Vegan Rosca de Reyes

This orange-scented dough, baked in the form of a crown, and topped with dried and candied fruits makes the traditional vegan Rosca de Reyes ( King Cake).

Yeast mixed with milk and a little but of flour in a red bowl

Rosca de Reyes is a key part of the feast of the Epiphany, Three Kings Day or Dia de Reyes in Mexico. This is also the day, that children receive gifts from the Reyes Magos (Magi) instead of Santa. Traditionally, the night before, the children leave a note for the Magi in their shoes, and place them under the Christmas tree or outside. The Magi respond by bringing them gifts the following morning, just as they brought gifts to the Christ child.

Mashed potato mixed with the yeast mixture in red bowl
Dough mixed in a stainless steel bowl

Family Traditions

The rosca is usually served with hot chocolate and eaten at any time of the day or all day. The fruit on the rosca is meant to represent the crown´s jewels, and inside the bread is a hidden small figurine of baby Jesus. The lucky person to find baby Jesus in their piece of bread is designated to bring tamales on  Feb. 2nd to the Feast of the Candelaria.

Dough hook inserted into dough to show stretchy consistency

Living on the border, our traditions are a mixture of Mexican and American customs. This being said, as a child Santa brought most of our gifts on Christmas, and the Reyes Magos filled our stockings with treats and small toys on Jan 6th. We continue this tradition with our children, but for them, the Three Kings bring them books!

pan-de-muerto2

What is Acitrón?

Not many people know this, but one of the candied fruits used to top the rosca is called acitrónAcitrón is made from a species of cactus, also know as biznaga, only found in Mexico.

Dough rolled out and formed into an oval shape, place on a sheet tray.

The candy is made by extracting the pulp from the cacti, cutting it into blocks, and cooking it in a simple syrup. The result is an opaque sugary block, firm to the touch, but soft and juicy on the inside. It is commercially sold in red and green tinted blocks or cut into strips. 

Risen vegan rosca de reyes dough with fruit decorations and sugar paste on it.

It is actually very hard to find because the cactus is at risk of becoming an endangered species. Most people nowadays use a quince paste or other fruit paste called ate in its place, but you can use whatever dried or candied fruit you prefer.

rosca de reyes topped with candied oranges and cherries

The Recipe: Vegan Rosca de Reyes

  • I have substituted the eggs with potatoes, resulting in a moist, soft, and sweet bread.
  • I used Earth Balance for my vegan butter
  • For the fruit topping on my rosca I used candied oranges, cherries, and dried figs.
  • Add the plastic baby Jesus into the rosca after it has baked.
  • This recipe is very similar to my Pan de Muerto recipe.
a close up of a piece of rosca
Rosca topped with candied oranges hot chocolate purple napkin

Vegan Rosca de Reyes

This orange-scented dough, baked in the form of a crown, and topped with dried and candied fruits makes the traditional vegan Rosca de Reyes ( King Cake).
Pin Recipe Print Recipe
Prep Time5 hours
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time5 hours 30 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 343kcal
Author: Dora R.

Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 1 pack Active dry yeast (7g)
  • ½ cup Soy milk, warm (118ml)
  • 3 ¾ cup Bread flour (500g)
  • ¾ cup Sugar, granulated (156g)
  • 1 tsp. Salt
  • 1 tsp. Orange zest
  • ¼ cup Orange juice (60ml)
  • ¾ cup Potato, Yukon gold, cooked, mashed (170g)
  • ½ cup+ 1 tbsp. Vegan butter room temperature, cut into 1 inch pieces (128g)

Toppings:

  • Candied Cherries
  • Candied Oranges
  • Quince Paste
  • Guava Paste
  • Dried Figs

Sugar-Paste:

  • cup Sugar granulated
  • cup Vegan butter earth balance, softened
  • ½ cup All-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp. Vanilla extract

Non-egg Wash

  • 2 tbsp. Soy milk unsweetened
  • 1 tbsp. Maple Syrup
  • 1 Plastic baby Jesus (optional)

Instructions

  • In a medium bowl, dissolve the yeast in the soy milk and add 2 tbsp. of the flour. Whisk to incorporate and let rest in a warm place for 20 min.
  • In the bowl of a mixer, with the dough hook, combine the dry ingredients: the rest of the flour, salt, sugar, and orange zest. Mix.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, mashed potato, and yeast-flour mixture. Add to bowl with the flour mixture and mix on low until the dough begins to incorporate.
  • Add the ½ cup + 1 tbsp. of softened butter little by little and increase speed to medium. Mix for 15 min. until the dough has come off the sides of the bowl and is stretchy but not sticky.
  • Place the dough in a large oiled bowl, cover with a towel and let rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours, or until doubled in size.
  • Punch down the dough and lay on a floured surface. Roll out the dough into a log shape and bend the ends around to form a circle. Press edges together to avoid separation.
  • Place the rosca on a parchment lined sheet tray and cover with a towel and let rise for 1 hr. in a warm place (70- 75F) or until double in size.
  • Meanwhile preheat the oven to 350F.

To make the sugar paste:

  • Cream butter and sugar with a whisk or hand mixer. Add vanilla, flour, and cinnamon and mix well. Knead lightly to fully incorporate. It should have the consistency of a soft play-dough. If it’s too sticky or wet add flour in small amounts until you’ve reached the right consistency.

To Make the non-egg wash:

  • In a small bowl combine the soy milk and maple syrup to make the non-egg wash.
  • Brush the rosca with the non-eggwash. Roll or flatten out sugar paste and add to the different sections of the rosca. Distribute the dried fruit on the rosca. Let rise for 30 more minutes.
  • Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or unitl the bottom of the rosca is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack. Let bread cool slightly before eating.
  • Insert plastic baby Jesus underneath the rosca.

Notes

My favorite vegan butter is Earth Balance.

Nutrition

Calories: 343kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 278mg | Potassium: 131mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 482IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @dorastable or tag #mexicangonevegan!

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29 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Hello
    How much cinnamon should we add for the sugar paste? It does not include how much cinnamon it is.

    P.S. I’ve made your pan de muerto recipe and it’s sooo delicious.

  2. 5 stars
    I made this rosca before and it’s delicious!
    I have a question, can I substitute the soy milk for almond milk?

  3. Hi, Dora!
    I first wanted to thank you for this wonderful recetita!
    I made it last year with membrillo, ate de guayaba, candied figs, candied oranges, and cherries.It turned out delicious!
    I have a sister who just went vegan, gluten-free, last year who just moved in with me this year and wanted to make one for her ( she requested it with lot of excitement!)
    I was wondering if there’s a way to make this recipe gluten free?
    Thank you dearly much and Happy holidays!
    -Betsi.

  4. 5 stars
    This was soooooo amazing!!!!!!! It took a bit of time but it was definitely worth it !!

  5. Looks amazing! Thank you! Do you think it could work with oil in place of vegan butter? The latter is really hard to come by where we live…

    1. Also, how much yeast is in your packet? We can only get huge packets (like the size of a bag of flour or sugar) and I have some left in the freezer from dia de muertos that I think should still be good… Thank you so much! Excited to make this for my Mexican non vegan partner and my half Mexican vegan toddler!

  6. 5 stars
    This came out soooo amazing! It surprised my boyfriends family who are from Mexico and eat Rosca de Reyes every year. Thank you for this recipe!! They even asked me to make another one next week!!

  7. Hello I’m confused it tells me to put the baby Jesus before I bake it I’m not much of a baker and I am really worried about this I was trying to make it for my parents but then in a different part it says to insert the baby Jesus after it’s baked please enlighten me thank you so much I can’t wait to taste it as I’ve tried your other recipes thank you have a great year stay safe

  8. You let the dough rest overnight for the pan de muerto, is it different for the rosca? I don’t see this step in here, so just making sure.

    Also, the plastic doll should be place after it’s bake, right?

    1. You can let it rest overnight like the pan de muerto. I think it comes out better that way because the dough rises slowly.It will also work doing it all in one day

  9. This looks amazing and I’d love to make it this week! Do you happen to have the metric measurements for the flour/sugar/yeast/mashed potato? I’d like to be as precise as possible! Thanks!

  10. How long will this last for/ or be good for after baking? Wanting to make on Tuesday to have for Wednesday

  11. Super excited to make this! I have not had a Rosca de Reyes in 7 years! Thank you for sharing! I do have one question can you use any type of potato or only Yukon?

  12. Do you know if this will work with gluten free flour? One of our family members is Vegan and gluten free.

      1. Is there anyway I can substitute the yukon gold potatoes? I’ve made the pan de muerto and IT WAS DELICIOUS but I really want to make de Rosca but i know it will take time

5 from 8 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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