KING’S CAKE

A GALETTE DES ROIS EPIPHANY

• Epiphany: a Christian festival held on January 6 in honor of the coming of the three kings to the infant Jesus Christ
• A moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way — Merriam Webster Dictionary

Every French kid growing up looks forward to January 6th as the day we get to eat a Galette des Rois or King’s Cake, and perhaps be King or Queen for a day. The cake celebrates the feast of Epiphany when the three kings brought gifts for sweet baby Jesus.

Hidden among the warm rum scented layers of frangipane (almond cream) and puff pastry is a small ceramic figurine guaranteed to break your tooth if you aren’t careful. The figurine, also known as a feve, used to actually be a small bean but changed to figurines sometime in the late 1800s.

Whoever finds the feve in the galette gets to wear a crown and be king or queen for the day!

I have a confession, I never made one myself until this year. I wanted my son Beaumont to enjoy this part of growing up and feared no bakery in Portland would have one, or, if they did, somehow they would work some pork belly into it. I just wanted a classic version like the ones I grew up eating.