Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

I know, I'm a little late. But I've been busy. I had to make my way past the storm that closed the Northeast's airports to get back, before dashing across the country. I spent New Year's Eve at a huge dance on the outskirts of Paris, and some time on January 1 wandering along the brilliantly lit Champs Elysees. Notre Dame was lovely.

And then I went back to CERN and back to work. It's amazing how much one forgets after taking a couple weeks to not think about one's code. One wonders how it ever worked in the first place.

But physics musings must be set aside as I pay proper homage to a French New Year's tradition I've decided I quite like. The tradition would be eating les galettes des rois. Apparently, this was originally done on Epiphany to celebrate the wise men bringing gifts to the Christ child, but now the French bakeries just seem to supply them for the entire month. The confection is two layers of puff pastry sandwiched around a great deal of creme d'amande, scored in elegant patterns and baked.

I had to try one. I love almonds in my desserts.

There are apparently also traditions regarding the youngest child of the family hiding under the table and deciding who gets the first and second and third pieces as the cake is cut, and a little toy or bean will be hidden in the cake and however receives it in their piece is king or queen for the day. These sounds wonderfully fun as well, but as I don't have younger siblings handy I couldn't do it that way. Also, being sans younger siblings and all, I couldn't eat my way through a normal sized galette, because they are a bit large for a single person.

So I decided to make a little single serving version. No, I had never tasted one before. And, since I couldn't find pre-made puff pastry, I decided to make my own. Without a rolling pin, because I couldn't locate one of those either. I consigned the pastry to be a pasty, layerless lump, but the almond filling would taste good.

And so I did, using a level-sided glass to roll out the dough and opening my windows so the January air could keep the butter from melting. I would do several things differently, but I have this to say for my first effort:



Look, layers!