The Galette des Rois, is a French dessert consumed at the Epiphany in the French-speaking countries.
The peculiarity of this cake is that it contains inside a small statue, or more simply a beans or an almond, called fève.
In ancient times it was a dry paste similar to baguette garnished with sugar on the top and containing a bean inside it,
Today, the Galette des Rois in the north of France, is originally a gallette made of golden puff pastry in the oven and traditionally stuffed with frangipane cream (almond cream).
It can also be filled with different preparations: fruit, creams, chocolate or apple sauce.
In the south of France, the dessert of kings is a candied fruit brioche in the shape of a crown, scented with orange blossoms: in this region, it is preferred to that of puff pastry.
There are also variations of shortcrust pastry, mainly in Belgium.
The name, "Galette des Rois", is explained by its reference to the Three Kings, celebrated on the day of January 6th.
Traditionally, the cake hides a bean, a symbol of fertility; In the more affluent families, there is alternatively the small figure of a king in porcelain, similar to a soldier: the person who happens to have the object hidden in his piece of cake, in French called the fève (the fava), is considered the king of the day.
Traditionally, the cake is decorated with a golden paper crown.
The same tradition is also present in other countries, but with other sweets.
- In German-speaking countries, for example, there is Dreikönigskuchen;
- in the English-speaking ones the King cake (hundreds of thousands of King Cakes are eaten in New Orleans during the Carnival season);
- in the Spanish-speaking countries, roscón de Reyes is prepared, which contains both the bean and the king;
- in Portugal the bol-rei.
- In Greece, New Year’s Eve is the period of the vasilopita, which contains a coin or a pendant.
- In Italy the tradition of the figurine is not well known given the prevalent use of celebrating, on January 6, the Befana rather than the Three Kings.
Combine this dessert with a glass of wine:
Moscato d'Asti DOCG, Italy
Grain de Malice AOC, VS, Switzerland
Cremant du Jura AOC, France
