I don’t fancy baking that much but when it comes to galette des rois, I was excited to spend Sunday afternoon making this delicious French pastry. This year, I decided to make the pastry at home as opposed to buying it for a couple of reasons: First, we don’t have a French bakery in our town and the nearest bakery is about 45-minute drive. Second, galette des rois isn’t a popular dessert in Toronto. Therefore the average price of a freshly baked one that is made by specialty bakeries is significantly higher than a regular pastry. For these reasons, I cannot justify wasting time and money on something that can be simply made at home with the family.
To find the best recipe, I spent some time searching online for the traditional recipe that is simple and easy to make. I discovered this traditional recipe by a well known French pastry blogger which was super easy to follow even for those who don’t speak French. In this blog, I will be sharing her recipe details in English.
Galette des rois tradition
According to tradition, galette des rois is served on January 6th to celebrate the Epiphany, this is the day the Three Kings came to the manger where Jesus was born. Today, in France, it’s eaten throughout the month of January and is simply a festive way to celebrate the new year with family and friends.
Tirer les rois!
When serving galette des rois, the host divides the dessert that each guest receives a slice, plus an extra – for any unexpected visitor, or poor person, that should pass by.
The fève, a porcelain or plastic figurine representing the “king” is hidden inside the cake. The person who discovers the fève in their serving is declared le roi (the king) or la reine (the queen) and gets to wear a golden paper couronne (crown).
Since winning is human nature, everyone, young and old alike can get extra excited about winning the fève. Consequently, comical accusations of cheating might occur. To avoid this, I discovered today from my French friend that it is traditional during the slicing of the galette to have a child go underneath the table and call out the name of the person to receive a slice so the host can’t be accused of playing favorites. This year, my son sat under the table and called the names of guests while I cut and served the slices.
Galette des rois ingredients
This recipe serves 10 people
2 Puff Pastry
You will need 2 sheets of puff pastry for this recipe.
Custard
- 1 teaspoon of pure Vanilla extract (optional)
- 5 ounces of whole milk (warm)
- 2 egg yolks
- 25 grams of superfine sugar (Caster sugar)
- 15 grams of cornstarch
- 5 grams of flour
- 10 grams of soft butter
Almond Cream
- 2 eggs
- 125 grams of almond powder. I used this almond powder.
- 100 grams caster sugar
- 100 grams of soft butter
Glaze
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup of water
- 40 grams caster sugar
Custard cream recipe
- To make the custard, simply whip the 2 egg yolks with 25 grams of caster sugar to make a paste.
- Then, add 15 grams of cornstarch and 5 grams of flour and whisk them with the paste.
- Lastly, slowly pour in warm milk and 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract and blend.
- Place everything on a stove and whip until the sauce thickens then immediately remove it from the hot stove.
- Move the paste into a bowl and mix in 10 grams of soft butter.
- Cover the paste and let it cool down at room temperature.
Almond cream recipe
- Mix 2 eggs with 100 grams of caster sugar.
- Pour in 125 grams of almond powder and 100 grams of soft butter.
- Mix all ingredients well together.
- Blend custard cream (above recipe) and mix it with almond cream.
- Voila, you now have what they call in French Frangipane cream.
Making Galette des rois
- Preheat the oven to 180 C (360 F).
- Roll out the sheets of puff pastry and cut out two 11-inch circles. Place the first disc on a parchment-lined baking sheet, then cover it in a layer of the Frangipane cream, leaving a 1-inch border around the circle.
- Nestle the fève in the almond cream. Place the second puff pastry disc atop the first, then press the edges with your fingers or a fork to seal the cake. Poke a hole in the middle of the top layer pastry and with a sharp knife, trace a decorative pattern into it, without cutting through to the almond filling.
- Brush the galette with the egg yolk and bake for 45 minutes at 360 F.
- Boil 1/2 cup of water with 40 grams of caster sugar for 3 minutes to make syrup.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool down for 15 minutes. Then brush the cake with syrup before serving.
- Cut and serve according to tradition. Bon appetit!
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