Before I tell you about today’s baked delight, let me announce properly the winners of the 12 Days of Christmas giveaways from back in December:
Dec 17 – Jamie Oliver Kitchen Kit Robyn Clarke, Cheshire.
Dec 16 – Eric Lanlard Home Bake book TWO COPIES Georgina Ingham, Staffordshire; Cristina McDowall, Devon.
Dec 15 – Mum et Moi Silicone Cake Mould RRP £17 Vanessa Cox, Buckinghamshire.
Dec 14 – Interflora Christmas Hamper RRP £100 Nickie Chapman, North London.
Dec 13 – Steenberg’s Christmas Spices Survival Kit Maggy Woodley, South London
Dec 12 – Matcha Chocolat Chai CaramelsWendy McDonald, Shropshire.
Dec 11 – Heinz picnic hamper with “Heinz Secret Ingredient” goodiesHelen Watson, Norfolk.
Dec 10 – Sainsbury’s Different by Design cookware Catherine Whittall, Shropshire.
Dec 9 – Alex Polizzi’s Little Black Book of Hotels THREE COPIES Hannah Evans, Caerphilly; Mark Hopkins, Merseyside; Kate Davis-Holmes, East Yorkshire.
Dec 7 – Green & Blacks Ultimate Chocolate Chef gift set Becca Rothwell, London.
Dec 6 – Waitrose Goodies Erica Price, West Midlands.
For ease of reference I have started a giveaways page which lists the most recent winners and any live giveaways. You will note that the Nigella Lawson Measuring Cups giveaway in conjunction with my Forever Nigella challenge is still open until Jan 16.
I am also celebrating being a winner of a sort myself.
In the past few weeks I’ve been named as:
Number 1 in Cision’s Top 10 UK Baking and Confectionery blogs
and as if that wasn’t enough
Number 1 in Wikio UK’s Gastronomy rankings for the first time!
I hope I’m the equivalent of a musical chart slow burn that takes it’s time creeping up the Top 40 and then stays in the consciousness thereafter even if it drops quickly. (Tainted Love was only number 1 for a fortnight. I bet you didn’t know that.)
It’s all worked out by computers. Hence my reference to paper crowns.
Today’s recipe is possibly the only one I can think of that requires an item of clothing or an accessory to accompany it. France’s Galette des Rois is traditionally served on January 6 for the Feast of the Epiphany marking the end of twelve days of Christmas.
It comprises two puff pastry layers with a filling of frangipane topped with a shiny sugar glaze. Traditionally a coin or china trinket is hidden in the Galette and whoever wears it is king for a day wearing the gold paper crown. In France you can buy these crowns but I had to make my own out of left over wrapping paper.
Getting the crown to stay on Ted’s head took a while. We had lots of shots like this one before I managed to catch him keeping still long enough to show him with it on his head.
I’m still enjoying my blog break so there’s no printed recipe today, I have made use of my good friend Jamie Schler‘s recipe for Galette des Rois as featured in one of her regular Huffington Post columns.
The galette is very very easy to make although I had a little trouble with the glaze. Possibly I will be spending some of my Christmas Amazon credit from my father on a cook’s blow torch. Jamie had warned that the icing sugar glaze had to be watched like a hawk lest it suddenly burn… after the prescribed five minutes I kept testing mine every 60 seconds but by the time areas were on the cusp of smoking, there were still some patches of un-caramelized icing sugar.
A quick carefully directed blast would have sorted it all out.
I hope everyone is enjoying the new year… I am reading even if I’m not posting so much this month. Hopefully soon I will be able to unveil my new Recipe Index. Wishing you all the best of luck with your new year projects and I hope to see you all here again soon.
We made one of these on Saturday evening, while we were in the UK. It was eaten rather quickly!
I can see them becoming an annual tradition in my house too!
Massive congratulations and Yum!
That looks fantastic! I have been wanting to bake this since I saw it on the Hairy Bikers before Christmas but I couldn’t work out what they were calling it – Geordie and French don’t mix well! Thanks for the recipe link 🙂
Yes I don’t understand them very much either… they’re quite amusing though.
Gorgeous galette des rois. My French friend made it last year. The almond filling was delicious.
Congratulations on your success. The galette looks very very nice. Mmmm
Thanks!
Congratulations on all your achievements!
Look at that layer of frangipane!! What a wonderful recipe for The Three Kings – a lovely way to mark the feast by having a feast!!
Ren x
The frangipane was indeed the best bit – I might see what other uses I can find for it.
Damn I didn’t win anything! Love the paper crown on Ted. Very stylish!
Ah better luck next time. Ted liked playing with the crown but got most enjoyment out of it falling off his head repeatedly.
So well deserved, congratulations, you are the best….but I don’t see any sign of “la feve” usually hidden in the galette
x
Damn, you’ve rumbled me. My husband has a total phobia about bits in food and the notion of a ceramic trinket didn’t go down well at all. Better in our house to decide in advance who the king is and give him his crown anyway…
A very well deserved two first places!
Thank you! Of course!
Congratulations to you! I really do love your blog – very inspiring and enjoy every word. Keep up the good work.
Thanks very much, that’s really lovely to hear.
congrats! you totally deserve it! Your Galette des Rois looks delicious, i’ve not heard of it but looks like something i would like. I’ll have to try making it for myself. Your little boy is sooo adorable! He practically stole the whole limelight of this post! LOL!
He’s always stealing limelight and he knows it! The galette is incredibly easy, especially if you use shop bought puff pastry… who makes that stuff these days? Mind you, I am planning to try!
It’s kind of like a Nigella birthday cake, since it’s for Epiphany. I baked for Forever Nigella btw – am just slow getting round to posting. Hopefully get it done tomorrow.
No hints. Other than the fact it’s gingerbread! 🙂
Fantastic! I can’t wait and I think you are my first gingerbread entry.
I love the paper crown. My teens went to a ‘cake party’ on the 6th and came home wearing them. They described the ceremony and I realised that it was a Gallette des Rois (their friends are French – duh!). Looking forward to the recipe index unveiling.
Well done on your “chart success” ;o) Very well deserved. And love the pics – T looks positively ecstatic about the galette!
Thank you… yes I think he was.
YAY!!! I am so glad you made this and I think it is perfect! It looks so delicious! I also still have problems getting the top to brown perfectly but it still tastes scrumptious! And Ted is adorable and I love the thrilled look on his face! Pretty darn great crown, you ask me. Thanks for sharing, babes! xo