L'Epiphanie in France
L’Epiphanie
In France, once Christmas and New Year’s celebrations are over it is time to observe the feast of Epiphany (l’épiphanie). The official date is January 6th, but people in France continue the festivities until the end of January or so.
In a religious context, epiphany means “appearance” or “manifestation” and refers to when the baby Jesus appeared to the three Magi of the Christian bible: Melchior, Gaspar and Balthazar. For this reason it is also known as le Jour des Rois (Kings Day) and continues to be a religious celebration in the Catholic Church.
But as you may guess, Epiphany, or la fête des Rois is more than a religious holiday. Tirer les Rois is an important winter tradition in France! So, just what does it entail?
First of all, there is the galette des Rois, a delicious cake made of layered puff pastry and filled with creamy sweet almond paste (la frangipane) or occasionally apple sauce (la compote de pommes). A small figurine (la fève), said to represent the baby Jesus, is hidden inside the cake before baking. 
When the galette is cut and served to guests, the person who finds the charm in his or her piece is named King and gets to wear the paper crown which accompanies each Kings cake bought at the boulangerie (bakery). That person in turn may choose a “Queen.” According to some traditions the youngest person in the room hides under the table while the cake is being cut and, without peeking, calls out the name of the guest who is to receive each piece of cake (no doubt to avoid cheating!)
The fèves are made of plastic, porcelain or ceramic and are usually industrially made. However, some of these charms can be quite elaborately decorated and are still traditionally made in special ateliers (workshops) throughout France. It is not surprising that many folks in France are avid collectors, for not only are these dainty charms quite pretty, but they are supposed to bring good luck in the year to come.
Have a peek at a boulangerie in France preparing their galettes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNVF1q8XPGQ