Galette des rois
I’m going to go ahead and admit defeat on a few different levels today. Just to make you guys feel better about yourselves.
First, I took my Christmas tree down today. I know, you’re thinking that I’m really on top of it, Good job, Christina! Except. 
Except that I really meant to leave up the Christmas decor until January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany. It’s what my grandma always did, and I think that’s a nice tradition. But this year, I honestly just got so tired of telling my toddler to “please stop touching the tree”, and then “Gah, put that ornament back”, and then, my favorite, “Oh my word, that tree is going to fall on you in you ram into it with your bulldozer”, that I finally conceded and just hauled the whole thing down. My living room looks a little less sparkly, much less festive, but I must say… I’m kind of glad that’s over.
But just because I’ve already taken the Christmas tree down doesn’t mean we can’t have a little Epiphany celebration. Nothing says, “I just gained 10 pounds over the holiday season, but I don’t care!” like another cake. That’s where the Galette des rois, or “king cake” comes in. 
In the United States, many of us know the king cake as the yeasted confection topped with frosting and colored sugar that we enjoy on Fat Tuesday, before Lent begins. However, the tradition of king cakes began in France hundreds of years ago to celebrate the Epiphany. It is called a King Cake as it was meant to “draw the Kings” to the Baby Jesus. Traditionally, a fève (a broad bean) was placed in the middle of the cake to symbolize the baby Jesus, and whoever found the fève in their piece was made “king”! Some bakeries in France still sell the cakes complete with a paper crown for the lucky king. Cute, huh? 
When I was in pastry school, one of my favorite memories was the day we made pithiviers, just another word for a galette des rois. We made the puff pastry, diligently and patiently laminating layers of butter into the dough. We made the almond cream for the middle. We gently layered the dough and cream, then created beautiful designs on top of our tarts. Then, we all crowded around the ovens are we watched out pithiviers rise heavenward, mouths agape. It was almost magical. 
Well, yeah, my second defeat I’d like to address is that I majorly simplified my Galette des Rois this year. Turns out, my life does not accommodate making puff pastry from scratch on a regular basis these days, and whisking pastry cream is not on the top of my list of daily priorities. So, in order to make this a fun and carefree project that I could enjoy with the family, I went ahead and surrendered to the convenience of pre-made puff pastry. So, while the pastry didn’t puff as evenly, or keep a nice clean design on top, it did the trick. It’s about celebration, not perfection. I can live with that. And it doesn’t hurt that it was still absolutely delicious, either.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- pinch salt
- zest of 1/2 orange
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 4-5 drops almond extract
- 1 pound (450g) puff pastry, divided in two pieces, chilled
- a whole almond or piece of candied fruit to be the fève
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon milk
Instructions
- To make the almond filling, combine the almond flour, sugar, salt, and orange zest in a medium bowl. Beat in the butter until it’s completely incorporated. Mix in the eggs one at a time, then the almond extract. Cover and chill in the fridge until you need it.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. On a lightly floured surface, roll one piece of puff pastry into a circle about 10” round. Using a pot lid, plate, or bottom of springform pan as a template, trim the dough into neat circle. Place the dough on the baking sheet. Repeat with other piece of pastry so you have two circles. Chill the dough for thirty minutes.
- Remove the dough and almond filling from the refrigerator. Spread the almond filling over the center of one of the dough circles, leaving a 1-inch exposed border. Place an almond to act as the fève somewhere in the almond filling, if you wish.
- Brush water generously around the exposed perimeter of the dough, then place the other circle of dough on top of the galette and press down gently to seal the edges. (It can be refrigerated for a few hours or overnight at this point, if you’d like.)
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Flute the sides of the dough, like you would a pie, or scallop the edges using a paring knife. Stir together the egg yolk with the milk and brush it evenly over the top – avoid getting the glaze on the sides, which will inhibit the pastry from rising at the edges. Use a paring knife to lightly score designs on top of the tart, without actually cutting through the dough.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until the galette is browned on top and up the sides. Remove from the oven, let cool 10 minutes, then slide the galette off the baking sheet and onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.