Mille-Feuille
Easy to make, this delectable French pastry is perfect to serve for special occasions.
Ingredients
CRÈME PÂTISSIÈRE aka PASTRY CREAM
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 2 large free-run egg yolks
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
PUFF PASTRY
- 2 sheets pre-made puff pastry
- unbleached all-purpose flour, for work surface
- 1 tbsp. milk, or as needed
- 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar, or as needed
ICING
- 1 cup icing sugar, sifted Footnote #1
- 1 tbsp. milk, or as needed
- 1 ounce dark chocolate, melted Footnote #2
Directions
CRÈME PÂTISSIÈRE aka PASTRY CREAM
- In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, pour in milk to warm it up – don’t boil it.
- In another saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Add flour and whisk to blend.
- Pour the warm milk in a little at a time to temper the egg mixture slowly, whisking constantly. Turn the heat to medium and cook until the custard thickens, whisking continuously. Remove from the heat to cool off.
- About 5 minutes later, add vanilla, whisk again before transferring the pastry cream to a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, making sure it touches the surface to prevent a skin from forming.
- Cool completely before transferring to the fridge until needed.
PUFF PASTRY
- Preheat oven to 400ºF.
- Place puff pastry sheets on a lightly floured work surface to thaw out.
- Line a 10x15-inch baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
- When the pastry is thawed out, roll it out to 9 x 1 inches.
- Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet and prick the entire surface with a fork. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
- Place parchment paper over the dough and put another baking sheet of the same size on top - this helps to keep the pastry thin and flat.
- Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, carefully take off the top baking sheet and the parchment paper and flip the dough over. Put the parchment paper back on top as well as the baking sheet and return to the oven to bake for an additional 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it cool. Meanwhile, make the icing.
- When the pastry gets to room temperature, cut 1 sheet lengthwise into 3 equal sized pieces; do the same crosswise. If the rectangles are not perfectly shaped, trim to make them even. Each mille-feuille should have 3 rectangular pieces.
ICING
- In a bowl, combine the powdered sugar and the milk. Stir until smooth with a thick consistency; set aside.
ASSEMBLY
- Spoon cold pastry cream on 6 bottom rectangular pastries; spread custard out evenly. Place the second layer of rectangles on top and add more pastry cream; spread evenly. Place the top rectangles on and cover with icing.
- Spoon melted chocolate into a plastic bag or a piping bag.
- Cut a small corner off of the bag and draw straight lines on the icing. Slide the back of a knife in the opposite direction to form a marbled pattern.
- Transfer the Mille-feuilles to the fridge and serve when chilled.
Notes
Footnote #1: Here in Canada and in the UK, confectioners' sugar is called "icing sugar". Depending on the region, some people might also call it "powdered sugar".
Footnote #2: You can either melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave. If you decide to opt for the last option, set the power to "medium" and stir every 30 seconds until melted.