Another Mystery Solved!

Last night we went out for sushi with Zoe. She is a Canadian friend of mine, but knows a lot more about French culture than I do. I asked her about the 'galettes' that we have been seeing in all the bakeries lately. They are puff pastry tarts filled with a variety of things, and there is usually a crown on top that someone could wear. Apparently there is some celebration coming up where you eat these cakes, but the interesting part is that there is a coin baked into the cakes, and whoever finds the coin wears the crown. A couple of nights ago Samir and Christy picked up dessert for us, and one of the desserts was a round cake, and they had gotten a gold crown with it. We figured it was a birthday cake or something. Howard had a peice the next day and was quite surprised to bite into a hard tile with his mouthful. We all thought that it was a mistake, and that it had somehow made it into the cake by accident. We even considered going into the store and showing them what we had found, as it was quite dangerous, biting down on something very hard. Wouldn't we have been surprised when they told us it was supposed to be there, and that Howard was the lucky one, and should have worn the crown!

We said goodbye to Christy this morning (who is hoping to get bumped off her flight so she can stay longer...fingers are crossed!), and we're glad to hear that Howard and Joan made it home safely.

Update:
It's always nice to know that people are reading the blog, and I got two emails about 'galettes'. Here's what they had to say:

Liane: did you know that they do that (galettes) in french canadian culture too? It's part of petit noel, that comes in January.

Joan: And here's what I found out about the cake in that beautiful French cookbook that you gave me last Christmas. They call it "Pithiviers" as it "originated in Pithiviers in the Loire Valley". They go on to say that it is traditionally served on the twelfth night, when it is known as "Galette Des Rois" and usually contains a bean that brings good luck to whomever finds it in their slice. No doubt the Dental Association of the Loire Valley region promotes this version of the recipe.

Thats it for now!