12th Night festivities and the Lord and Lady of Misrule

18th century 12th Night feast

12th Night, the last night of the 12 days of Christmas, the 5th of January, when the Magi meet the baby Jesus ...

... is also the night of the Lord or Lady of Misrule, when social norms are turned upside down with pranks, when you spend the evening with good friends, food and drink, playing games and getting into mischief under the mistletoe.

This wonderful tradition of the Lord or Lady of Misrule can be traced back to pre-Christian European festivals such as the Celtic festival of Samhain, Yule and the Ancient Roman festival of Saturnalia. Saturnalia was a time when Roman society's rules were turned topsey turvey, masters waited on slaves, children bossed parents, where game playing and gambling took precedence over work and feasts were held.

The Saturnalia or 'Liberties of December' ran between December 17-23, a time created from the extra days the Roman's needed to add to their calender to maintain its accuracy. These were 'days out of time' so chaos could rule! Most parties had a master of ceremonies, or arbiter bibendi, selected by lot to rule over the toasts, and a magister ludi, a games master and they became the Lord and Lady of Misrule.

12th Night celebrated by Regency costumers in 2010

All of these Saturnalia winter traditions resurface in England and Colonial America, especially on Twelfth Night, the 5th of January, and was at the height of its popularity in Jane Austen's England and now the 12 days of Christmas and 12th night are hardly celebrated at all, which I find sad.

The Lord and Lady of Misrule is selected by Lady Chance, a bean is placed in the 12th Night cake and whoever finds it then sets the mad pace and directs and manages the night's entertainments.

Tonight we will celebrate 12th Night with a feast and party with friends and Lady Chance will choose out Lady of Misrule and here is the cake recipe that we are baking, enjoy!

My recipe comes from the Deaf Pagan website and as she says 'This one is somewhat like a tart, and the recipe comes from France – where it is often known as a “Galette des Rois”…the King’s Cake. It’s kind of like a puff pastry with a cream filling':

1. Sift 1 ½ cups of flour with a teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt into a bowl, cut in 6 tablespoons of butter until the mixture is like small crumbs. Gradually add approximately ¾ cup of water until the dough is light and nonsticky. Knead gently, then place dough back in bowl and cover with a towel and leave in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.

2. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface until it is about ¼ inch thick, and then fold it up like a napkin, cover it with a towel, and again stick it back in the refrigerator for another 20 minutes.

3. Divide the pastry dough in half. Form each half into a ball, and then roll each ball into a circle about 9 inches in diameter. Place one circle onto a greased cookie sheet.

4. Now make the filling: Cream six tablespoons of butter and 1 cup of sugar together until light and fluffy. Add two egg yolks, and about ½ teaspoon of almond extract, ½ cup of ground almonds, and 3 tablespoons of liqueur – amoretto is recommended, or you can use others such as frangelico, kirsch, brandy, etc. Mix everything into a smooth paste, and then spoon the filling onto the center of the round base pastry on the cookie sheet, leaving a small margin around the edge.

5. Now take your hard dried bean (the sort you make soup with) and hide it in the filling; you can also use some type of small object such as a small gold charm or ring or a penny or whatever. Just make sure that whatever you do use can withstand the high temperature in the oven. Beat an egg with a little water, and use it to brush the margin around the base pastry. Then place the second circle of pastry on top of the cream filling, and gently press down the edges so that they stick together. Cover the cake lightly with a towel and place it back in the refrigerator for 45 minutes before baking.

6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Take your cake out of the refrigerator and brush the top with more of the beaten egg. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. The top should be crisp. Dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar, or regular sugar mixed with cinnamon. If you wish, you can cut out a gold crown from foil or paper or cardboard, and place it around the sides of the cake.

7. Serve your cake, and remember that whoever finds the bean or the little token in their piece gets crowned as the Lord or Lady of the Twelfth Night festivities!