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My Aunt Anna made this King’s Cake last Thanksgiving. I took a photo of it and posted it, then got a wave of requests for the recipe. 1 year later (ok, that’s more than a little embarrassing), I am finally posting it!
I just found out this is a Russian cake recipe. Korolevsky means King’s, which makes this a royal cake. Russian and Ukrainian people are known for their fantastic cakes. I’m sure you will enjoy this one!
Each cake layer has 1 cup of sour cream so it turns out very soft and moist. If you make the full recipe with all three different layers, it is very time consuming – not difficult – just time consuming.
According to the original recipe, each cake layer is mixed and baked separately (my wonderful husband so kindly washed my KitchenAid 4 times!!) This triple-layer-cake turned out huge and even a thin slice of cake was a lot!
Next time I make this, I will make double the cake portion at once, then divide the batter in half, put poppy seeds in one and walnuts in the other and bake them together in 2 separate cake pans.
This would make a double layer cake instead of a triple. You can also just make a full poppyseed cake or a full walnut cake and it will be just as good.
Ingredients For the Full 3-LAYER King’s Cake
3 cups sugar
3 cups sour cream
3 cups flour *measured correctly
3 tsp baking soda
3 tsp vinegar
1 Tbsp cocoa powder (I used dutch cocoa powder)
2 Tbsp poppy seeds
1 cup walnuts, toasted & chopped
Ingredients For Frosting:
Cake Prep Instructions:
How to Make Each Cake Layer:
Frosting Instructions:
1. Using a whisk attachment, beat together on high speed the cooked sweetened condensed milk (at room temp) and 2 sticks of butter for 3 to 4 minutes until fluffy.
Frost once the cake is cooled to room temperature. If you refrigerate the frosting before using, it may become too stiff and you will need to let it stand 15 to 30 minutes until it’s spreadable.
Russian Korolevsky Cake (King's Cake)
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Full 3-LAYER Cake
- 6 extra large eggs, at room temperature
- 3 cups sugar
- 3 cups sour cream
- 3 cups flour
- 3 tsp baking soda
- 3 tsp vinegar
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 Tbsp poppy seeds
- 1 cup walnuts, toasted & chopped
Ingredients For Frosting:
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, cooked and at room temperature
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
Instructions
Prep:
- Cake Prep Instructions:
- Grease and generously flour a 9" non-stick cake pan.
- On a dry skillet, over medium-high heat, toast 1 cup of walnuts until lightly golden then chop into small pieces.
How to Make Each Cake Layer: Preheat the Oven to 380 ˚ F (read note before starting)
- In the bowl of an stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat together 2 eggs and 1 cup sugar until pale yellow (4 minutes on medium/high speed). Reduce the speed to low and add 1 cup flour. Mix until well-blended.
- Put 1 cup sour cream in a large measuring cup. In a small ramekin, combine 1 tsp baking soda with 1 tsp vinegar. It will fizz up, then stir it right away into the sour cream.
- The sour cream will start to visibly rise. Once you notice it rising, mix it into the cake batter using a spatula.
- In the first cake batter, mix in 1 Tbsp cocoa. Repeat steps 1-3 but In the second cake batter, mix in 2 Tbsp poppy seeds and in the third cake batter, mix in 1/2 cup toasted, chopped walnuts.
- Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake at 380˚F for 20-22 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cake layers cool to room temperature.
- Frost the top of each layer (see frosting instructions below)
- Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Frosting Instructions:
- Using a whisk attachment, beat together on high speed the cooked sweetened condensed milk and 2 sticks of butter for 3 to 4 minutes until fluffy. Frost once the cake is cooled to room temperature.
Notes
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