I’m wasting no time in sharing with you this delicious hazelnut and gianduja galette des rois recipe. January isn’t over yet, so here’s a good excuse to eat some more!
This year, I wanted a change from the traditional frangipane galette des rois (which I also made, by the way — still as good as ever). And I fancied hazelnut! I went all-in on hazelnut in every preparation: pastry cream made with hazelnut plant-based drink (Alpro), hazelnut cream, gianduja (made with hazelnuts, naturally) and caramelised hazelnuts. Obviously, if you’re not a fan of hazelnuts, I’m almost tempted to tell you to move along, or to take a look at my more classic frangipane galette des rois recipe.
I used shop-bought puff pastry to lighten the workload a little. Picard’s is excellent, I recommend it! But you can of course make your own homemade puff pastry — I advise you to make an inverse puff pastry, more melt-in-the-mouth and perfect for the galette.
Personally, I loved this galette and will definitely make it again! (my colleagues really liked it too, even though we ate it a little too hot, unfortunately). The hazelnut flavour is (obviously) very present and it’s a real delight! Enjoy it warm so that all the flavours develop wonderfully!
Ingredients & Method
6 components · Full recipe
Gianduja (can be made in advance)
Ingredients
- 100 g (3.5 oz) shelled and roasted hazelnuts
- 100 g (3.5 oz) icing sugar
- 100 g (3.5 oz) milk chocolate
Method
1
Toast the hazelnuts in a preheated oven at 150°C / 300°F for about 10 minutes.
2
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
3
Rub the hazelnuts between your hands to remove as much of the skin as possible (a little left is fine).
4
Place the milk chocolate in a bowl and melt it in the microwave.
5
Blend the hazelnuts with the icing sugar.
6
Add the melted milk chocolate and blend again until you obtain a smooth, supple paste (taste it — it’s divine ^^).
7
Transfer half of the gianduja into a piping bag fitted with a smooth tip of about 8 mm in diameter. Keep the remaining gianduja in an airtight container covered with cling film. It can be stored for several weeks in the fridge. It will harden — that’s normal.
Caramelised Hazelnuts (can be made in advance)
Ingredients
- 75 g (2.6 oz) roasted hazelnuts (skinned)
- 37 g (1.3 oz) caster sugar
- 9 g (0.3 oz) water
- 3 g (0.1 oz) salted butter
Method
1
In a saucepan, cook the sugar with the water to 115°C / 240°F (without a thermometer, just wait for small bubbles to appear).
2
Pour the hazelnuts into the sugar syrup and let them caramelise over medium heat, stirring constantly.
3
Add the salted butter.
4
Tip out onto a baking mat and set aside at room temperature.
Hazelnut Pastry Cream
Ingredients
- 125 ml (4.2 fl oz) Alpro hazelnut plant-based drink
- 35 g (1.2 oz) caster sugar
- 50 g (1.8 oz) eggs (1 egg)
- 15 g (0.5 oz) cornstarch
- 1/2 vanilla pod
Method
1
In a bowl, whisk together the whole eggs and sugar until the mixture lightens.
2
Add the cornstarch and mix well.
3
Bring the hazelnut plant-based drink (or milk) to a boil in a saucepan with the vanilla seeds and pod. Place a fine-mesh strainer over the bowl and pour the hot liquid in a thin stream, whisking constantly, to loosen the cream. Pour everything back into the saucepan.
4
Whisk over medium heat for about 2 minutes until the cream thickens.
5
Pour into a shallow dish and cover with cling film pressed directly onto the surface. Allow to cool at room temperature first, then refrigerate while you prepare the rest.
Hazelnut Cream
Ingredients
- 50 g (1.8 oz) softened butter
- 50 g (1.8 oz) caster sugar
- 5 g (0.2 oz) cornstarch
- 50 g (1.8 oz) eggs
- 50 g (1.8 oz) ground hazelnuts
- 1 pinch of fleur de sel
Method
1
Place the softened butter in a bowl and beat until creamy and smooth.
2
Add the sugar, eggs, ground hazelnuts, cornstarch and fleur de sel.
3
Mix to obtain a smooth paste, but do not beat for too long. Refrigerate.
Hazelnut Frangipane Cream
Ingredients
- the hazelnut cream (above)
- 65 g (2.3 oz) hazelnut pastry cream
Method
1
In a bowl, whisk the cooled pastry cream until smooth. Weigh out 65 g (2.3 oz) and stir it into the hazelnut cream. Mix quickly — if you beat the frangipane for too long, it will puff up during baking (this is what happened to me a little).
2
Transfer the hazelnut frangipane cream to a piping bag fitted with a 1 cm (0.4 in) smooth tip. Set aside.
Assembly
Ingredients
- 2 puff pastry rounds (or one homemade inverted puff pastry)
- the hazelnut frangipane cream
- the gianduja
- caramelised hazelnut pieces
- sugar syrup
- 1 dried bean (fève)
Method
1
Unroll the first puff pastry round and prick it all over with a fork to prevent it from puffing up too much during baking. Pipe the hazelnut frangipane in a ring starting from the centre of the pastry, leaving about 5–6 cm (2.4 in) free around the edge. Pipe the gianduja in 2 rings spaced a few centimetres apart, then add a dab of gianduja in the very centre. Scatter over the caramelised hazelnut pieces. (I had mixed the hazelnut pieces into the cream but found it harder to pipe — some larger pieces wouldn’t pass through the tip.)
2
Place the dried bean towards the edge.
3
Moisten the border (the area without frangipane) with a little water.
4
Cover with the second puff pastry round, aligning the two rounds carefully. Press the edges together firmly, pushing the frangipane filling inward.
5
Trim the excess pastry using a ring mould or a bowl (as I did). Crimp the edge with a knife to prevent the king cake from opening (run the back of a small knife all the way round the edge). Brush the top with egg yolk diluted with a few drops of water — be careful not to glaze the edges, as the puff pastry won’t rise there. Refrigerate while you preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.
6
Remove the king cake from the fridge and glaze the top a second time. Make a small hole in the centre for steam to escape.
7
Decorate the top with a knife, using the central hole as a starting point. Bake for about 30 minutes, keeping a close eye during the last few minutes to prevent over-browning (with the double glaze it colours very nicely).
8
While the king cake is baking, prepare a sugar syrup: heat 20 g (0.7 oz) water and 20 g (0.7 oz) sugar in a small saucepan until dissolved, then leave to cool.
9
As soon as the king cake comes out of the oven, brush the top with the sugar syrup.
10
Leave to cool on a wire rack. Best served warm.
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