Celebrate Three Kings Day (Epiphany) with A Traditional Spanish Pastry
(~ Similar to a great 'King's Cake' New Orleans style I used to make for Mardi Gras. Lost the recipe, but will recover).
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'Three Kings Cake,' Daily Kos Post, Jan. 5, 2019.
It may surprise you to know that in Spain—the country I left the States for back in 2002—the Christmas season is not yet over. And the best deliciousness is yet to come . . .
Catholic Spaniards (which are the majority of Spaniards) do celebrate Christmas Day, but it is markedly less important than el día de los reyes magos. January 6th, the day the three wise men, or three kings, are said to have arrived bearing gifts in Bethlehem, is, quite logically, I suppose, when Christmas gifts are opened in Spain.
These gifts are never tagged as being from family members or friends, but always “from los reyes”—Gaspar, Baltasar, and Melchor. If you have a gift for someone, you tell them that los reyes left it at your house for them. After the holiday, you might ask if los reyes “behaved themselves” this year—meaning did you get good presents.
- One roscon with whipped cream.
There is a reyes-eve parade not only in the capital city of Madrid, but also in many if not most other cities, towns, and villages, featuring floats and candy tossed to children on the sidelines (only the candy is tossed, that is, not also the floats). Some families even bring ladders to raise little ones up above the crowds for a better view. In short, el día de los reyes magos is a big deal. And like most big deals in Spain, and really in most if not all places around the world, big deals are celebrated with special food. In this case, the reyes-morn pastry por excelencia: roscón de reyes.
Roscón is a sweet leavened bread flavored with orange blossom water, decorated with sugar and either *candied fruits or almond slivers (or sometimes both), and containing a hidden sorpresa (surprise). For those readers familiar with French galette, this sorpresa is analagous to the feve—it could be a coin, or a bean, or a small ceramic figurine. The sorpresa is baked right into the roscón, and traditional tradition dictates that whoever is served the slice with the sorpresa in it pays for the whole roscón . . . but nowadays many families try to make sure it’s a little one (* can substitute with raisins, currants)
Roscón is a sweet leavened bread flavored with orange blossom water, decorated with sugar and either candied fruits or almond slivers (or sometimes both), and containing a hidden sorpresa (surprise). For those readers familiar with French galette, this sorpresa is analagous to the feve—it could be a coin, or a bean, or a small ceramic figurine. The sorpresa is baked right into the roscón, and traditional tradition dictates that whoever is served the slice with the sorpresa in it pays for the whole roscón . . . but nowadays many families try to make sure it’s a little one who gets the sorpresa, just for fun.
Roscón is served over breakfast and presents, and there’s always those who prefer it with whipped cream and those without, those who want this or that fruit, or no almonds, or only almonds, etcetera. Personally, for instance, I dislike the candied fruits, although I do love how they look.
So now that you know what roscón is, let me tell you how to make it. Be warned, though: Spanish recipes can get quite whimsical and inexact with their measuring units!
~ Recipes and More,
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/1/5/1909327/-Ready-Set-Eat-Celebrate-Three-Kings-Day-and-or-Deliciousness-With-A-Traditional-Spanish-Pastry?utm_campaign=recent
Three Kings Parade, Madrid
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