Happy New Year ! I hope you have all had a great start to 2020 and I’m glad to see you back here on the blog ! After the holidays, it’s great to get back to sharing recipes with you and I’m excited to see what this next year has in store. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and planning recently for A Veganable Feast and there’s lots of new things coming up this year that I can’t wait to show you. Be prepared for a few improvements to the site and a bit more variety of posts !
Before we get to today’s recipe, I would love to ask you something. What would you like to see more of on the site this year ? Any recipe requests ? Questions you have ? General things you’d enjoy reading or looking at ? Feel free to leave a comment below so I can use this site to better meet what you’re looking for as we’re explore this world of plant-based cooking together. I’d love to hear from you !
Alright, on to the recipe. This one is a seasonal French classic. Today (January 6th) is a holiday called Epiphany. And to celebrate, people all over France gather with family and friends to share a galette des rois, which is basically a layer of almond filling sandwiched between two layers of pastry crust. Sounds so simple and delicious, right ? That’s because it is! Throughout the whole month of January, you’ll see these galettes des rois in the windows of pretty much every boulangerie with golden paper crowns stacked on top of them because roi means king.
Traditionally, when baked, there is a small porcelain toy hidden somewhere inside called the fève and whoever gets the slice with the fève is crowned king/queen for the evening and gets to wear the crown. To ensure the slices our fairly distributed, the youngest person in the room is supposed to sit under the table so they can’t see the galette being sliced. Then, they call out names one by one to decide who gets which slice.
This delicious dessert and fun tradition are something to look forward to every January in France and it’s something I don’t like to miss out on. A couple years ago, I decided to do a sugar fast at the beginning of the year and was very disappointed once I realized that it would mean no galette des rois !
If you can find ready-made vegan puff pastry dough, then this dessert is very simple to throw together, but will be sure to impress your guests ! The almond flavor shines through in a filling that is just sweet enough, but not overly so, while the pastry adds rich, flaky goodness.
This recipe is fun to bake, yummy to eat and will certainly be a crowd-pleaser to serve to vegans and non-vegans alike ! Ready to try it ? Check out the recipe below and be sure to let me know what you think down in the comments !
Ingredients :
(Makes about 6-8 servings)
- 1 flax egg (1 tbs ground flax seed mixed with 3 tbs water)
- 1.5 cups almond flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup vegan butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ready-made vegan puff pastry doughs (Mine were discs with a 30 cm diameter)
- 1 tsp sunflower oil (or other mild oil)
- 2 tbs simple syrup (optional)
Directions :
- Prepare your flax egg by mixing the ground flax seed and water in a bowl and letting it sit for 5 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the almond flour and sugar, being sure to break down any clumps. Next, add the vegan butter and vanilla and mix well with a fork (you could also use a hand beater or stand mixer if you prefer, but a fork works just fine.)
- Place the filling mixture in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes. In the mean time, preheat the oven to 200°C or 390°F.
- Once the filing has chilled, place one of the puff pastry doughs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.*
- Scoop the filling out onto the dough, being sure to leave a 1/2 to 1 inch border clean around the edges.
- Next, fill a small bowl with water. Dip your fingers in the water and then run them around the edges. This will act as a glue to help seal the edges once you place the top layer of puff pastry on.
- Prepare the second puff pastry dough by cutting it to the same size as the first one if necessary (see note).
- Gently lay the second dough on top of the dough with the filling. Press down the edges well where the water is acting as our glue. You’ll want to make sure the edges are all well sealed to avoid any leaks (Trust me on this one… mine leaked a bit even after I thought I had sealed it well, so its good to be extra sure.)
- This step is optional but quite simple : Use a knife to create a decorative pattern in the top layer of the dough by finding the center and gently running a knife from the center out to one side in a slight curve pattern. Do this over and over all around the tart, being sure to only run the knife through the surface of the dough and not cutting through to the filling.
- Pour the sunflower oil into a small bowl and, using your fingers, gently rub the oil evenly over the tart. This will help give it a nice golden color once baked.
- Place the sheet pan with the prepared galette des rois in the oven and let bake for about 10-15 minutes. Once the dough starts to rise and turns golden, reduce the heat to 180°C or 350°F and let bake for about another 15 minutes (Be sure to keep in eye on it as it bakes, as ovens vary). It will be ready once it’s nice and golden and the crust appears to be baked through (You can check this by gently lifting the galette with a spatula and seeing that it’s baked and golden underneath).
- Optional : Once the galette has cooled for about 5 minutes, pour some simple syrup* in a bowl, dip your fingers in and gently rub the simple syrup all over the crust to give it a shiny effect.
Notes :
*My puff pastry was too large to fit on my baking sheet, So I cut a smaller circle out of the dough by tracing a circular pan (24 cm). In the end, I used the extra dough and some filling to make another smaller one in addition to the main one.
*Simple syrup can be made by combining sugar and water in a 1:1 ratio in a sauce pan and warming over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Stir well, then let cool before using.
