Make This Simple and Elegant Dessert for Valentine’s Day
I love a light, impressive dessert. I want few ingredients, minimum effort and big payoff in the end. Galette de Roy is a delight on all fronts. It’s often made for Three Kings Day in early January, and there’s really no better time to make this dessert than whenever you want. Make it for your partner’s birthday, friends dropping by for dinner, or a sweet surprise on Valentine’s Day. With the wonders of ready-made puff pastry, all the hard work is done. In about 40 minutes you will have an amazing dessert.
Galette des rois is essentially puff pastry stuffed with a simple frangipane. There’s an extra féve (trinket or bean) for Three Kings Day, but I don’t find unexpected choking hazards in my dessert to be very funny, so we omit it. The most “hard” part of this recipe is making the almond cream filling, which is as simple as mixing the six room temperature ingredients in a bowl with a wooden spoon for 60 seconds. Spruce Eats has a very easy frangipane recipe where they even use a food processor to take care of the business. I would only substitute vanilla extract for almond extract if you have it because it makes all desserts better .
Once the frangipane is tossed, unravel this frozen aisle gem: store-bought buttered puff pastry. Make sure it’s thawed according to package directions, you won’t get far if it’s frozen. You will need two sheets of puff pastry, cut into circles of the same size. You can use a guide, such as a nine-inch cake pan on top, and trace around it with a knife. Do this with both sheets of dough. (You can technically skip the trim and make a rectangular cake. None of you are the boss.)
Place one circle on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and brush the outer inch with the egg mixture. Try not to let it run down the edge, otherwise it will prevent the dough from puffing up in these places. (The egg is cooked at a lower temperature than the batter, so the egg will harden before the batter has had time to do its magic.) Fill the center with an even layer of almond frangipane, about a third of an inch thick. Place a second sheet of pastry on top and gently press the edges to touch the egg mixture, then brush the top with the egg mixture. If you want a classic sunburst pattern on top, or any pattern at all, now is the time. Use the back of the paring knife (not the cutting edge) to make the indents. Bake in preheated 425°F oven for 25 minutes. Finish off with powdered sugar.
For a sweet hint of Valentine’s Day, spread the thinnest dabs of raspberry or strawberry jam on your baked goods before applying the frangipane. When you cut the dough, you will see a strip of pink color and you will feel a fruity taste. Galette des rois is best served during the day, but you can cut leftovers into individual slices, wrap them well, and freeze them. When you’re craving something sweet, just heat it up in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.
Galette de Roy
Ingredients:
- 2 sheets of store-bought puff pastry, thawed
- 1 frangipane
- 1 tablespoon raspberry jam (optional)
- egg wash
- Powdered sugar for decoration
Preheat oven to 425°F. Use an inverted cake pan to guide you as you cut out a circle from each sheet of puff pastry. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place one sheet of puff pastry in the center.
Egg wash the outer inch of dough. If using, spread the jam in a thin layer down the center. Spread a third of an inch of jasmine over the jam. Cover with the second round of puff pastry, pressing the edges to adhere to the egg mixture. Brush the entire surface with a thin layer of the egg mixture. If desired, you can lightly decorate the surface with the back of the knife to get a criss-cross pattern, or an asterisk. Bake immediately for 25 minutes. Cool before serving and sprinkle with powdered sugar.