Before wrapping up the holidays, there is one final occasion the French take to eat and rejoice: the Fête des Rois, or “Feast of the Kings.”
Held on Jan. 6, the 12th day of Christmas, this celebration involves eating a galette des rois, or king cake—two circles of buttery puff pastry filled with sweet, creamy frangipane—in which a trinket, called a fève, has been hidden. If your slice has the fève, you are crowned honorary king (or queen) for the day.
Traces of celebrating the Fête des Rois date back to the 14th century in France. The holiday celebrates the Epiphany, a Christian feast day commemorating the arrival of the Three Wise Men—or Three Kings, “les rois”—visiting Jesus after his birth.
Some would argue that the galette des rois tradition can be traced to even earlier, back to ancient Rome and the Saturnalia celebration, a festival held in honor of the Roman god Saturn. The custom was to elect a “king” for the day, who would give orders to people and preside over the partying.
A Beloved Tradition
As with many old religious traditions, the Fête de Rois gradually became a non-spiritual celebration. Today, the ritual of eating a galette des rois is first and foremost a festive occasion to gather with your friends and family, wrap up the holiday season, celebrate the new year, and share best wishes—regardless of your religious background.Making Your Own at Home
Before diving into this recipe, it should be noted there are, in fact, two kinds of “king cakes” in France. The first one, often found in the south of France, is a yeasted, brioche-like cake shaped like a crown and usually topped with colorful candied fruit.For Puff Pastry, Stick With Store-Bought
For convenience, use frozen, ready-to-bake puff pastry sheets that can be found in the freezer section of any grocery store. When working with puff pastry sheets, it’s important to keep them well-chilled, as they tend to become sticky and difficult to work with once they warm up. Once you take them out of the fridge, work quickly to assemble the galette.Play With the Frangipane
The frangipane filling can be made ahead and will keep for up to three days refrigerated.Finding a Fève
Back in the 14th century, the fève was simply a dried bean, a symbol of fertility and the coming of spring. In the 16th century, the fève became a coin. And by the late 19th century, the first porcelain fèves appeared in galettes, baked in Limoges—a city famous for its royal porcelain factories.Nowadays, most bakeries’ galettes include a plastic trinket, while just a few still include the traditional hand-painted porcelain fèves representing a nativity character.
A Strict Serving Ritual
A big part of why galettes des rois are so popular is the fun of la fève: Everyone hopes to find it in their slice. So to keep the game fair, when serving a galette, tradition dictates that the youngest guest hide under the table and call out guests’ names, who are then served their slices. No cheating allowed!Galette des Rois
Serves 8 to 10- 1 1/2 cup almond meal
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Zest of 1/2 orange (organic)
- 3 1/2 ounces unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 sheets frozen puff pastry (about 16 ounces total)
- A fève (or a whole almond, if you can’t find one)
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon milk
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and prepare two small bowls: one with water, and one with the egg yolk and milk mixed together, for the egg wash.
Remove the puff pastry circles and filling from the fridge at the same time. Lay the first pastry circle on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Spread the almond filling in the middle, leaving a 1-inch border. Stick your fève (or a whole almond) somewhere in the filling. Brush the border generously with water and quickly cover the galette with the other circle of puff pastry. Press down all around the border to seal the edges—make sure they are sealed well, or the filling will escape during baking.
Flute the sides of the galette, using a knife and your fingers (see photo). Brush the whole galette generously with the egg wash. Use the tip of a small knife to score a design on top of the galette and poke a small hole in the middle of the top layer, to let steam escape while baking.
Bake for 30 minutes, until the galette is golden. Right out of the oven, the galette will be puffy, but will deflate when cooling down. Transfer to a cooling rack.
Serve warm or at room temperature.