La Galette des Rois

In honour of the French tradition, we had a "Galettes des Rois" (pastry pie with almond filling for kings) celebration.

According to Marcus, the party organizer, (grey sweater and glasses): "this is a celebration of l'Epiphanie or the day on which the three kings Gaspard, Balthazar and Melchior came to pay their tribute to the world-famous baby (Christ). Like many a Christian holiday, this one has lost all religious meaning for most of us, gaining a sweeter, much more buttery one in the process: on the day of the Epiphany, families share a Galette des Rois, a flaky pastry pie filled with frangipane, a butter-rich, smooth almond paste. Ymmm. The person who gets the slice of pie with a round ceramic coin (see photo) gets the crown and becomes the king (or queen). The actual date on which to have the galette has gotten fuzzier and fuzzier: some families celebrate it on the 6th of January, some on the first Sunday in January, it's seems to be celebrated all through the month of January."

Guess who won found a ceramic surprise in her slice? Moi!