Kings Peg Napoleon Recipes

KING'S PEG (NAPOLEON)

Steps:

• Place the ice cube in a 10-ounce wineglass or goblet, add the brandy and champagne.

KING'S PEG (NAPOLEON)

Steps:

• Place the ice cube in a 10-ounce wineglass or goblet, add the brandy and champagne.

NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• On a lightly floured surface roll out the pastry to 1/16-inch thick. Transfer pastry to a parchment-lined sheet pan and trim edges. With a fork prick surface all over and chill for 30 minutes. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Cover pastry with a second piece of parchment paper and weight down with a second sheet pan. Bake pastry for 10 minutes. Remove top sheet pan and parchment and continue to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer pastry to a cooling rack.
• Make the filling: In a heavy saucepan combine the heavy cream, milk, and sugar. Using a knife scrape the seeds of the vanilla bean into the milk mixture and add the whole bean. Bring to a boil. Remove pan from heat and allow to steep for one hour. Discard the bean or reserve for another use.
• Pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees. Whisk the yolks into the cooled milk mixture and strain through a fine sieve into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Place the dish in a larger roasting pan and add enough hot water to reach halfway up the side of the dish. Bake custard for 3/4 to 1 hour until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. let cool; cover and chill for several hours or overnight. To assemble: Transfer pastry to a flat surface. Using a ruler measure out three 3 1/2 x 11-inch strips. With a serrated knife carefully cut the pastry using a gentle sawing motion. With a paring knife cut the custard into two 3 1/2 x 11-inch strips and cut each strip in half crosswise. With a long, wide offset spatula transfer a piece of custard onto a strip of pastry, covering half of it. Transfer a second piece of custard to fill the first layer. Top with a second strip of pastry, smooth side up, and repeat process. If necessary, smooth the sides of the napoleon with a knife so that they are stacked neatly.
• Using a serrated knife carefully slice the napoleon into individual serving pieces. Sift confectioner's sugar over the napoleon to form a thick coating. Heat skewers on stovetop burner until red-hot and brand the sugar with cross hatch marks.
• Recommended drink: 1993 Passito di Pantelleria, Nuova Agricoltura

NEAPOLITAN NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Because the pastry cream needs to be removed from the saucepan immediately, prepare a medium sized bowl, a fine mesh strainer or a food mill, and a heat resistant rubber spatula near the stove.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour with 1 cup of the sugar as well as the eggs until incorporated. The mixture will be very thick.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, the remaining cup of sugar and the salt. With a pairing knife, scrape the inside of the vanilla bean and place contents into the saucepan. Cook the mixture, stirring occasionally to prevent scalding. Remove from heat when the milk just begins to simmer. While whisking constantly, slowly pour about half of the milk in a thin stream into the flour mixture. Once the 2 mixtures are combined, continue whisking the combined flour and milk and return the contents to the saucepan with the remaining milk. Place the saucepan on medium heat while whisking constantly. Cook the mixture until it thickens, approximately 2 minutes. Immediately remove the pan from the heat as soon as the first bubble breaks the surface of the pastry cream.
• Pour the hot pastry cream into the strainer or food mill over a medium sized bowl. With a spatula, push the cream through the strainer or food mill. To prevent a skin from forming, place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cream and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours, or overnight.
• Have packaged puff pastry unrolled on cutting board. Bake the puff pastry according to package directions. Spread layers of pastry cream between the baked puff pastry alternating optional flavors. Garnish with fruit or nuts and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Roll out three sheets of puff pastry, each to the same size and a thickness of 1/8 inch. Prick with a fork, and place on baking sheets.
• Bake in preheated oven until golden, about 10 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk with fingers until smooth. Stir in cake flour and half the sugar. Beat in egg yolks. Set aside.
• In a saucepan over medium heat, bring remaining milk and remaining sugar to a rolling boil. Stir in egg yolk mixture; continue stirring and bring to a boil again. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Let cool.
• In a small saucepan or in the microwave, heat the jam until runny.
• Place one sheet of pastry on a board. Spread with cooled pastry cream to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Place a second pastry sheet over the cream. Brush with fruit glaze. Spread remaining pastry cream over glaze. Top with final pastry sheet and gently compress layers, using a baking sheet to press.
• To make icing, beat together confectioners' sugar and lemon juice with enough of the egg whites to make a creamy consistency like that of a cream soup. Working quickly, color a small portion of the frosting with red food coloring. Frost the top and sides of the assembled pastry with white icing. Pipe parallel lines of red icing on top of dessert, then draw a pick or knife crosswise through icing to make the traditional design. Let icing set before cutting into bars.

MILLES FEUILLES (NAPOLEON PASTRY)

Steps:

• For the pastry cream: Put 2 1/2 cups milk, sugar, vanilla and almond extracts in a small boil to come to the boil.
• Dissolve the corn flour in the remaining milk and pour into hot milk.
• Whisk the corn flour into the milk and turn off heat.
• Beat the egg yolks in a medium-sized bowl and slowly whisk in some of the hot milk into the yolks, whisking all the while.
• Do this until you have incorporated nearly all the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly, to temper the yolks.
• Add any leftover milk mixture and place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the custard.
• Refrigerate and cool completely.
• For whipped cream: Place all ingredients in mixer bowl and whip until snowy peaks form.
• Remove 1/3 of whipped cream and fold into pastry cream.
• For pastry: Preheat oven to 425F.
• Take 1 sheet of puff pastry and lay out flat, with long side facing you.
• Cut in 1/2 lengthwise.
• Repeat with other sheet of puff pastry, so you have 4 equal pieces.
• Butter a cookie sheet or baking pan large enough to contain the puff pastry pieces and place the pastry on the cookie sheet.
• Pierce the pastry all over with a fork.
• Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 300F and bake a further 35-40 minutes (pastry should be baked through and a deep golden-brown).
• To assemble: Place 1 sheet of pastry on a platter, spread with half of pastry cream, ensuring you don't spread all the way out to the edges of the pastry.
• Place another sheet of pastry over and spread with remainder of pastry cream.
• Place third sheet of pastry over and spread top and sides of assembled pastry with whipped cream.
• Crumble up the fourth pastry sheet with your hands and sprinkle broken pieces of pastry on top of whipped cream and press some onto sides.
• Place in refrigerator for 1/2 hour to set.
• Just before serving, place 2 tblsps of icing sugar into a sieve and sieve directly over cake.
• Serve immediately.
• This is a dessert that is quick to make and assemble but has to be eaten close to making, otherwise the puff pastry absorbs moisture and becomes soggy.
• Note: A very nice variation is to thinly spread the first and second puff pastry sheet (the ones that you spread with the custard) with a thin scraping of seedless raspberry jam before you spread with custard.

MILLE FEUILLE (NAPOLEON PASTRY SHEETS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with a silicone sheet.
• Separate dough at the seams into 4 squares and place on prepared baking sheet. Score the dough all over with the tines of a fork to prevent it from rising too much when baking. Lightly sprinkle dough sheets with white granulated sugar.
• Cover with a sheet of parchment paper and 3 sheets of aluminum foil. Nest another baking sheet on top to apply some pressure to the dough while it bakes.
• Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes; remove top pan and foil and gently peel off the parchment paper. Return pan to oven and bake until pastry is beautifully browned, 10 to 15 minutes. (Optionally, you can bake about 7 minutes after uncovering, then flip sheets over and bake until brown on the other side, another 7 minutes.)
• Transfer to cooling rack and cool completely before cutting.
• Square the sheets by trimming uneven edges off sheets using a sharp serrated knife with light sawing motion to keep the pastry from breaking. Cut each rectangle crosswise into 3 equal smaller rectangles. Use 3 small rectangles per pastry.