Recipe: Nutella-rum galette des rois (or de reines)

I'd never made a galette de rois before because well, I'm not French nor religious. In California, these galettes were uncommon, and as of the last two years, 6th Jan has bleakly become the anniversary of the attempted coup of the American government.

In Europe however, the 6th Jan retains its original significance of the Epiphany, or when the Bible recounts the arrival of the Three Wise Men in Bethlehem. Galette des rois means "king's cake" and is eaten after dinner as a marker of celebration. There is even a small trinket, called a fêve, hidden in the cake, and whoever gets the fêve in their slice gets to be king (or queen!) of the day.

In the week leading up to 6th Jan, and for most of the month afterwards, every bakery in London sells galettes des rois. When I walk around, I wonder how if there's such thing as pastry appropriation—am I allowed to make a dessert if it doesn't belong to my religion or culture? Does this galette still hold the same significance centuries later?

I'm exploring these questions for a future newsletter. But whether you celebrate or not, I'm convinced that it's okay to eat something sweet simply because you want to. We're all kings and queens here!