Mille-feuille (also known as napoleon cake) is the classic French dessert that consists of layers of super thin puff pastry and vanilla cream filling. Because I’m not the biggest fan of puff pastry, I decided to make mine using filo instead, adding a little crunch to this gorgeous dessert.
Golden crispy filo pastry layered with delicate vanilla custard and sweet juicy raspberries. This is my take on the French classic (with a twist).
Using filo pastry instead of the traditional puff pastry also makes this dessert much lighter. My vegan mille-feuille recipe is super easy to make, requiring just 6 ingredients. It is also super versatile – you could swap the raspberries for strawberries, blackberries, blueberries or other fruit. Let’s bake!
Vegan Filo Mille-Feuille
Ingredients
- 4 filo pastry sheets
- 3 tbsp golden sugar
- cooking oil spray
- 2 tbsp instant custard
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 280 ml plant milk
- 2 cups fresh raspberries
- 2/3 cup icing sugar
- 50 g dark chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C | Gas mark 5. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and set aside.
- Place 1 filo sheet on your work surface and lightly cover the sheet with oil spray. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar, then place another sheet on top. Repeat, layering the remaining filo sheets on top and spraying each with little oil and sprinkling with a tablespoon of sugar in between each one.
- Cut the filo pastry lengthwise into 4 equal strips, then cut each strip into 4 equal rectangles. You should end up with 16 rectangles.
- Transfer rectangles to the prepared baking sheets and bake in the middle of the oven for 8 minutes or until golden and crisp.
- Cool on a wire rack before filling.
- Prepare the custard. In a saucepan, mix two tablespoons of custard powder with 1 tsp of vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of plant milk to form a paste. Add the rest of the milk and bring to a boil over small heat. Once thick, remove from the heat and set aside for 5 minutes to cool before transferring into a piping bag.
- To assemble, put a filo rectangle on a serving plate, pipe the custard mixture and add a layer of raspberries. Place another filo rectangle on top, pipe more custard and top with a final filo rectangle. Repeat assembling to make six stacks.
- Melt the chocolate and transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle. Set aside.
- To make the icing, place the icing sugar into a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of water and mix to combine.
- Once ready, pour the icing over the top of each mille-feuille and spread evenly using a pallette knife.
- Working quickly, pipe three thin chocolate lines along the width of each pastry, then using a toothpick or a sharp knife lightly draw it down (from top to bottom) through the rows of chocolate.
- Serve cold or at room temperature.
