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    Home » DESSERTS & BAKING » TARTS & PIES

    Galette Des Rois | French King Cake (With A British Twist)

    Published: November 26, 2021 · Updated: August 5, 2022 by Ieva · This post may contain affiliate links · 9 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    A classic French recipe served on the day of Epiphany, Galette des Rois translates to the “Cake of Kings”. This simple recipe uses a shop-bought puff pastry and easy-to-make almond frangipane filling. We have also used some mincemeat in the cake to add a Great British twist to this French Epiphany Cake!

    Take Me To:
    • The Last Cake of The Season
    • What is Galette Des Rois?
    • Method: How to Make French Kings Cake?
    • Christmas Baking Recipes
    • Recipe Card

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    The Last Cake of The Season

    Every year, there is such a huge build-up to Christmas for me. I start anticipating and getting excited about Christmas at the beginning of December. And then… Christmas passes all too quickly. New Year’s Eve is normally the final day for overindulgence and merrymaking before I go into the new year: chess puffed, jaw clenched in determination to turn my life around, a list of New Year’s resolutions firmly in my hand.

    But there’s one more day to indulge – the 6th of January – or Epiphany. And on this day, the French make the most delicious puff pastry pie with almond filling!

    A slice of epiphany cake on a small white plate with a dessert fork on a wooden table.

    What is Galette Des Rois?

    A widespread French tradition is to serve Galette des Rois on the 6th of January – the day when three wise men visited baby Jesus. However, these days, French King Cake is enjoyed over the whole Christmas and New Year season! You will definitely start seeing Galette des Rois in the window displays of boulangerie throughout December if you’re travelling in France (Seb said he saw a few at the beginning of November when he was visiting earlier this year)!

    Traditionally, this Epiphany Cake was made into a game at a table. A fève (typically, a small porcelain figurine or a bean) was placed in the almond filling of the cake. When serving, a child would hide under the table and shout out the names of the people around the table to announce who gets the next slice. The person who finds the bean in their cake would either become the king (or queen) for the day or get the right to choose who should be crowned.

    We made ours with a whole almond hidden in the filling, instead of the bean (purely for health & safety reasons!). We have also added a British twist to this otherwise French classic – some traditional British Christmas mincemeat on the base of the cake and then proceeded as usual, with almond cream and the top layer of puff pastry. Feel free to skip the mincemeat, if you want to make a more traditional Galette des Rois this Christmas!

    A slice of French King Cake being taken out of the full galette on a white square plate.

    Method: How to Make French Kings Cake?

    Dust a kitchen surface with flour and roll out the pastry to about 2-3mm thick. Using plates as templates, cut out two circles, a 20cm (for the bottom) and a 22cm circle (for the top). Place the circles in between two baking parchment sheets (we highly recommend using Bacofoil baking paper) and refrigerate while you make the filling.

    Beat the softened butter and icing sugar together until smooth using an electric handheld mixer. Add ground almonds (we use Stock’d), and an egg and beat until combined. Cover and pop it in the fridge for 20 minutes.

    Place the 20cm circle of pastry on a baking parchment-lined sheet. Spread the mincemeat leaving a 2cm gap from the edge. Then spread almond filling on top, again avoiding the 2cm edge.

    Hide one whole almond somewhere in the almond filling – whoever finds it is the winner (more on the game in the text above).

    Using a pastry brush, brush the beaten egg yolk around the 2cm edge (reserve the rest of the yolk). Then cover with the 22cm circle of puff pastry, pressing down carefully to get rid of any air pockets around the filling and to seal.

    A circle of puff pastry, topped with minced meat and almond paste, the edge of pastry being brushed with egg.
    French King Cake on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.

    Place the galette in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours to chill.

    Preheat the oven to 160°C Fan.

    When ready to bake, take the epiphany cake out of the fridge and score the pastry in a spiral pattern using a blunt knife, taking care not to go through the pastry. Make a small hole in the middle of the galette for the steam to escape. Brush the top with the reserved egg yolk.

    Scoring the top of the pastry with a knife.
    Scoring the top of the pastry with a knife.

    Bake the galette for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown.

    Once cooked, leave the French king cake to cool down for 10-15 minutes and serve warm.


    Christmas Baking Recipes

    For various other ideas for your Christmas baking, have a look at the recipes below:

    • Spiced Oat and Cranberry Cookies
    • Black Forest Gatteau Mousse Cake
    • Sourdough Panettone

    Recipe Card

    Galette Des Rois on a square white plate being cut into.

    Christmas Galette Des Rois | French King Cake

    A classic French recipe served on the day of Epiphany, Galette des Rois translates to the "Cake of Kings". This simple recipe uses a shop-bought puff pastry and easy-to-make almond frangipane filling. We have also used some mincemeat in the cake to add a Great British twist to this French classic!
    5 from 6 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 40 mins
    Chilling Time: 1 hr
    Total Time 1 hr 50 mins
    Course Baking, Dessert
    Cuisine Christmas, French
    Servings 8 portions
    Calories 448 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 375 g ready-rolled puff pastry
    • 75 g unsalted butter at room temperature
    • 50 g icing sugar
    • 75 g ground almonds
    • 1 egg medium
    • 2 tablespoon mincemeat
    • 1 whole almond
    • 1 egg yolk beaten

    Instructions
     

    • Dust a kitchen surface with flour and roll out the pastry to about 2-3mm thick. Using plates as templates, cut out two circles, a 20cm (for the bottom) and a 22cm circle (for the top). Place the circles in between two baking parchment sheets and refrigerate while you make the filling.
    • Beat the softened butter and icing sugar together until smooth using an electric handheld mixer. Add ground almonds, and an egg and beat until combined. Cover and pop it in the fridge for 20 minutes.
    • Place the 20cm circle of pastry on a baking parchment-lined sheet. Spread the mincemeat leaving a 2cm gap from the edge. Then spread almond filling on top, again avoiding the 2cm edge.
    • Hide one whole almond somewhere in the almond filling – whoever finds it is the winner (more on the game in the text above).
    • Using a pastry brush, brush the beaten egg yolk around the 2cm edge (reserve the rest of the yolk). Then cover with the 22cm circle of puff pastry, pressing down carefully to get rid of any air pockets around the filling and to seal.
    • Place the galette in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours to chill.
    • Preheat the oven to 160°C Fan.
    • When ready to bake, take the galette out of the fridge and score the pastry in a spiral pattern using a blunt knife, taking care not to go through the pastry. Make a small hole in the middle of the galette for the steam to escape. Brush the top with the reserved egg yolk.
    • Bake the galette for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown.
    • Once cooked, leave the galette to cool down for 10-15 minutes and serve warm.

    Notes

    Slightly adapted from a recipe by Raymond Blanc

    Nutrition

    Calories: 448kcalCarbohydrates: 34gProtein: 7gFat: 32gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 149mgPotassium: 44mgFiber: 2gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 297IUCalcium: 33mgIron: 2mg
    Keyword Alternative Christmas Dessert, Christmas Baking, Christmas Cakes, Christmas Recipes, Epiphany Cake, Frangipane and Puff Pastry Pie, French Christmas Bakes, French Christmas Desserts, French King Cake, Galette Des Rois, Galette Des Rois with a Twist, Galette Des Rois With Mincemeat
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
    Pin for Pinterest.

    More TARTS & PIES

    • Caramel Tartlet Recipe
    • Brown Sugar Sweet Potato Pie with Pecans & Pretzels
    • Delicious Pumpkin Pie (Without Evaporated Milk)
    • French Fruit Tart (Tarte Aux Fruits)

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Toni

      January 12, 2022 at 1:05 pm

      5 stars
      This is really good!! My family really loved it! I will definitely make it again!

      Reply
      • Ieva

        January 13, 2022 at 7:17 am

        That’s great! Nothing beats a good classic French recipe! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Aimee Mars

      January 20, 2022 at 12:04 pm

      5 stars
      This recipe was really unfamiliar to me and I was nervous to try it. So worth it. I felt like it took me just a tad longer but now that I’ve done it once, I could roll with it and follow the timing guideline. 100% recommend. Delicious!

      Reply
      • Ieva

        January 20, 2022 at 8:51 pm

        So glad you tried it and found it worth the effort! 💗

        Reply
    3. Tayler

      October 11, 2022 at 1:26 pm

      5 stars
      I’ve made this french king cake several times and it always turns out perfectly! So delicious and everyone loves it!

      Reply
      • Ieva

        October 13, 2022 at 1:54 pm

        Thanks, Tayler! Glad you all like it 🙂

        Reply
    4. Dannii

      November 17, 2022 at 12:59 pm

      5 stars
      I love the British twist on this. It looks super comforting.

      Reply
    5. Anonymous

      December 28, 2022 at 10:51 am

      5 stars
      I love the twist of mincemeat to this French classic. I’ve never made a galette des rois before and this recipe was so easy to make and the family loved it too.

      Reply
      • Ieva

        January 02, 2023 at 12:41 pm

        Thanks for trying our recipe! Glad it was a hit! 💗

        Reply

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    Hi, I am Ieva – the face behind this blog. I live in North Wales with my husband Seb and our golden retriever Sawyer. It’s safe to say that I live and breathe food: from researching and reading about food to creating new recipes and growing vegetables to use in my cooking.  The great thing is, Seb appreciates all the good meals that are also essential at his worst ‘hangry’ moments! Somebody HAS to feed Seb…

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