Rosca de reyes

Posted by Ben On January - 7 - 2009 Under Desserts and baking

rosca_reyes

In Mexico and many other Christian countries Epiphany, celebrated on January 6th, marks the end of the Christmas season. Mexican kids go to bed early on January 5th expecting to find gifts next to the Nativity scene the following morning. Last year I wrote about  this holiday, Día de Reyes, and how it is celebrated in Mexico. Rosca de Reyes is the traditional sweet bread that Mexicans eat with hot chocolate that morning after opening presents. Last year I bought a rosca at my local Mexican market, but this year I decided to make it myself and share the recipe with my readers.

Rosca de reyes

For this recipe you will need:

  • 2 ¼ tsps dry yeast
  • ¼ cup warm water
  • ¼ cup milk
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 2 TBSP rum
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 TBSP anise extract
  • 3½ – 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 large eggs
  • ½ cup raisins
  • 1 tsp water
  • candied fruit for garnish

For the pasta:

  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1/3 cup butter, softened

Preparation:

  1. Dissolve yeast in warm water and let it sit for 5 minutes or until it starts foaming.
  2. In a small pot warm milk and add sugar, butter, vanilla, anise and rum. Mix until it reaches about 105°F (40°C) (it will be warm to the touch)
  3. Mix milk mixture with yeast mixture and add 3½ cups of flour, one at a time, raisins and 3 eggs. Knead for 10 minutes. Add more flour if the dough is too wet.
  4. Place dough into a bowl and cover. Let it sit until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
  5. Pre-heat oven to 350ºF (175°C)
  6. Turn the dough onto a slightly floured surface and using your palms roll it into a long rope. Shape it into a ring sealing the ends together.
  7. Make an egg wash using 1 egg and 1 tsp of water and brush the bread with it.
  8. In a small bowl mix the ingredients for the pasta mixing them with a fork until they come together. Using an icing knife or bag spread strips of pasta on the bread alternating with candied fruit strips.
  9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until it turns golden brown. Let it cool on a rack for 10 minutes and serve with hot Mexican chocolate.
Print this recipe

rosca_reyes1

Roscas are usually baked with a porcelain or plastic baby Jesus inside. Traditionally the person that finds it is supposed to prepare tamales on February 2nd to celebrate Candlemas. I didn’t include any figurine in my rosca, but I am planning to have a big tamale night around that date, anyway.  The candied fruit that it is usually used for roscas are figs, cherries and acitron (candied cactus paddles), but I didn’t find any of those so I used the fruits from a candied fruit salad (kiwi, pineapple, strawberries and papaya)

¡Buen provecho!

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King Cake 2009

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30 Replies

  1. Judy Said,

    Looks beautiful Ben!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 11:33 am

  2. Elle Said,

    Ben, that’s a gorgeous bread! I love the tradition that you weave into your posts, it makes them interesting to read. Great photos!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 11:45 am

  3. Jude Said,

    Hmm… Candied cactus paddles. Now that’s something I’ve never tried before.

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 12:05 pm

  4. nina Said,

    Thx for the little Mexican tradition, I love to learn about other countries culinary traditions…

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 12:26 pm

  5. joan nova Said,

    This looks very tasty…sabroso con chocolate! I love the Mexican tradition of hiding prizes in cakes. Such fun. Que sigue la fiesta!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 12:40 pm

  6. Ivy Said,

    The bread sounds delicious. It reminds me of Greek tsoureki. Wow, candied cactus paddles, this is so interesting.

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 1:38 pm

  7. [eatingclub] vancouver || js Said,

    Lovely ring of bread, Ben!

    I’m also eyeing your guava empanadas. Yummy!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 3:43 pm

  8. The Duo Dishes Said,

    Also similar to the French galettes des rois. Very lovely for any table. This one looks like it’s worth the work.

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 3:46 pm

  9. Vicki Said,

    Looks delicious, Ben! Now I’ve got 2 recipes bookmarked that use acitron, have to go find some!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 4:46 pm

  10. Peter G Said,

    Looks delicious! You’ve done a great job with this Ben! Like Ivy said it reminds me a lot of the Greek ‘tsoureki’ we make.

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 5:06 pm

  11. toontz Said,

    Ben, that looks delicious. Now I know what Rosca de reyes means -you didn’t give us the url on Twitter, shame on you ;)

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 6:36 pm

  12. kat Said,

    I think that bread would be a present in itself. The baby in the bread idea makes me think of King Cake in New Orleans. It also has a baby in it & the one who gets the baby in their slice has to throw the next party.

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 7:23 pm

  13. maryann Said,

    I’m so glad you posted this, Ben :)
    It’s a wonderful recipe and I love reading about how different cultures celebrate the epiphany!

    Posted on January 7th, 2009 at 7:41 pm

  14. MyKitchenInHalfCups Said,

    Gorgeous Ben!

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 12:00 am

  15. recipes2share Said,

    This looks gorgeous & I just love learning about different traditions – we have just celebrated with gallette de roi, here in France.

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 2:27 am

  16. zorra Said,

    It looks delicious. I’m sure this one tastes much better than the bought one, isn’t it?

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 3:45 am

  17. Natashya Said,

    I love the way it glistens like jewels!

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 6:07 pm

  18. Teresa Said,

    Hola Ben. Feliz Ano Nuevo. I love the rosca. I make a King cake too but mine has the traditional Mardi Gras colors to it. Yours look absolutely delicious. Did you send me a piece???? May all you wishes come true in 2009 corazon. Abrazos y besos.

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 8:41 pm

  19. Kevin Said,

    I have never had a rosca de reyes but it looks and sounds good!

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 9:40 pm

  20. mikky Said,

    looks great and yum … :)

    Posted on January 8th, 2009 at 11:07 pm

  21. Aparna Said,

    Looks so beautiful, Ben.
    I discovered this bread recently and made one too. Its good to see an authentic recipe though.

    Posted on January 9th, 2009 at 1:33 am

  22. Christy Said,

    Looks amazing and delish! Way to go.

    Posted on January 9th, 2009 at 7:07 am

  23. Olga Said,

    That looks so good!
    Can you please come to DC and open your own Mexican restaurant? :)

    Posted on January 9th, 2009 at 5:09 pm

  24. Bellini Valli Said,

    Now that you have nade your own you will probably never go back to the bakery Ben!!

    Posted on January 10th, 2009 at 4:25 pm

  25. Hélène Said,

    I’m glad you blogged about this. Love the picture.

    Posted on January 11th, 2009 at 5:06 pm

  26. Susan/Wild Yeast Said,

    This is beautiful Ben! I really like the pasta decoration and will do that when I make it again. Candied cactus paddles, hmm, I wonder if I could make these myself? (Nopales are readily available in markets around here.) Happy New Year!

    Posted on January 12th, 2009 at 1:50 pm

  27. Micaela | Striving Green Said,

    Thanks so much for the Rosca de Reyes recipe! Every winter I tell somebody about this kind of cake, and they kind of look at me like they don’t believe it (baby Jesus and all). I love your blog!

    Posted on January 15th, 2009 at 1:21 pm

  28. robertila vilchez Said,

    love your picturs and made sametings

    Posted on January 20th, 2009 at 12:06 pm

  29. J Said,

    I went to my very first party this year! It was soo fun and the rosca was delicious. I found a jesus in my slice, but basically everyone did. They put a bunch of Jesus’s in instead of just one. :]

    Posted on January 20th, 2009 at 7:26 pm

  30. María Said,

    This is great!!! My stepdaughters have moved from California to Utah and are no longer are readily exposed to Roscas in the Panaderías. I can make this for them!! FYI, the singular form of “tamales” is “TAMAL” not “tamale”. A very common error among many English speakers.

    ¡Muchísimas gracias!

    Posted on February 3rd, 2009 at 8:49 pm

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