French
Mille-Feuille
Caramelized puff pastry layered with vanilla pastry cream and feathered fondant-style chocolate glaze.
8 servings · 90 minutes prep · 55 minutes cook
Ingredients
Main
- 1 lb all-butter puff pastry
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Pastry Cream
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1 oz dark chocolate, melted
Directions
Bake the Pastry Layers
- Roll the puff pastry to a 12 by 16-inch rectangle. Chill for 30 minutes so the butter firms and the pastry bakes flat.
- Bake the pastry between parchment and two sheet pans at 400F for 25 minutes. Remove the top pan, dust with the powdered sugar, and bake until caramelized, 8-10 minutes. Cool completely and cut into 3 equal strips with a serrated knife.
Make the Pastry Cream
- Heat the whole milk with the vanilla bean seeds and pod until steaming. Whisk the egg yolks, granulated sugar, and cornstarch until smooth.
- Temper the hot milk into the yolk mixture, return everything to the pan, and boil for 1 minute while whisking constantly. Whisk in the unsalted butter, press plastic wrap directly on the surface, and chill in a shallow container to {{temperature:40°F}} or colder within 2 hours.
Assemble the Layers
- Pipe or spread the pastry cream evenly between the pastry strips, keeping the layers level and reserving the flattest strip for the top.
Glaze, Chill, and Slice
- Mix the powdered sugar and whole milk into a thick but spreadable glaze. Spread a thin layer on top, pipe the melted dark chocolate in parallel lines, and feather with a skewer.
- Chill the assembled pastry for 1 hour. Slice with a serrated knife, using gentle sawing strokes so the pastry layers do not crush the cream.
