I need an authentic Louisiana style king cake recipe. I'm not from LA, but my husband is. We are having all our LA transplant friends over to cheer on the saints for superbowl. I want to make a king cake, but the recipes I've seen on the internet say to make a filling and roll it up in the dough like you would a jelly roll. Hubby says they aren't done that way, but braided. I'm having so many LA people over and I want to do it "their" way. Are king cakes made different in different regions of the state? Does anyone have a recipe that they braid? This Texas girl needs help.

Try Meche's recipe. They don't give instructions for braiding, but just divide your dough in half and make 2 tubes, then braid with the 2 tubes.

http://blog.skpnet.org/2005/02/meches-donut-king-cake

Here ya go...

http://www.realcajunrecipes.com/recipes/cajun/mardi-gras-king-cake-traditional-orleans/544.rcr

I love king cake! Sugarshack did a great tutorial on the braid. I made my own last year, using her technique but with my own brioche dough. Worked great.

You can google it on Foodnetwork.com and there is a video clip on how to fill and braid it.
HTH