Author Archives: Patrick Cleland

Galette Des Rois

Nationality: United States
Age: 59
Occupation: Housewife
Residence: Corning, New York
Performance Date: 3/3/13
Primary Language: English

 

A galette des rois, or “King’s Cake”, is a traditional French pastry baked around the turning of the new year.  The informant lived in France for five years and learned how to bake them there before moving to the United States. She continues the tradition, even though it is not common in United States. Using her own recipe, she has helped to spread it to others who have not heard of the French tradition. On the blog on which the recipe is posted, the informant gives some background as to the tradition:

“During the month of January, bakeries and boulangeries in France make the galette des rois in honor of the Epiphany or Feast of the Magi. 
 
These cakes are often called “kings cakes” and are made of homemade, almond cream filling in between two, delicate, buttery layers of puff pastry. 

In France, it’s customary to place a “feve” or ceramic religious figure into the filling. Whoever is served the piece with the feve is the king or queen for the evening.

In addition to religious figurines, feves can be little cups and saucers and teapots, and they also can depict figures from history, characters from television, sports figures, etc. 

The feves become highly collectible and are, in addition to the delicious taste of the almond cream filling, another reason why many galettes are purchased all during the month!”

http://feasteveryday.blogspot.com/2013/01/galette-des-rois-by-mary.html

The informant enjoys both baking the cakes and teaching americans about the traditions. She is often asked to come into elementary and middle school classrooms with the galettes to teach the kids about the tradition.

Spanish Hanukkah Song: “Ocho Candelas”

Nationality: United States
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Long Island, New York
Performance Date: 4/11/13
Primary Language: English

The informant grew up in New York in  Jewish household. Although they were not extremely devout in terms of observing every rule and tradition, Hanukkah was always a special time. His Grandmother is from Spain, and so when she moved to the United States, she took some Spanish Hanukkah traditions with her. One of these traditions is a Spanish Hanukkah song called “Ocho Candelas”. The lyrics are as follows:

Ocho candelas para mi,

Ocho candelas para ti,

uno! (candelita)

dos! (candelitas)

tres! (candelitas)

cuatro! (candelitas)

cinco! (candelitas)

seis! (candelitas)

siete! (candelitas)

ocho! (candelitas)

The informant learned it from his grandmother, who learned the song when she was in Spain. He has never heard it from anyone else in the United States. The fact that it has made the leap across the ocean with at least one family displays an interesting mix of Jewish and Spanish culture in the context of America.

Skimming the Scum

Nationality: United States
Age: 56
Occupation: Attorney
Residence: Corning, New York
Performance Date: 3/14/13
Primary Language: English
Language: Korean, German, French

This saying also comes from the dining hall of West Point Military Academy. Every meal, there was one plebe in charge of many of the menial tasks such as distributing food and filling empty glasses. One such task was that before he passed the gravy to the rest of the cadets, the individual had to say memorized verse. The verse,m according to the informant, is as follows:

“Sir, the scum-skimmer reports that the scum has been swiftly and successfully skimmed.  Scum-skimmed gravy to the head of the table for inspection, please, sir”

If this was not said perfectly, the officer in charge would not accept it for inspection. The informant recalls cadets with heavy accents stumbling over the words multiple times, delaying the dining process severely. In the military, there are many situations in which you will need to perform under pressure. Most of the exercises in training are designed to prepare for this. Having to say a memorized line perfectly under the scrutiny of  superior helps cadets to get over their fears of being put under pressure. The informant told this story to his friends family after leaving the academy and it has become a joke to recite the saying whenever gravy is being passed at dinner.