In bakeries, regional cake shops, shops or directly from certain artisans.
This dry cake has a dense and hard texture with a shape very close to the galette charentaise. It is made by artisan or industrial pastry chefs. It is a galette measuring 23cm in diameter with a serrated edge and 2cm thickness, weighing around 300 to 400g. It is made from 500g flour, 250g sugar, 250g Charentes-Poitou butter. To respect the traditional recipe, use a pinch of salt, a small glass of brandy (Cognac,…), an egg for browning, sometimes one or two eggs in the batter and sometimes a few pieces of crystallised angelica.
In both Poitou and Charentes, the galette used to be the most common cake, served at every occasion, during family or religious festivals, which is where the name ‘household galette’ or ‘assembly cake’ comes from. In the 1930s, Béguin distinguished the simple Poitou galette, from the ‘gâteau broyé de la Vienne’: the proportions are the same, but in the latter case, the author stipulates that after an initial kneading you must ‘tear the dough into little pieces using your hands’. The broyé du Poitou can be eaten at any time of day and cracked open at the family table. It is an accompaniment to creams, fruit salads and is often served at receptions.
