Whereas Christmas Eve is all about oysters and foie gras, January 6th is all about the Galette des Rois (King’s Cake).
French families will mark the end of the festive season on Saturday by scoffing down a pastry fit for kings. Here's the story of the Galette des Rois - the only tart that can make you feel like a king.
So what’s a Galette des Rois?
The festival takes place around Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas, when the wise men visited baby Jesus.
According to tradition, the ‘galette des rois’, was to “draw the kings” to the Epiphany.
It goes rather well with a cup of tea or a glass or two of white wine and is the perfect opportunity to invite family and friends or maybe get together with those neighbours you haven’t yet met.
It’s basically a frangipane cake traditionally shared at Epiphany, on 6 January. .. a tart with a small charm, a fève hidden inside.
A ‘fève‘ (originally a bean but now tends to be a plastic trinket) is baked inside the cake and the cake is shared around the table. Whoever receives the fève is then crowned king or queen for the day and has the much coveted opportunity of bossing the rest of the family about! That same person can also choose someone to be their king or queen.
It is made with puff pastry, butter, a cream made from sweet almonds, butter, eggs, sugar and a few extra ingredients that will stretch the already bursting waistline for one final time before the January dieting begins.
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| Traditional Galette des Rois |
