Vegan Napoleon Dessert Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is a Napoleon dessert made of? ›

With its layers of crisp, flaky puff pastry and rich pastry cream, topped with a satiny black-and-white glaze, the Napoleon is equally at home on the dessert tray or with a mid-morning cup of coffee.

Mille-feuille is very similar to the Italian dessert, Napoleon. The main difference between the two desserts is that a Napoleon is layered with almond paste instead of cream. A traditional mille-feuille will consist of three layers of puff pastry alternated with two layers of pastry cream.

noun. a pastry consisting of thin layers of puff paste interlaid with a cream or custard filling. a former gold coin of France, equal to 20 francs and bearing a portrait either of Napoleon I or of Napoleon III. Cards.

Napoleon pastry, also known as mille-feuille, is a classic French dessert that has been enjoyed for hundreds of years. Although its origins are somewhat disputed, its name is derived from Napoleon Bonaparte, who was said to have enjoyed the pastry during his reign as Emperor of France.

A handmade puff pastry similar to the eclair but using a light and crispy, croissant-like baked crust. Napoleons are filled with a deluxe vanilla pastry cream and tart rasberry jelly and then drizzeled with a dark chocolate ganache.

The French “mille feuille” (pronounced meel foy) translates to a thousand sheets or leaves, a description of this dessert's many whisper-thin pastry layers. It's also sometimes called a “Napoleon” or a “custard slice” depending on the filling and/or region.

A mille-feuille (French: [mil fœj]; lit. 'thousand-sheets'), also known by the names Napoleon in North America, vanilla slice in the United Kingdom, and custard slice, is a French dessert made of puff pastry layered with pastry cream.

Mill-feuille can be assembled a day or two in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container until serving. However, the fresh berries and the cream will make the caramelised pastry go soggy – not really what you want.

Born on the island of Corsica to a family of Italian origin, Napoleon moved to mainland France in 1779 and was commissioned as an officer in the French Royal Army in 1785. He supported the French Revolution in 1789, and promoted its cause in Corsica.

As First Consul, Napoleon instituted a number of lasting reforms: centralised administration of government, a higher education system, a central bank, law codes and a road and sewer system, many of which are still in place today.

What are the rules of Napoleon? ›

Under the code all male citizens are equal: primogeniture, hereditary nobility, and class privileges are extinguished; civilian institutions are emancipated from ecclesiastical control; freedom of person, freedom of contract, and inviolability of private property are fundamental principles.

Both a Napoleon and mille-feuille consist of crispy puff pastry layers and cream, but the former traditionally uses almond cream, while the latter contains a rich custard pastry cream. The top of a mille-feuille is also finished with glossy royal icing and elaborate designs of chocolate or colored icing.

Watergate cake is a pistachio cake popular in the U.S. which shares its name with the Watergate scandal of the 1970s, although the name's origin is not clear. The cake pre-dates Watergate salad, a dessert made with similar ingredients including pistachio pudding.

A cakewalk was a dance performed by enslaved people in the mid-nineteenth century that mocked the mannered dances of white slave owners. The winner of the cakewalk would be given a piece of cake as a prize, hence the term “piece of cake.”

Put simply, pastry cream is a type of custard. Adding cornstarch to the vanilla custard will give you a thick, firm substance (almost like vanilla pudding) that will hold its shape when piped. Custard that you can pour, which is only thickened with eggs, is actually called crème anglaise.

The classic napoleon is layers of puff pastry filled with pastry cream or whipped cream, but nowadays the definition has grown to embrace almost anything, sweet or savory, that is layered. Roasted vegetables, which are pliant and colorful, make a particularly wonderful napoleon.