The Galette des Rois is made to celebrate the Epiphany, the arrival of the Magi to visit the baby Jesus, on January 6th. The Brioche des Rois is more traditional in southern France, while the Galette is the king in northern France.

 

INGREDIENTS:

[Serves 8 people]

For the pastry cream:

  • 2 eggs
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

 

For the almond cream:

  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1-1/4 cup ground almonds
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup softened butter
  • A splash of rum (optional)

 

  • 2 store-brought crusts, or you can make your own "pâte feuilletée"
  • 1 yolk for brushing the crust before baking
  • A paper crown and a "feve" (small trinket hidden in the pastry - you could use a dried bean)

 

 

 

Galette des Rois
©

AdobeFirefly

INSTRUCTIONS

  • For the pastry cream, beat the eggs and the sugar for 1 minute. Heat the milk and vanilla in a pot, then add the egg-sugar mixture. Heat on low until the mixture thickens. Cover the mixture with saran wrap, making it touch the top of the cream, and cool for 1 hour.
  • For the almond cream, mix the butter and the sugar. Add each egg yolk seperately, then mix in the ground almonds and the rum, if you wish.
  • Mix the pastry cream and the almond cream together. You can put this into a pastry bag to pipe onto the bottom crust in a spiral fashion, but I just pour it into the middle of the crust, keeping about a 1 inch border.
  • Add the "feve", but not too close to the middle in order to avoid hitting it when cutting to serve.
  • Brush some yolk on the outside border, place the second crust on top, and pinch to seal. You may use a knife to lightly cut some designs into the top of the galette.
  • Brush the remaining yolk on top, and bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 400°, then lower the temperature to 350° and continue baking for about 30 minutes.

     

 

working in the kitchen!

 The tradition is that the youngest person closes their eyes and says who each piece is for while the galette is being cut. The person who finds the "feve" in their slice is crowned King or Queen. For us, it was my husband Jean-François, and he wore the crown the whole day!

JF crowned king

 Jean-François is king for the day (Photo : Laura Crotet)

 

- Laura Crotet, France Just For You

If you would like to be royalty for a day while traveling in France, contact us to help you plan your trip.

France Just For You

Experts in self-drive tours in France

Travelers Reviews

5.0
Patricia
This was a perfect holiday put together so personally for us by Emilie of France Just For You. Every B&B was exceptional with charming hosts. Our personalised tour book was excellent and everywhere that was suggested we visit never disappointed. We travelled through Burgundy, Loire Valley and Normandy over 17 days. So many highlights,two in …
Peter
We wanted my spouse's birthday trip to France to be special and we could not have expected such a perfect time. From initial communication with Emilie by email right up to having a driver meet us in Paris CDG airport, it was a stress-free vacation. Emilie provided first class service throughout and tailored our desire to see Paris, the Loire Valley …
Mary-Lynn & Ron from the US
We used France Just For You to make all the arrangements so we could travel without having deal with all the details, and they did a beautiful job of doing so- our lodging, car rentals, entry vouchers, everything! We saw a lot in eleven nights, and France Just For You made it seamless- Thanks so much!
Peter
France-Just for You is the best agency/coordinator we have EVER used. We have traveled around the world to more than 50 countries and this was by far the best job of coordination we ever experienced. The owner, Emilie, lives in France and is 100% accessible by email or phone. We emailed her the first time we learned about her business and from then …
Deidre & Kevin
Such a professional company and their attention to every detail was amazing. Car hire , French phone, tours and suggested stops were all fantastic. And the B& B’s in the country and wine districts were fabulous. The owners all very friendly and helpful as well as the accommodation being clean and beautiful. We cannot give enough praise for Emilie …
Margaret & Rob
We would like to add our names to everyone else here who have had a truly excellent experience when using Emilie's, France Just For You company. We drove 2800 km on a recent holiday, and it was all arranged by Emilie. Everything she organized was perfect. We stayed in B and Bs and although we know a little French, all of our hosts spoke fluent …