Hi everyone! Here’s the first recipe of King Cake that I’ll share with you! King Cake or “Galette des Rois” is a French pastry eaten on January 6 to celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany. This one is made up of a Puff Pastry and filled with a Chocolate and Hazelnut Frangipane (which is a blend of custard cream and almond/hazelnut cream). It is also topped with Chocolate and Hazelnut Spread, as well as some Caramelized Hazelnuts.
For the puff pastry I’ve decided to use the quick technique, but you can make the traditional puff pastry if you want ?
For a 21x21cm King Cake:
Puff Pastry:
- 250g of flour
- 200g of butter
- 125mL of water
- 5g of salt
Frangipane:
Custard Cream:
- 125mL of milk
- 20g of egg yolks (= 1)
- 5g of corn starch
- 5g of flour
- 50g of sugar
- 5g of butter
- 33g of dark chocolate
Hazelnut and Almond Cream:
- 55g of butter
- 47g of hazelnut powder
- 47g of almond powder
- 65g of sugar (granulated or icing)
- 57g of eggs (= 1 large)
Chocolate Spread:
- 50g of hazelnuts
- 42g of dark chocolate
- 10g of caramelized hazelnuts
Caramelized Hazelnuts:
- 70g of hazelnuts
- 25g of sugar
- 12g of water
- One pinch of salt
Egg wash:
- 1 egg
- 5g of liquid cream
Syrup:
- 20g of water
- 20g of sugar
We’ll start with the puff pastry:
1. In a bowl, place the flour, the salt and the cold butter cut into small pieces.
2. Roughly mix with the flat beater of a stand mixer (or your hands). There must still be pieces of butter left.
3. Add the very cold water and mix until everything is well-combined. Be careful not to overmix, there must still remain pieces of butter, it’s normal.
4. Put the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll it out. It should be 2 to 3 times longer than wide.
5. Fold the top of the dough on the center. Remove the flour with a brush.
6. Now, fold the bottom part over the top part.
7. Turn the dough a quarter turn to the left or to the right (once you’ve decided the direction you must keep the same).
8. Repeat these steps 4 more times.
This is how the dough looks like at the 5th turn 
9. If the dough becomes hard to manipulate, refrigerate for a couple of minutes.
10. After you’ve made these steps 5 times in total, wrap the dough with cling film and refrigerate 1h at least (I prefer to make it the day before so the dough is easier to work with).
For the chocolate spread:
1. Roast the hazelnuts for 10-15min in a 150°C/302°F preheated oven. Let them cool down.
2. Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie (or microwave).
3. Mix the hazelnuts until you get a smooth paste.
4. Add the melted chocolate and mix.
5. Store in a jar until use.
For the caramelized hazelnuts:
1. In a saucepan, heat the water and sugar until it reaches 116°C.
2. Add the roasted hazelnuts and mix.
3. A thin layer of white sugar will coat the nuts, keep cooking over medium heat, while stirring, until all the sugar caramelizes.
4. Spread over a silicone mat (or greased tray) and let it cool down.
5. Keep in an air-tight container.
For the custard cream (to make a day ahead):
1. Whisk the sugar with the egg yolks for a few seconds until it slightly whitens.
2. Add the flour and the corn starch.
3. Bring to boil the milk. Pour it little by little over the egg mixture.
4. Bring everything back to the pan and cook over medium heat until it thickens. You must stir constantly.
5. Off the heat, add the butter and the chocolate.
6. Pour in a dish and wrap with cling film (it must touch the surface). Refrigerate overnight (or at least 4h).
The next day:
1. Take the custard cream out of the fridge and whisk it for a few minutes to loosen it. Let it out of the fridge at least 1h so it returns to room temperature.
2. Cream the softened butter with the sugar. You must take the butter out of the fridge at least 1h-1h30 before starting so it is very soft.
3. Add the hazelnut powder and the almond powder.
4. Add the eggs little by little and mix. I use a spatula because it’s better not to incorporate too much air.
5. Gently incorporate the custard cream to the hazelnut/almond cream. The mixture must be smooth and homogeneous.
6. Refrigerate until use.
It’s time to assemble!
1. Divide the puff pastry into two.
2. Roll out the first half over a slightly floured surface until you can cut a 21x21cm square. Cut the square with a sharp knife (don’t use the mold to cut the dough)
3. Refrigerate.
4. Repeat this step for the other half.
5. Spread the hazelnut cream over this square. Leave a 1,5-2cm border.
6. Brush the edges of the square with water and then cover with the other half of dough.
7. Weld the edges by slightly pressing with your fingers.
8. Mix the egg with the cream and wash the top with a brush.
9. Refrigerate for 1h.
10. Preheat the oven to 170°C/338°F fan-assisted.
11. Brush the surface a second time with the egg wash and cook for 35-40min. The pie must be golden. Then, reduce the temperature to 160°C/320°F and cook for 5 more minutes.
12. Bring to boil the water with the sugar and then brush the top of the pie with this syrup.
For the topping:
1. Heat the chocolate spread in a bain-marie (or in the microwave) until it’s liquid.
2. Take 10g of the caramelized hazelnuts and finely chop.
3. Add them to the chocolate spread and mix.
4. Spread over the pie.
5. Also chop the remaining caramelized hazelnuts (less finely) and add them over the chocolate spread.
Your delicious Hazelnut and Chocolate King Cake is ready!
Please feel free to ask all your questions in the comment section and don’t forget to send me pictures of your realisation on my email address: partage@justonemorecake.com or send me a DM on my Instagram account: blog_justonemorecake, I will post them at the end of the post 🙂
