Right after Christmas and the New Year, just when you feel like you can eat no more, there is the epiphany holiday on January 6th. In France, we celebrate it by eating la galette des rois - traditionally a dessert made with puff pastry as a bottom and top layer and filled with frangipane or an almond paste mix. Regional variations exist but they do not compare to the frangipane version: it is absolutely delicious! Families, friends and colleagues get together to tirer les rois (drawing the king), the galette has a fève (originally a dried bean, now pâtisseries compete with fun icons for kids and adults). The youngest person in the group goes under the table and names who gets all the slices, while someone cuts and distributes them. If you end up with the fève, you are the selected king and have to wear a beautiful paper crown. You can choose your queen if you are so inclined. In any case, the dessert is the best thing this side of the new year. Who cares about crowns?
Note - I have been eating these nearly daily for a straight week - still not tired of the galette. Except for the one that was dubiously made with orange flower extract. Yuck!!
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