A mille feuille (pronounced (mill foi) is essentially custard cream, layered between three sheets of golden puff pastry. It is so easy and impressive to make and great for the festive season when Victorian Strawberries are peaking.
Makes 1.25 litres
Ingredients
- 2 x 250 punnets Victorian Strawberries, washed, trimmed and left whole or cut into halves, depending on the size of your strawberries
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 sheets puff pastry (cut in half)
- 600ml cream
- 300ml store bought thick vanilla custard
- 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
- Icing sugar for dusting
- Edible flowers for garnish (optional)
Method
- In a bowl, gently toss half of the prepared Victorian Strawberries in the sugar and leave to macerate in the fridge until ready to assemble.
- Preheat oven to 200˚C.
- Prepare two baking trays with two sheets baking paper.
- Place three cut pastry sheets on one of the prepared baking trays, then top with the other piece baking paper and place baking tray on top. The pastry will want to puff up but stays flat, which is what you want.
- Place prepared pastry into the middle of the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Take the top baking tray and flip pastry sheets over and cook for another 10 minutes, the pastry needs to be cooked evenly, and all the way through, and very golden.
- Take the pastry out to completely cool on a wire rack.
- In the meantime, whip the cream until soft peaks form then add in the custard and vanilla paste and whip up again until stiff.
- Place one of the pastry pieces onto a serving plate and pipe using a large piping bag with a plain nozzle pipe over a third of the custard cream, then top with half of the macerated strawberries. Repeat this again. Do the final layer of cream for the top then add fresh whole of halved strawberries on top and if desired sift over icing sugar and place on edible flowers.
Tips
This can be made the day before and placed in the fridge overnight to soften a little.