whipped cream onto the bottom part of the roscon and place the upper part on top. Serve immediately.
1. Mehl in eine große Schüssel sieben und in die Mitte eine Mulde drücken. Hefe zerbröseln und hineingeben, mit der lauwarmen Milch und 1 TL Zucker verrühren, bis sich die Hefe aufgelöst hat. Die Schüssel mit einem Küchentuch abdecken und die Hefe für 10-15 Minuten gehen lassen.
2. Restlichen Zucker, Salz, weiche Butter in Stücken, Eier, Abrieb der Zitrusfrüchte und den Saft, Orangenblütenwasser und Rum (optional) zugeben und alles in 4-5 Minuten zu einem glatten Teig verkneten. Falls der Teig schwierig zu verarbeiten ist, noch etwas Mehl zugeben – der Teig ist generell sehr weich und anfangs auch etwas klebrig. In eine leicht gefettete Schüssel legen, mit einem Küchentuch abdecken und für etwa 1 Stunde an einem warmen Ort gehen lassen – das Volumen sollte sich in etwa verdoppelt haben.
3. Den Teig auf einer bemehlten Fläche durchkneten und wieder zu einer Kugel formen. Mit dem Daumen in die Mitte eine Mulde drücken und so eine Öffnung formen. Die Öffnung immer weiter ausdehnen, bis ein Ring entsteht. Den Teigring auf ein Backblech mit Backpapier legen – die Öffnung sollte relativ groß sein, weil der Teig noch etwas aufgehen wird beim Backen. Mit einem Küchentuch abdecken und noch einmal 20-25 Minuten gehen lassen.
4. Den Ofen auf 200°C (390°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Den Teigring mit Eigelb bestreichen und je nach Belieben mit den kandierten Früchten, Hagelzucker und Mandeln dekorieren. In der Mitte des Ofens für 25-30 Minuten backen – nach etwa 15 Minuten nachschauen und ggf. mit Alufolie abdecken, wenn die Oberfläche zu dunkel wird. Der Roscon sollte eine schöne goldbraune Farbe bekommen. Herausnehmen und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett auskühlen lassen.
5. Die Schlagsahne steif schlagen und in einen Spritzbeutel mit Sterntülle füllen. Den abgekühlten Roscon in der Mitte (horizontal) durchschneiden. In die untere Hälfte an einer beliebigen Stelle eine Königsfigur und an anderer Stelle eine Bohne (oder eine Haselnuss/Mandel) in den Kuchen drücken. Die Sahne auf die untere Hälfte des Roscons aufspritzen und die obere Hälfte darauf setzen und sofort servieren.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Roscón de Reyes aka. Three Kings Cake
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 150
Ingredients
For the dough
- 3 1/2 cups (450g) all-purpose flour (plus more if necessary)
- 0.9 oz. (26g) fresh yeast
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk, lukewarm
- 1/2 cup (100g) Zucker + 1 tsp.
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup (120g) butter, at room temperature
- 2 eggs
- zest of 1 organic orange
- zest of 1 organic lemon
- 2 tbsp. orange juice
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 tbsp. orange blossom water
- 1 tbsp. rum (optional)
For the decoration
- 1 egg yolk
- candied fruits (e.g. orange, lemon, cherry)
- coarse sugar
- almond slivers
For the filling
- 7 oz. (200g) whipping cream
- 1 little ceramic figure and a dry bean (or hazelnut/almond)
Instructions
- Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a depression in the middle. Crumble the fresh yeast in that hole, add 1 teaspoon of sugar and the lukewarm milk and mix with only a small amount of the flour until the yeast has dissolved. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the yeast rise for about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the remaining sugar, salt, butter in small pieces, eggs, zest of lemon and orange, the juices, orange blossom water and rum (optional) and knead until you get a nice smooth dough (about 4-5 minutes) – add some more flour if the dough is hard to work with. The dough will be quite sticky and soft. Form a ball and place in a lightly geased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour – the volume of the dough should almost double.
- Knead the dough on a floured surface one more time and form a ball – make a hole in the middle of that dough ball with your thumb. Carefully make it bigger by pulling the ring of dough apart until you have an oversized donut – make sure the hole is big enough, cause the dough will rise while baking and you want that hole to stay open. Place on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment and cover with a kitchen towel to let rise one last time for about 20-25 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 390˚F (200°C). Brush the dough ring with whisked egg yolk and decorate with candied fruits, coarse sugar and almond slivers as you like. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 25-30 minutes – check after 15 minutes and cover with aluminum foil if the top gets too dark. The roscon should get a nice golden color on top. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely.
- Beat the whipping cream on high speed until stiff peaks form. Transfer to a piping bag with star tip. Cut the roscon in half horizontally and press the figure and bean (or hazelnut/almond) into bottom part of the cake at any place. Pipe the whipped cream onto the bottom part of the roscon and place the upper part on top. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Enjoy baking!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 10
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I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
Thanks for making this!
My pleasure :)
Thank you for this recipe, Marc! It tastes just the way it should but better! :) I don’t know anybody making roscones at home in Spain, but I will definitely keep on baking them myself if I have the time.
Best,
A Spanish Berlinerin
Happy you liked it!
I think it’s worth the time ;) And if you are here in Berlin there is no other way to get a Roscón anyways… haven’t seen it in any bakery here yet ;)
Cheers,
Marc
Thanks for this recipe! We’re got it or if the ballpark thanks to you. We chose to fill ours with custard though. My Spanish husband’s preference
My mouth is watering. I wish this were in front of me.