Filo Millefeuille With Almond Pastry Cream For Mothers Day Food

MILLE-FEUILLE WITH VANILLA PASTRY CREAM AND BOURBON SAUCE

Steps:

• For the pastry cream: In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, granulated sugar, salt and vanilla seeds and pod. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, then remove from the heat.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and egg yolks. Temper the eggs by adding about 1/4 cup of the warm milk mixture and whisking to combine. Add the egg mixture to the pan and whisk to thoroughly combine.
• Heat the pan over medium-low heat until it begins to thicken. Cook, stirring constantly with a spatula, until the mixture is the consistency of pancake batter, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and discard the vanilla bean pod. Whisk in the butter until combined. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Transfer to a shallow dish and press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface. Place in the refrigerator to cool completely, at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
• For the bourbon sauce: In a small saucepan, add the bourbon, granulated sugar and vanilla beans and pod. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Reduce the liquid by about half until thickened to a syrupy consistency, about 15 minutes. Remove and discard the vanilla bean pod; cool the syrup to room temperature.
• For the mille-feuille: Roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface so that it is a roughly 11-by-16-inch rectangle. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, trim off any uneven edges so that it is a perfect 10-by-15-inch rectangle. Slice the pastry into 12 approximately 2 1/2-by-5-inch rectangles. Place them on a lined baking sheet. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Brush the tops of the puff pastry rectangles with the butter and sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Cover with a sheet of parchment paper and another baking sheet on top so the puff pastry is sandwiched in between. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Remove the top baking sheet and parchment and let cool to room temperature.
• To assemble: Spoon a small dollop of the pastry cream onto each plate to act as a "glue" for the first layer of puff pastry. Place one layer of puff pastry onto the cream dollop, then top with a layer of cream. Nestle about 6 raspberries in the pastry cream in rows and top them with a dollop more of pastry cream. Repeat the layers once more and top with a final layer of pastry. Dust the pastry and plate liberally with confectioners' sugar and drizzle the plate around the pastry with the bourbon sauce.

MARVELOUS MILLE-FEUILLE

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment or a baking mat.
• Unfold the pastry, roll it to a 12-by-15-inch rectangle and cut into three 12-by-5-inch rectangles. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Prick the pastry and chill for 10 minutes in the freezer or 20 in the fridge.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Dust the pastry with powdered sugar (this will ensure the pastry caramelizes when cooked). Bake until golden brown and risen, about 15 minutes. Set aside to cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes.
• In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the powdered sugar, mascarpone, cream and vanilla seeds and whisk until soft peaks form. Add the raspberry liqueur and lemon zest and turn on the mixer for 10 seconds to combine the ingredients.
• To assemble: Place a dab of the whipped cream on the serving plate to anchor the mille-feuille. Place one piece of pastry onto the plate glaze-side down. Spoon over half of the whipped cream, smoothing out the top. Arrange half of the fresh raspberries on top of the cream in rows, then top with another sheet of pastry, again glaze-side down. Top the second sheet of pastry with the remaining cream and raspberries. Add the last piece of pastry glaze-side up and liberally dust with powdered sugar.

MILLE FEUILLE: FRENCH NAPOLEON PASTRY

Steps:

• Puff Pastry
• In a large mixing bowl, add sugar and cornstarch. Whisk so that the two ingredients are well combined.
• Add egg yolks and whisk until you get a fluffy mixture.
• Heat milk in a saucepan and set it aside.
• Add about 2 tablespoons of hot milk and continue to whisk. Slowly pour the remaining hot milk and continue to whisk.
• Add vanilla extracts and whisk some more.
• Strain the mixture into a saucepan and place it on medium heat. Continue to whisk until the mixture starts to simmer and gets thick.
• Remove the pan off the heat and add butter. Mix so that the butter melts and is well incorporated. Let the mixture cool down a bit.
• Transfer it to a bowl, wrap with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator until it is chilled.
• Thaw the puff pastry, unfold the sheet, and place it on a floured surface.
• Use a sharp knife. Cut the pastry sheet into 2 by 4-inch rectangles.
• Place the rectangles on a parchment-lined baking tray at least 2 inches apart from each other. Place another parchment sheet on top of the rectangles and place the baking tray in a preheated oven at 400 °F for about 10 minutes.
• Once done, take the baking tray out of the oven and transfer the rectangles onto a cooling rack.
• Icing
• Prepare the icing by whisking the 1 ½ cups of confectioner's sugar, 2 tablespoons of milk, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract in a bowl until it has a thin consistency.
• Pour half of this mixture into a separate bowl and add cocoa powder. Add a dash of milk is necessary and whisk until everything is well incorporated and you get a smooth consistency.
• Transfer the white and chocolate icing into separate piping bags with round or star tips.
• Add heavy cream and 1 ½ tbsp powdered sugar in a bowl and whisk until soft peaks are formed, and you get whipped cream. Pipe it into a plastic piping bag.
• Take the cream out of the refrigerator and whisk it until it is smooth. Pipe it into a piping bag as well.
• Assemble
• Assemble the dessert by placing four puff pastry rectangles in front of you on a cooling rack. Create patterns of the rectangle using white and chocolate icing. You can create a marble effect or a zig-zag pattern using a toothpick. Feel free to use your imagination.
• Pipe the pastry cream between the six layers of puff pastry. You can adjust the number according to your liking. Place another piece of puff pastry on top of it and pipe dollops of whipped cream on it. Place the decorated puff pastry rectangle on top. Repeat this process until you get four pastries.
• You can garnish it with mini chocolate chips and enjoy!

RASPBERRY MILLEFEUILLES

Steps:

• For the pastry, mix the flour, salt and butter together in a bowl - the butter should remain in cubes. Make a well in the centre and pour in the lemon juice and 100ml cold water. Mix well, then bring together with your hands.
• Tip the pastry onto a lightly floured surface and briefly knead until smooth. Shape into a rectangle, then wrap in cling film and chill for 30 mins.
• On a floured surface, use a rolling pin to ridge and roll (see tip, below left) the pastry into a rectangle, so that it is three times as long as it is wide, about 15 x 45cm. Keep the edges of the pastry as straight as you can.
• Lift the bottom third of the pastry and fold it up and over the middle third. Dust off any excess flour.
• Fold the top third of the pastry down and over the bottom third, so that you have three layers of pastry in a neat rectangle. Dust off any excess flour. Wrap and chill for 15 mins.
• Give the pastry a 90-degree right turn so it faces you like a book. Repeat steps 3-5 four more times, always starting with the pastry facing you as it was after the last fold and giving it a turn. Chill for 30 mins.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry out to a rough 32cm square. Using a sharp knife, trim the edges to make a neat 30cm square.
• Cut the pastry into 3 long strips measuring 30 x 10cm. Transfer to 2 baking sheets lined with baking parchment and chill for 30 mins or until firm.
• Top each tray with a sheet of baking parchment, then stack on top of each other. Pop another baking tray on top and weigh down with an ovenproof dish. Bake for 25-30 mins or until golden brown and crisp.
• Leave the pastry to cool a little, trim the edges if needed, then cut each sheet into 6 smaller rectangles. You should end up with 18 pieces of pastry measuring about 10 x 5cm.
• Transfer 1 piece of pastry to a serving plate, pipe over blobs of Crème patisserie (see recipe tip, below left), then top with some raspberries and another layer of pastry.
• Add another layer of Crème patisserie and raspberries. Dust a third piece of pastry with icing sugar, then decorate with more raspberries and pop this on top. Repeat with the remaining pastry to make 6 millefeuilles.