In France, the holiday festivities do not end with New Years. Rather, they continue throughout the month of January and into the beginning of February.
The Epiphany (the day the three Wise Men came bearing gifts to the newborn Jesus) is celebrated on Jan. 6. Family and friends come together and share a “la Galette des Rois,” or Kings’ Cake, which traditionally is said to “draw in the Kings” for the Epiphany. These specialties are generally round. However, the recipe varies by region. A brioche cake is the tradition in Angers, whereas a very flat dry cake is customary to Tours. A flaky pastry dough cake filled with frangipane, an almond paste, is very common nowadays.
No matter the differences in the ingredients, all king cakes have one thing in common: la fève, or bean. In origin, a bean was in fact placed inside of the cake. However, today you can find all sorts of plastic, ceramic or porcelain figurines hidden inside. Bakeries even often have a “theme” in the different fèves they offer. For example, the bakery I bought my cake from had a nautical theme, and I received a figurine of a fish.
Why is there a trinket hidden inside the cake?
When the cake is cut, it will end up in one person’s slice. To ensure random distribution, the youngest hides under the table and calls out the name of the guest who should receive each slice of the galette while the host passes them out. The person who receives the fève in their piece is crowned the king, or “roi,” or queen, or “reine,” and wears the gold paper crown given with the cake. As part of the “royal” duties, this person then invites the company back to their place to partake in another sharing of a galette des rois. These festivities continue throughout the month of January.
Interestingly, I learned that the President of France is unable to eat a galette with a fève due to the fact that it would be improper for him to be crowned “king.” As can be seen, the current Republic over the old monarchy is very important to the French.
On the first day back from the holiday vacation, one of my professors brought in two galettes of the Tours variety. My classmates and I ate in anticipation, waiting to see who would be crowned. Alas, we had a king and a queen. On our last day of class this semester, they each brought in a frangipane galette! My professor was surprised the fèves in these cakes came bearing messages: “Je mange naturel,” meaning I eat natural, and “les arbres sont mes amis,” which meant trees are my friends. She told us that it was most likely an offspring of the “bio” movement in France.
Many people are opting to eat natural, locally grown food and preserving the environment. These two days in class were definitely very fun, a great cultural experience, and something I’ll always remember!
I shared this festive event and what I learned in class by bringing a galette des rois to the family dinner at my house where I live with five other exchange students.
“It’s a fun tradition for sharing with your family, especially with the trinket hidden inside,” said Maria Jose Arcos from Ecuador.
Although the Epiphany festivities end with January, the French celebrate la chandeleur (the commemoration of Mary being purified and presenting Jesus at the temple) on Feb. 2 by eating many crêpes.
As part of tradition, you hold a coin in the hand you write with while flipping a crêpe in the pan with your other hand and making a wish. If you successfully flip and land the crêpe, you will have good fortune for the year!
One of the many advantages of studying abroad is being able to partake in cultural holiday traditions not highly celebrated in the United States, such as the Epiphany.
