La galette des rois, or king cake, is a French pastry traditionally served on Twelfth Night (5 January). Versions of king cakes can be found in a number of Christian countries; the cake is named after the three biblical kings who travelled to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus, arriving on Twelfth Night.

In France, two versions of king cake predominate, one from the north and one from the south. The northern version is puff pastry filled with frangipane, while the southern king cake contains dried and candied fruits in a brioche pastry. But what all king cakes have in common is a small trinket - often a representation of the baby Jesus - which confers special powers on the person who finds it, much like the lucky sixpence in a British Christmas pudding.

A low-effort recipe (using ready-made puff pastry) can be found below, courtesy of the BBC's Good Food website. As Twelfth Night is tomorrow, life really is too short to make homemade puff pastry in the week the world returns to work.

400g ready-made puff pastry
2 rounded tbsp apricot jam
100g softened butter
100g caster sugar
1 lighly beaten egg
100g ground almonds
2 tbsp cognac or dark rum

1. Heat the oven to 200C/fanC180/gas 6.
2. Divide the ready-made puff pastry in half, roll out each piece and cut into a 25cm round. Put one round on a baking sheet and spread with the apricot jam to within 2cm of the edges.
3. Beat together the softened butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the egg. Stir in the ground almonds and cognac or dark rum.
4. Spoon the mixture over the jam, spreading it evenly. Brush the edges of the pastry with water, then cover with the second piece, pressing the edges to seal. Mark the top of the pastry from the centre to the edges like the spokes of a wheel or in a zig zag pattern, then brush with beaten egg.
5. Bake for 25-30 mins until crisp and golden. Serve warm or cold.

It might seem like heresy to have a recipe for traditional Italian biscuits (cookies?) on a website celebrating France. But that's only because you've never tried them. Once you've eaten a warm, almondy, meringue-based biscuit not long from the oven, you will want to claim it as part of your own cultural heritage, wherever in the world you might come from. 

Ricciarelli originate in Siena, where I believe they are sold around Christmas and given as gifts. My daughter found an old River Cafe recipe in a Sunday newspaper magazine several years ago, and has tweaked it with practice. Below is the recipe in her own words; it has been emailed to nearly everyone who's ever tried them. 

1. Blanch and peel 300g almonds. I put them in a bowl, boil the kettle, cover them with hot water, and leave for around 5 minutes before draining and squeezing off the skins. Some will be stubborn; put these to one side and pop them back in the bowl, covering them in the hottest water your kitchen tap will supply for a minute. Repeat until all almonds have been blanched. If you're super lazy, you can skip this step by using sliced almonds (in which case reduce the roasting time and keep an eye on them as they can't go brown) or pre-blanched almonds. It's a lot more expensive, though, and almonds aren't the cheapest of ingredients.
2. Roast the almonds in an oven for 12 minutes at 180C. (I prefer to roast them in three goes of 4 minutes apiece, shaking furiously between each go.) Allow to cool, but leave the oven on.
3. Bung 8 tbsps plain sugar, the cooled almonds, and the zest of half a lemon into the food processor. Blend till it looks like sand.
4. Beat 2 egg whites to firm peaks. Add 60g sugar to the beaten egg whites, and beat back to firm. You can do this by hand, but it's a million times easier with an electric whisk. But if you do it by hand, you've earned the right to eat more biscuits. Your call.
5. Dump the blender mixture into the beaten egg white. Before folding with a metal spoon, add half a teaspoon each of vanilla and almond extracts. Fold, but not too much. You want to introduce the mixes to each other, not marry them off.
6. Cover a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
7. Wet your hands, then scoop a normal eating spoon of mix into your hands. Roll into a ball, pop on the baking sheet, then smash flat. But not too flat. This is not the time for your best Incredible Hulk impression. The batch should make 20 ricciarelli, so I usually find myself making some huge ones to start with, and then stealing mix off them so I can bulk up the weedy ones at the end. I end up re-wetting my hands about every five.
8. The recipe says bake 20 minutes, but I say 16 – I cook them in two lots of 8 minutes, rotating the tray 180-degrees at the end of the first 8 minutes. I have a fan oven, so you might want to adjust based on your equipment. You may as well spend the cooking time watching the ricciarelli to ensure they don't burn - it's not *that* long.
9. Allow to cool – but only enough that the icing sugar won’t melt – and then dust with icing sugar. They keep for about 4-5 days in a sealed box, but they’re nicest eaten still warm.

While pear and frangipane tart is a firm family favourite, I must confess that I've never made one. Nor has my daughter, the hobbyist baker. It's not uncommon in France to cook for a dinner party but buy the pudding from a local patisserie, and that's what we've always done when any of us have a hankering for soft pear and sweet frangipane. My wife - who has been known to bake them on occasion - swears by Angela Hartnett's recipe, which I have copied in full below.

For the pastry
225g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
110g butter
110g caster sugar
3 medium egg yolks, lightly beaten

For the frangipane
125g butter, softened
125g caster sugar
2 eggs
125g ground almonds
1 tbsp plain flour

For the poached pears
250g caster sugar, plus 2 tsp extra
4 good-sized pears
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
3 cloves
1/2 lemon
2-3 strips thickly pared orange zest
1/2 vanilla pod

1. Make the pastry. Tip the flour onto a work surface. Cut the butter into cubes and dot over the flour. Sprinkle with the caster sugar. Using your fingertips, rub the butter, flour and sugar together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre, add the egg yolks and, using your fingers, gradually draw in the flour. Knead lightly, until it comes together in a smooth ball – you might need to add 1 teaspoon cold water if the dough is very crumbly. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes. (Angela Hartnett’s tip: I make the pastry on a floured work surface in the traditional Italian way, but feel free to do it in a bowl if you prefer.)
2. Make the frangipane filling. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, one at a time, then fold in the ground almonds and flour. Mix well and chill until needed.
3. Make the poached pears. Put the sugar in a saucepan, pour in 500ml water and place over a medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Peel the pears and add to the pan, along with the cinnamon and cloves. Squeeze the juice from the lemon into the pan and add the squeezed lemon and orange zest. Split the vanilla pod in half, scrape out the seeds and add to the pan with the pod. Add some more water to just cover the pears.
4. Cut out a circle of baking paper large enough to fit inside the pan, and lay on top of the pears. Weigh down with a saucer or small saucepan lid so that the pears stay submerged in the poaching liquor. Simmer for 20 minutes, then remove the pears to a plate with a slotted spoon and discard the liquor and solids. Set aside for 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle. (Angel Hartnett’s tip: Don’t overcook the pears – a knife should just pierce them easily. Remember – they will continue to cook in the oven.)
5. Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan170°C/gas 5. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a circle large enough to line the tart tin. Don’t worry if it breaks up, as this is a very short, crumbly pastry – you can just patch it together in the tin and mould it up the sides, making sure it is even all over. Trim off any excess pastry and spread the frangipane evenly on top.
6. Cut the pears in half length-ways and, using a teaspoon, scoop out and discard the core from the centre. Cut each pear half in slices, width-ways, then lift onto your knife and push down on the pears slightly to fan them out. Lift into the pastry case and arrange in a circle. Fill in the gaps between each pear half with a few more slices and arrange some in the centre. Bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is golden and the filling is set. Sprinkle with the extra 2 teaspoons caster sugar and bake in the oven for a further 15 minutes to finish off the browning. Cool in the tin slightly, then remove and transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with a dollop of crème fraîche.

Recipe via delicious magazine, and originally by Angela Hartnett.