Blackberry Mille-Feuille

We have celebrated Patisserie week with this lovely blackberry mille-feuille. We love these dainty little towers of puff pastry and crème patisserie. Surprisingly simple, they’re a joy to make, as well as eat. All the components can be made ahead and assembled when you’re ready to serve. 

Equipment

Saucepan

Whisk

Sieve

Mixing bowl

Beeswax wrap

Baking tray

Herder knife

Piping set

Ingredients

250ml whole milk
1⁄2 tsp vanilla paste
30g strong flour or corn flour
3 egg yolks
60g caster sugar
320g Ready Rolled puff pastry 3- 4 tbsp icing sugar, for dusting fresh blackberries

Makes approx. 3 mille-feuille with crème patisserie to spare)

Method

1. First make the crème patisserie. Bring the milk and vanilla paste to the boil and then immediately remove from the heat.
2. Whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar until pale. Sieve in the flour and whisk to combine.
3. Add the milk to the egg mixture a little at a time, whisking as you go to prevent the eggs from scorching. Return the mixture to the pan and cook over a medium heat until it thickens and boils, whisking all the time to prevent it from catching on the bottom of the pan. You should no longer taste the flour, but be careful no to over cook it.
4. Pour the mixture into another bowl or container and cover, pressing the cling film or beeswax wrap straight onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill in the fridge for a couple of hours before using.
5. Preheat the oven to 220C (200 fan). Line a baking tray with baking parchment and place the ready-rolled puff pastry on top. Dust the pastry evenly with icing sugar. Place another layer of baking parchment over the puff pastry, followed by another baking tray, to keep it flattened. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until the pastry is golden. You may need to press down on the baking tray to flatten the pastry midway through baking. Leave to cool.
6. When you’re ready to assemble your Mille-Feuille, use a sharp knife to cut the golden pastry into rectangles, measuring roughly 4cm x 12 cm. I try to get about 9 rectangles out of one pastry sheet.
7. Place one pastry sheet on the bottom, then pipe one line of crème patisserie down the middle and place the blackberries around the cream. Place another layer of pastry on top and repeat the process. Finish with a third layer and decorate with more crème patisserie, blackberries and a dusting of icing sugar.

Serve straight away.