Celebrate the new year by baking a galette de rois with buttery frangipane.

Galette de Rois Recipe: How to Make French King Cake

A galette de rois, or king cake, is a French tart made of puff pastry and [frangipane](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/frangipane-recipe), an almond cream filling. In January, accompanying the Feast of the Kings, Parisian bakeries prepare galettes de rois with a trinket or fève hidden inside the frangipane filling, similar to an American king cake. Bakeries sell the pastries along with a gold paper crown so that whoever finds the trinket in their slice can wear it as king or queen of the day.

The galette de rois is a seasonal French dessert eaten during the Fête des Rois, or the Feast of the Kings. This celebration takes place on January sixth, the Epiphany, and honors the arrival of the magi to Bethlehem. A trinket, typically a small figurine, is hidden in frangipane enclosed in two layers of buttery puff pastry. Bakers can use a bean or an almond as the trinket. If your slice contains the trinket, you are the honorary king or queen for the day. 

Galette des rois is traditional in the northern part of France. However, in the south, they serve King’s Crown Brioche, a crown-shaped brioche with a topping of candied fruit for the occasion.

Celebrate the new year by baking a galette de rois with buttery frangipane.

A galette de rois, or king cake, is a French tart made of puff pastry and <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/frangipane-recipe' target='_self' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/frangipane-recipe","linkCopy":"frangipane","category":null}'>frangipane</a>, an almond cream filling. In January, accompanying the Feast of the Kings, Parisian bakeries prepare galettes de rois with a trinket or fève hidden inside the frangipane filling, similar to an American king cake. Bakeries sell the pastries along with a gold paper crown so that whoever finds the trinket in their slice can wear it as king or queen of the day.

What Is a Galette de Rois? 

The galette de rois is a seasonal French dessert eaten during the Fête des Rois, or the Feast of the Kings. This celebration takes place on January sixth, the Epiphany, and honors the arrival of the magi to Bethlehem. A trinket, typically a small figurine, is hidden in frangipane enclosed in two layers of buttery puff pastry. Bakers can use a bean or an almond as the trinket. If your slice contains the trinket, you are the honorary king or queen for the day. Galette des rois is traditional in the northern part of France. However, in the south, they serve King’s Crown Brioche, a crown-shaped brioche with a topping of candied fruit for the occasion.

Origins of the Galette de Rois 

Traditional Galette de Rois Recipe 

Celebrate the new year by baking a galette de rois with buttery frangipane.