Millefoglie Cream Cake with Berries

Crusty and delicate puff pastry generously layered with soft vanilla custard is what the world’s famous Millefoglie cake all about.

As all puff pastry masterpieces, Millefoglie originates in France. But it’s one of the most favorite cakes in Italy.

Because of its simplicity and truly extraordinary taste Millefoglie is the beloved cake for Birthdays, Weddings and other festive events, large and small.

They say the cake was first mentioned in the book Cuisinier François dating from 1651.

Later the recipe was perfected by Marie-Antoine Carême and this is how we know it to be today.

Millefoglie or Mille-feuille (in French) literally means “one thousand leaves”. And if you’ve ever tried millefoglie you can totally tell why.

Three layers of puff pastry just out of the oven turn into delicate, light and crispy base with “thousand layers”.

The first two sheets are generously covered with aromatic, freshly made vanilla cream.

In this version Millefoglie is made with fresh berries, that create taste sparkles each time you happen to bite on a fresh berry amid soft velvety vanilla custard.

It’s simply perfect!

Ingredients:

For layers:

3 puff pastry sheets

2 cup assorted berries (blueberries, raspberries)

For cream:

2½- 3 cups whole milk

⅔ cup sugar

6 egg yolks

½ cup corn starch

Vanilla to taste

For decoration:

Confectioneer’s sugar

Fresh berries

Preparation:

Step 1 – Puff Pastry Sheets: Prepare 3 ready to use puff pastry sheets. Pick each sheet all over with  a fork to make small wholes in the dough and let it “breath” while in the oven. Bake each sheet of puff pasty on a baking sheet lined with a parchment paper at 390-400 F for 15 minutes or until light golden brown.

If the puff pastry you bought requires rolling, roll it into 3 pieces of equal size and approx ¼ inch thick.

Step 2 –  Vanilla Cream

Step 2a: Beat egg yolks with sugar.

Add corn starch, vanilla and ½ cup milk.

Whisk everything well until a smooth and even texture without any lumps.

Step 2b: Heat 1 ½  cup of milk on a stove-top without boiling it. (Yes, you still have some milk left which we’ll use in a few moments).

Turn the heat on low and slowly start adding egg yolks, corn starch and milk mixture to the heated milk. Whisk continuously to prevent formation of lumps and sticking to the bottom of the bowl.

Continue whisking until until the cream starts to become pretty thick and turns into custard.

But be careful not to overcook the cream otherwise you’ll get a sweet omelet. And that’s not exactly what we want 🙂

Once you see consistency of the cream is thick enough transfer it into a large bowl.

Step 2c: To stop cooking process, pour the remaining milk slowly until you reach the desired thickness. Stir well until your cream becomes nice, even and velvety.

NOTE: As an alternative, to stop further cooking of the cream once it’s removed from the heat place a bowl with a cream into a large bowl filled with ice. In this case use don’t need to preserve 2 cup of milk, just heat up 2 ½ cups straight at the beginning of this step.

Assemble Millefoglie Cake

Place the first layer of puff pastry on a serving tray.

Spread ½ of the cream over the top.

You can use a simple spatula, zip-locker bag with cut corners or a pastry bag to make an even layer of cream.

Add half of the berries.

Repeat the process with the second layer.

Cover the cake with the last puff pastry sheet. Dust with confectioneer’s sugar and a few berries you used in the cake.

Full Recipe

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Millefoglie Cream Cake with Berries

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Crusty and delicate puff pastry generously layered with soft vanilla custard is what the world’s famous Millefoglie cake all about.

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Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 10

Ingredients

For layers

• ▢ 3 puff pastry sheets
• ▢ 2 cup assorted berries blueberries, raspberries

For cream

• ▢ 2½-3 cups whole milk
• ▢ ⅔ cup sugar
• ▢ 6 egg yolks
• ▢ ½ cup corn starch
• ▢ 1 tbsp vanilla extract

For decoration

• ▢ Confectioneer’s sugar
• ▢ Fresh berries

Instructions

• Puff Pastry Sheets: Prepare 3 ready to use puff pastry sheets. Pick each sheet all over with a fork to make small wholes in the dough and let it “breath” while in the oven. Bake each sheet of puff pasty on a baking sheet lined with a parchment paper at 390-400 F for 15 minutes or until light golden brown.
• If the puff pastry you bought requires rolling, roll it into 3 pieces of equal size and approx ¼ inch thick.
• Vanilla Cream: Beat egg yolks with sugar. Add corn starch, vanilla and ½ cup milk. Whisk everything well until a smooth and even texture without any lumps.
• Heat 1 ½ cup of milk on a stove-top without boiling it. (Yes, you still have some milk left which we’ll use in a few moments).
  

  Turn the heat on low and slowly start adding egg yolk, corn starch and milk mixture to the heated milk. Whisk continuously to prevent formation of lumps and cream sticking to the bottom of the pot. Continue whisking until until the cream starts to become pretty thick and turns into custard.
• Be careful not to overcook the cream otherwise you’ll get a sweet omelet. Once you see consistency of the cream is thick enough transfer it into a large bowl.
• To stop cooking process, pour the remaining milk slowly until you reach the desired thickness. Stir well until your cream becomes nice, even and velvety.
• Assemble Millefoglie Cake: Place the first layer of puff pastry on a serving tray. Spread ½ of the cream over the top. Add half of the berries. Repeat the process with the second layer.
• Cover the cake with the last puff pastry sheet. Dust with confectioneer’s sugar and a few berries you used in the cake.

Notes

As an alternative, to stop further cooking of the cream once it’s removed from the heat place a bowl with a cream into a large bowl filled with ice. In this case use don’t need to preserve 2 cup of milk, just heat up 2 ½ cups straight at the beginning of this step.

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One thousand words is not enough to describe this incredible taste.

So the best thing you can do is bake and try it yourself!

TIP: Instead of a large 10x 14 inch cake you can make small individual servings. Simply cut puff pasty in smaller rectangulars before baking. Consider you need 3 layers per each mini millefoglie.

Instead of berries you can use pistachios or almonds or use none at all.

Just millefoglie and the cream. Even on it’s own it’s out of this world 😊

Would love to know if Millefoglie is now on your baking list 🙂