In an article we found on Ripley's, we learned that there is a rather weird yet interesting baking phenomenon that seems to be going full circle.  Since ancient times, people have baked trinkets and charms into cakes. For example, every January 6, the French celebrate Epiphany by chowing down on scrumptious “galette des rois,” or king’s cake. A glazed puff pastry exterior gives way to delicious, sweet almond paste, which will leave you begging for more. 

But be careful! Or you might end up chipping a tooth on the porcelain or plastic trinket called a fève (literally bean) baked inside. The person lucky enough to get the charm becomes king for a day, continuing a pre-Christian tradition first celebrated by the ancient Romans.

Other traditions draw even closer to the spirit of fortune-telling cakes. According to Curiosity Magazine, they include the Irish practice of consuming bairín breac or barm brack, fruit bread with four charms baked inside: a penny, a cloth, a thimble, and a ring. Observed during Samhain (Halloween) in Ireland, finding the penny meant you’d grow wealthy while the cloth ensured poverty. The ring foretold of future nuptials, and the thimble signified spinsterhood.

By Victorian times, people found more graceful ways to divine through baking. They invented the “cake pull” at weddings. Brides placed charms on ribbons or chains beneath their wedding cake with the ends hanging out. Then, their bridesmaids picked a chain or ribbon and gave it a pull, revealing the charm they’d chosen. As with the Irish tradition, each item corresponded with a specific future. They might include baby symbols, four-leafed clovers, bells, hearts, or other images of good luck, family, or home. Read more on this story by clicking here.  Sticking to the cake theme, ever wondered how people get it right to bake cakes that look exactly like real items or objects? Well, the video below might help explain a bit.