A galette for the Epiphany!
First Sunday of January and beyond.
The celebration of Epiphany in France is a tradition at least as important as Christmas... no presents, no buche, but a galette des rois or king's cake!
On January 6 most French families meet to eat "La Galette des Rois", a puff pastry cake with almond frangipane filling. It contains a charm (originally a bean called “la fève”), whoever finds it in its slice becomes the King or Queen for the day!
Where to find it in the Bay Area ?
La Boulange, San Francisco and beyond
Last year, La Boulange created 9 different charms: Coït Tower, Golden Gate Bridge, Cable Car, Transamerica, La Boulange... last year, we wanted them all, but couldn't eat enough galette. This year, you could also find one of the 5 golden tickets to win goodies, gift certificates, book...
Call your order in at La Boulange or usde the app La Boulange on the go.
Arizmendi
Whole year long, you indulge yourself with their scones or amazing pizzas.
Apparently, they should offer Kings Cakes only the 6th of January.
For the other cooperatives in SF on Valencia or in the Bay Area, you'd better call to check with them, because they don't necessarily offer the same products.
Arizmendi
1331 9th avenue, SF
Thorough Bread
They will be closed beginning of January. But the galette will be available January 10,11 and 12. People are more than welcome to stop by the bakery to pick one up those days. No need to order them in advance.
(6-8 people - $23.50)
Thorough Bread
248 Church Street, San Francisco
La Bedaine, Berkeley
La Bedaine's galette is made with puff pastry and frangipane. The feve is a whole almond. The best way to order is to call a couple of days in advance. Note that La Bedaine will be closed January 1-3 and January 6 as every Monday.
Available for the whole month of January.
1585 Solano Avenue, Berkeley
Masse's pastries, Berkeley
They will be closed beginning of January, and back the 9th! Starting then, their galette will be available until January 26. The recipe includes almond cream and apricot jam... humm... Yule logs were pure delight and the service elegant and delicate. It's definitely worth the wait... until January 9!
($28 - 9' round)
Masse's pastries
1469 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley
Douce France, Palo Alto
Here, the "galette des rois" made with frangipane
can be purchased until the end of January. That leaves us many chances to become the king or queen!
Order in advance or drop by.
855 El Camino real, Palo Alto
You can also take a look at our selection of addresses of bakeries and pastry shops to eventually discover other great savors and recipes.
And why not celebrate "Kings' Day" the Mexican way ?
In Mexico or Spanish America, the traditionnal Epiphany cake has an oval shape to symbolize a crown. Some Mexican bakeries in the Mission district sell the famous rosca de reyes. We tried the rosca from La Victoria bakery in San Francisco last year (the waiting line in front of the store was definitely a good sign). It was delicious!
2937 24th street
You can also bake it yourself and become the king/queen of the galette if not the king/queen of the day!
It seems difficult to you ? Try this recipe from the French website Elle a Table (well it's in French, we hope you have a good translation program on your computer).
Here are some hints to find the ingredients in SF: ready made frozen puff pastries (pâte feuilletée toute prête) are available at Trader Joe's (not always, though), at Whole Foods or Andronico's (brand Dufour) or in your supermarket (Pepperidge Farm sheets).
For the almond powder (poudre d'amande), go to Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods. And maïzena is the French word for « cornstarch ».
We told you it was easy !
