The galette des Rois is a patisserie that is traditionally eaten in France to celebrate the Epiphany, which according to the Christian Bible falls 12 days after Christmas, when the Three Wise Men (or Kings, rois = kings) visited the infant Jesus and when St. John the Baptist christened him.
Ingredients for the frangipane (almond filling):
- 100 grams of powdered almonds
- 100 grams of fine brown sugar
- 100 grams of unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons glass of white or dark rum (from Martinique if you can)
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- 2 puff pastries (shop bought or homemade)
For the finishing:
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons of water
- 3 tablespoons of milk
Preparation:
- Pre-heat oven for 15 minutes at 180c
- Mix ingredients 1-6 until you obtain a smooth mix that is not too runny
- Put aside
- Roll out one of the two puff pastries. With the help of a dinner plate, trace a circle in the paste.
- Place the frangipane mix in the middle of the circle.
- Roll out the second puff pastry – Make a circle form using the same method as above. Place this second circle on top of the frangipane
- Close the 2 circles firmly by pinching the borders together. (I personally pinch the borders after having applied some milk all around the border of the first puff pastry). This is an important stage, as the frangipane should not leak through the edges.
- With the help of the point of a knife, draw some lines on the top of the galette. (see picture)
- With the help of a brush, lather the galette with the yolk/water mix
- With the help of a skewer, make a hole in the middle of the galette. (It is to let air come out of the pastry and to prevent it from rising too much)
- Put the galette in the oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until brown and shiny.
Note:
If you don’t like frangipane, you can replace it with some apple compote, for example. Just make sure it is not too runny.
Traditionally, we add a fève, a little porcelain trinket the size of a kidney bean, inside the galette and whoever finds it in their slice becomes the queen or king of the day. So this step is optional, as it won’t add any flavour to the galette, but it will definitely add a bit of fun and suspense until someone finds the fève and shouts “Vive la Reine!” (Long live the Queen) or “Vive le Roi” (Long live the King)!!!!
Bon appetit!