SWEET CELEBRATION OF THE EPIPHANY – A TRADITION AWAKENED

            Sources reveal that there will be a free tasting of Cake of Kings on Saturday, 6 January at Au Peche Mignon, pastry shop located between the Post Office and the Public Market.  As part of a campaign to introduce to Vanuatu the age-old European tradition of celebrating the Epiphany, Au Peche Mignon and selected restaurants around Port Vila will be offering Cake of Kings throughout the month of January on their menus.  The story of the Three Kings (or Wise Men) who saw the bright star in the sky and followed it to Bethlehem searching for the messiah is well known to almost every Christian. In France and other surrounding countries; however, story has it that the instant that the Kings laid eyes on Jesus and saw him as the manifestation of the Lord,” The Epiphany”, occurred on January 6, not on Christmas Day.

 Through the centuries a tradition arose to celebrate this day with a special cake – the Galette des Rois, or Cake of Kings, in which is hidden a small token, the “feve”.  Friends and family come together on this day to share the cake.  Whoever receives the hidden token in his/her piece is crowned the King/Queen of the day.  This new monarch chooses his/her Queen/King by slipping the token in the drink of the other.  The selection of new kings and queens continues throughout the month of January, as friends and family take turns inviting the others to share a Cake of Kings.  There are as many different recipes for Galette des Rois as there are regions in France.  The most famous is a Parisian puff pastry filled with almond crème or Frangipani, introduced by Catherine de Medicis in the 16^th century to the court of Henri IV.  In Normandy, it’s filled with apples, in the south, different fruit confits.  A short film will be aired on the new plasma screen at Au Peche Mignon, showing the fabrication of these cakes that are made only once a year for the Epiphany.