A must try: French Galette des Rois Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is inside the galette des rois? ›

The galette des rois, celebrating Epiphany, the day the Three Kings (les rois) visited the infant Jesus, is baked throughout January in France. Composed of two circles of puff pastry sandwiching a frangipani filling, each comes with a crown and always has a trinket, called a fève, or bean, baked into it.

👑 The fève or fava bean was originally used but has now been replaced by a ceramic trinket. The ones here were imported from France for the galettes at.

The trick here is that hidden somewhere within the galette is the féve - the literal translation being a bean - for some lucky recipient to find. If they find it in their slice, they can claim the golden crown which is always provided along with a galette des rois, as in the photograph above.

The best wines to pair with galette des rois

The best food and wine pairings with a frangipane puff pastry are a sweet white wine or a sparkling wine. Indeed, Champagnes go well with this sweet and gourmet dessert.

This also explains the name of the dessert that's eaten on this day, the galette des rois, which translates to “kings' cake”. It's similar to the king cake served in New Orleans in the U.S., a nod to the state's French influence; but in France it's not multi-colored, and it's only served on or around Epiphany.

The “king” is represented by the fève, once a fava bean, now a porcelain or plastic figurine, 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 the golden paper couronne (crown) that comes with cake.

You can use any trinket or charm as long as it's around 3cm or less and is safe to go into the oven. Usually a ceramic or porcelain item is your best bet. PREFER TO SHOP ONLINE? Luckily there are many places to find classic and absolutely adorable fèves online to purchase.

Fun Facts. The French president is not allowed to play the “Galette des Rois” game. A giant 1.2m galette is prepared for the Elysée each year but the pastry chef is not allowed to bake a fève into it. This is because it's considered inappropriate for a king to be crowned in the presidential palace.

A big part of why galettes des rois are so popular is that everyone wishes to find la fève 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!

Tradition dictates that when serving galette des rois, the entire cake should be divided such that each family member or guest receives a slice. During the slicing, the youngest hides underneath the table to call out the name of a person to receive each slice in turn so the server can't be accused of playing favorites!

What is the charm in the galette des rois? ›

Families come together on or around this date to share their galette, into which is baked a small ceramic baby charm (the “fève”). Whoever finds the charm in their slice of cake is deemed King or Queen for the day – thus the name of the cake and the paper crown that famously adorns this popular confection.

Of course, we'll start with a dry white wine such as a Loire chenin for example, or a round chardonnay. These are natural wines that often go well with fish, but they will also go very well with your galette des rois. Plain sparkling wines can also be a very good match for your galette des rois.

The person who finds the fève in their slice of galette becomes the King or Queen and is given a golden paper crown. The King or Queen then, has to choose their Queen or King.

Inside the Galette des Rois there will be a fève (bean) normally a whole almond but nowadays this fève has extended to be a small trinket, in fact, some of the larger B oulangeries offer different types of fève and they become quite collectible .

We call the act of sharing the Kings' cake “tirer les rois”. This literally means “to draw the kings”. Indeed according to tradition, the youngest member of the family or smallest host, must go under the table. He is the one who decides whom will get each slice.

You'll usually find it adorned with Emmental cheese, slices of ham and an egg (which is known as a galette complète in France), but any savoury filled buckwheat crepe is known as a galette Bretonne (or Breton galette) in France.

Families come together on or around this date to share their galette, into which is baked a small ceramic baby charm (the “fève”). Whoever finds the charm in their slice of cake is deemed King or Queen for the day – thus the name of the cake and the paper crown that famously adorns this popular confection.

The website joyofbaking.com defines the term galette as "a French term signifying a flat round cake that can be either sweet or savory and while [recipes can use] puff pastry as a base, they can also be made from risen doughs like brioche, or with a sweet pastry crust."

Its form and ingredients are variable, but in most cases a fève ( lit. 'fava bean') such as a figurine, often said to represent the Christ Child, is hidden inside. After the cake is cut, whoever gets the fève wins a prize.