Valentine Napoleons Recipes

VANILLA CREAM NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray 2 cookie sheets with cooking spray. On lightly floured surface, unfold pastry sheets. Cut each sheet into 3 strips along fold marks. Place on cookie sheet; prick lightly with fork all over strips. Repeat with remaining pastry sheet and second cookie sheet.
• Bake about 5 minutes. Prick surfaces of pastries with fork to prevent pastries from rising too much during baking. Bake 10 minutes longer or until golden brown. Remove pastries from cookie sheets; cool 10 to 15 minutes.
• In large bowl, beat pudding mix, 2 cups milk, vanilla and sour cream with electric mixer on medium speed until soft pudding forms. Cover; refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes.
• In small bowl, stir powdered sugar and 3 teaspoons milk. If icing is too thick, stir in another teaspoon milk until spreadable consistency.
• On 1 pastry layer, spread about 3/4 cup pudding. Repeat with another pastry layer and 3/4 cup pudding. Top with third pastry layer. Spread icing over top. Set aside. Repeat to make second dessert with remaining pastries, pudding and icing.
• In microwavable small bowl, microwave chocolate chips uncovered on High about 30 seconds or until chocolate can be stirred smooth. Drizzle chocolate back and forth across top of each dessert. Drag toothpick through chocolate and icing to create marbled appearance.
• Cut desserts into 2-inch slices. Cover; refrigerate until ready to serve.

HEART-SHAPED NAPOLEONS RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, off the heat, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, salt and egg yolks until a thick paste forms. Add milk and whisk until the paste is completely dissolved. Make extra sure that everything is dissolved before heating.
• Place saucepan over medium heat and slowly bring pudding to a bubble, stirring constantly with a whisk. Once the first bubble pops on the surface of the pudding, reduce heat to low and continue whisking for exactly 1 minute and then remove from heat.
• Stir in vanilla and butter until completely melted and incorporated then transfer into a clean bowl. Cover with plastic wrap so that the wrap is touching the pudding. This will prevent a thick skin from forming on the surface of the pudding. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until completely cooled.
• While the pudding is cooling, preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Unfold each sheet of puff pastry and pinch together seams where dough was folded. Dip heart-shaped cookie cutter into flour and cut as many as possible out of each sheet.
• Transfer hearts to prepared baking sheet and bake for 13-15 minutes or until lightly golden on top. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Remove cooled pudding from refrigerator and whisk to soften and remove any lumps. Fold whipped cream (or whipped topping) into pudding and set aside.
• Add chocolate chips, ¼ cup heavy cream and honey to a microwave-safe bowl and heat for about 30 seconds. Stir to melt chocolate and combine thoroughly. Return to microwave for 10 seconds at a time as necessary just to melt chocolate. Stir ingredients into a smooth, glossy glaze.
• Use a sharp knife to split the puff pastry hearts in half horizontally then fill bottom half with pudding. Place the top of puff pastry over pudding and dust lightly with powdered sugar. Drizzle chocolate glaze over the hearts and serve or refrigerate up to 1 hour until ready to serve.

CHOCOLATE CHERRY VALENTINE NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 for regular or 400 for convection.
• Roll Puff Pastry out on flour surfaced. Gently, using a rolling pin, roll out any creases.
• Using a 3 inch Heart Cookie Cutter, Cut out 12 hearts. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon mat.
• In a small bowl, mix one egg and one Tablespoon of Water together to create an egg wash. Gently brush each heart with egg wash.
• Bake in oven for 10-15 minutes until puffed and golden brown.
• Remove from oven and cool.
• In a medium bowl, using a whisk, mix together one package of Godiva Dark Chocolate Pudding with One cup cold milk until thick and creamy. Set aside.
• In your mixer, with the whisk attachment, mix 1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream with 1 tsp of vanilla, and 6 Tablespoons of Powder Sugar.
• Reserve 1/2 cup of whipping cream.
• Add remaining whipping cream to pudding. Fold together until well combined.
• Cut each puff pastry heart in half, creating a top and a bottom.
• Fill Pastry Bag with Chocolate Filling. Pipe around the edge of each bottom heart.
• Fill center with a dab of the reserved whipped cream. Sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles or mini chocolate chips.
• Gently scoop three cherries from the can of cherry pie filling, into the center of each heart, on top of the whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.
• Top with other half of puff pastry heart.
• Sprinkle with Powder Sugar. Top with a squirt of Chocolate filling and one Cherry.
• Chill until ready to serve.

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

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.

BE MY VALENTINE NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• 1. Heat oven to 400 Degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Wash and dry the orange half, then coarsely chop it.
• 2. In a bowl of food processor, pulse orange and cranberries until finely chopped but not pureed. Transfer to bowl; stir in granulated sugar, pecans, and ginger. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.
• 3. Beat mascarpone on medium speed of mixer until soft. Add 1 cup of cream, 6 tablespoons powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Refrigerate until needed.
• 4. Thaw pastry sheet as directed on package. Unfold thawed pastry on lightly floured surface and lightly flour the top surface. Roll out to an 11x11-inch square.
• 5. Using cookie cutters, cut out five large (4-inch), five medium (3-inch) and five small (1 1/2-inch) hearts. Cut out extra small hearts with any remaining dough to use as garnish.
• 6. Place all the hearts on the prepared baking sheet; bake for about 12 minutes or until golden. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes.
• 7. Heat remaining 3 tablespoons cream in microwave for 30 seconds; add chocolate and stir to melt. Microwave for 10 seconds at a time if needed to fully melt chocolate.
• 8. To assemble pastries, split the large and medium hearts in half with a serrated knife. Pipe (or spoon) filling into bottoms of hearts, add a spoonful of cranberry relish and finish with the top hearts. Add a layer of filling and relish to top of the large heart; set the filled medium heart on top. Then add cream and relish to the top of the medium heart and finish with the small heart.
• 9. Drizzle chocolate sauce over the pastry. Repeat with remaining hearts. Extra small hearts can be dusted with powdered sugar and used as a garnish.

HEART-SHAPED RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Place puff pastry on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and poke holes all over surface using the tines of a fork; top with a second piece of parchment paper. Place 2 baking sheets on top of parchment paper to weigh down; transfer to oven. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Remove puff pastry from oven and uncover; let cool completely. Using a 3 1/4-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut six hearts from puff pastry, reserving scraps.
• Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip with pastry cream. Place 1 heart-shaped piece of puff on each of two dessert plates. Pipe pastry cream over the surface of each heart, almost to the edge. Place raspberries around the perimeter of the pastry cream. Top each with a second puff pastry heart and repeat process. Top each with a third puff pastry heart.
• Crumble a little of the reserved puff pastry scraps and top Napoleons with crumbs. Dust tops with confectioners' sugar and pipe a little pastry cream in the center of each. Top with a raspberry and serve immediately.

NAPOLEON

Steps:

• Make puff pastry strips: Lightly flour a clean work surface. Using a rolling pin, gently roll out dough into a 16-by-18-inch rectangle about 1/8 inch thick, being careful not to press too hard around the edges. Using a pastry wheel or sharp knife, cut rectangle crosswise into thirds, with each strip 6 by 16 inches. Transfer to a baking sheet; dock, or pierce, the dough all over with a fork. Cover with plastic wrap; place in refrigerator 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Transfer to oven; bake until strips are puffed and golden all over, about 14 minutes. Set a baking sheet directly on pastry strips, and continue baking until pastry is cooked through and well browned, about 6 minutes. Remove top baking sheet; bake 4 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Using a serrated knife, trim each to 4 1/4 by 12 inches.
• Make the glaze: In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream just to a boil. Place dark chocolate in a bowl, and pour hot cream over chocolate; whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is combined. Whisk in corn syrup. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
• Place white chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk until chocolate is melted, and remove from heat. Let cool.
• Using an offset spatula, spread dark chocolate glaze over one side of the flattest puff pastry strip, making sure to coat entire surface. Place white chocolate in a piping cone; pipe thin lines 3/4 inch apart across width of chocolate-coated strip. To create the distinctive flourish, gently drag the tip of a paring knife or a skewer lengthwise through both coatings, in lines perpendicular to the white chocolate lines. Begin at one of the short ends, and make each line 3/4 inch apart. Alternate the direction each time.
• Place one of the unglazed puff pastry strips on a serving tray. Spread half the pastry cream over the top, leaving a 1/2-inch border all around. Top with remaining unglazed pastry strip; press down gently, and repeat with remaining pastry cream. Top with glazed pastry strip. Transfer to refrigerator, and chill 30 minutes uncovered. Using a long serrated knife, cut into six pieces, and serve.