A few weeks ago, my students and I explored the country of France in our cooking class. The menu included chicken provencal, gratin dauphinois, and a pithivier.
It was the first time I made a pithivier, also known as a galette des Rois in the north of France or gateau des Rois in the south of France. These things were all over Paris when we were there in January. It is basically an almond filling sandwiched between layers of puff pastry, but now there are fancy versions with all kinds of different flavors instead. A toy charm is hidden inside, and the lucky person who receives the slice gets to be king for the day (and gets to wear a lovely crown!). The New Orleans king cake has a similar concept, except it is made with cake batter and is swirled with tons of color.
The pithivier went over well with the kids, except one was observant enough to see where the charm (aka plastic octopus) was- I didn't do a good job remembering where I put it and made a cut too closeby. She quickly snatched the special slice and the crown that came with it, becoming princess of the class. Not that I wouldn't have done the same thing myself- what girl doesn't want a tiara?
Bon Appétit!
Love reading your blog! The pithivier is still quite popular in Louisiana around this time of year--Mardi Gras--in addition to the typical king cake. A great one is had from Poupart's bakery in Layfayette. Do you have a recipe for the one you made?
Posted by: Madeline | February 21, 2007 at 04:42 PM
Dear Christine,
I really enjoyed reading your blog, and I laughed a lot since I am French and I liked the way you just kidded us (especially when you talk about the jug of waters in restaurants (as I am also an ex-waitress, and I also tried to deshydrate my customers so that they take a bottle of mineral water... business is business). I also appreciated the articles on Le Cordon Bleu, because I think it is very realistic... it is a great school, with great chefs, but it is true that the building is getting old... I also liked the articles on the restaurants you went to... you are a sort of spoiled girl aren't you ? What made me smile is that you wrote ten times that you were a poor student with a tiny budget, but you went to an impressive number of good restaurants !!! and your passion for Pierre Hermé is not what I would call a cheap hobby... well... keep going and bon appétit !!!
Posted by: Marie | February 24, 2007 at 04:56 AM