Fig & Rose Millefeuille / Mil Folhas de Figos e Rosas.

You all know I love a good millefeuilles right?

To me, Millefeuilles are like Pavlovas! Can't see one new recipe of either of them, and you'll spot me running into the kitchen to make it straightaway!

In this post, you can see the list of all the homemade millefeuilles I've already made until today and, this one, with all these exotic and Persian flavours, couldn't go unnoticed and not being part of my millefeuilles list, right?

This is another great recipe from Sabrina Ghayour beautifully gorgeous "Feasts" book and it was so, so delicious that I had to share it with you all.

Try it and thank me later because you will be delighted :))).

Sweet World Round Up - Millefeuilles.

Another successful Sweet World edition, this time having the french Millefeuilles as its theme and the results, as you can check below, were incredible.

Thanks to everyone that went to the trouble to be with us once again, and that brought all these beauties to our 20th edition!

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Mais uma edição do Sweet World terminada com sucesso, cujo tema, os franceses Mil Folhas, provou ser do agrado dos que connosco decidiram aventurar-se.

Os resultados estão à vista e temos Mil Folhas lindos de morrer e com sabores de dar água na boca.

Muito obrigada a todos os que mais uma vez nos acompanharam e participaram nesta nossa 20ª edição.

Millefeuilles with Vanilla Crème Pâtissière & feathered Fondant Icing / Mil Folhas com Creme Pasteleiro de Baunilha, decorados com Icing Fondante.

This month and for th 20th edition of the Sweet World, we're asking you to make Millefeuilles.

Millefeuilles are a classic French pastry that consists of layers of puff pastry and cream filling.

Millefeuilles means one thousand sheets, layers, or leaves and they're an old school French pastry that's airy, crispy, flaky, decadent and moreish, in all the right places.

The very first recipe for a millefeuille appeared in François Pierre La Varenne's cookbook in 1651.

Officially, a gâteau millefeuille is constructed of three layers of puff pastry and stabilized pastry cream (mixed with a little gelatin for a tighter cream that's not too runny), decorated with fondant and garnished with a chocolate spider web design on top.

Sometimes mixed up, a millefeuille is not the same as a Napoleon, an Italian dessert where almond paste - similar to frangipane - is sandwiched between its many layers.

Apart from making your own puff pastry instead of using shop bought pastry, a millefeuille is not difficult to make. Actually, if you already mastered how to make a good crème pâtissière, there's nothing to worry about.

So, are you up for the challenge and will you joint us and bring us some gorgeous millefeuilles?

If yes, here are the rules:

• You have until the 20th of September to make and publish your millefeuilles. 
• That same day, 20th of September, Susana will let you know in her blog, the theme for the 21th edition of the Sweet World.
• You'll have to leave your Millefeuilles link here, in this post, in order to be featured in the monthly round up that will be published here on the blog, on the 25th of September.

The recipe I chose, is this one that I'm leaving you today and it's from Lorraine Pascale absolutely gorgeous book "Bake"!

In case you need inspiration to make your millefeuilles, there's a few recipes here on the blog (here, here, here and here).

As for the puff pastry, I always make this recipe but there's this one too, which is simpler to make and will be perfect for your millefeuilles.

Red Velvet Napoleons with Raspberries / Mil Folhas de Veludo Vermelho e Framboesas.

You know I can't resist a millefeuille recipe right?

Here o the blog, you can find 3 millefeuilles recipes (here, here and here) and each one, better than the previous one!!

So, as soon as I got Lorraine Pascale new book "Bake", I couldn't resist but make this millefeuilles straightaway!

The book is amazing!! Full of delicious recipes and I have lots of them already marked down to be tried.

As for this one, as expected, the millefeuilles were a true delight and a true winner and you should tried it!

Not the healthiest recipe, as you can notice by the ingredients list, but surely, a treat!!

Notes:

• Of course, I made my own homemade puff pastry, but of course, you can use shop bought puff pastry if that makes you more comfortable.
• Filling wise, the full fiiling recipe is too much for this recipe so, I advise you to make only half the quantity of the filling because it will be more than enough.

London Fog Millefeuilles / Mil Folhas "Nevoeiro de Londres".

Those who follow my instagram account (here and here), know very well that I'm very proud of the lavender bush that I have in my garden.
I love lavender, both, the smell and the flavour and every Summer I'm delighted with its beautiful purple shades and the way it comes back to life. Something else I love, is watching all the busy bees always around it.
This recipe, was marked for this time of the year - when my organic lavender is at its best - since the day I bought the fabulous Aimee Twigger "Love, Aimee x" book. A book that you all know I truly adore and from which, this one is the third recipe I'm making (the other two are here and here).
Aimee calls this recipe the London Fog Millefeuilles as, according to Aimee, the millefeuilles flavours were inspired by a London Fog Latte, which is flavoured with Earl Grey tea. Her favourite kind of tea and mine too I have to add.
Aimee perfumed the millefeuilles with the Earl Grey tea and lavender as she thinks they go really well together and I totally agree with her. It's a delightful combination!
I made these millefeuilles last week, for my husband's birthday and they were a huge success.

Rhubarb and custard millefeuilles / Mil folhas de ruibarbo e custard.

I love rhubarb but I tend to not make many things with it as, here at home, rhubarb is loved by ones and hated by others.

My daughter loves it and my husband hates it. My son said he hated it all his life and the last time I made something with rhubarb, he had a fair amount of it and confessed that he loves it but he was saying all the time that he hated it, just to please his daddy... Unbelievable right? I almost strangled him that day, lol!

When I saw a beautiful bunch of a very pink and gorgeous rhubarb last time I went shopping, I couldn't resist and brought it home with me.

Because this Rachel Khoo recipe was one of the many marked down to test, I didn't have to think much about where I was going to use it.

This is a very gourmet dessert that went down a storm as the combination is absolutely scrumptious.

ingredients (serves 4):

375g pack of ready rolled puff pastry, removed from the fridge 20 minutes before using

1 egg, beaten

2 tbsp caster sugar

1 tbsp icing sugar

method:

Preheat the oven to 180ºC and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Cut off the pastry into 12 rectangles measuring 4cm x 10cm and place them on the baking tray.

Brush lightly with the beaten egg and sprinkle with caster sugar. Cover the rectangles with another sheet of baking paper, then place another baking tray on top, to stop the pastry from rising.

Bake for 30 minutes.

for the custard:

3 egg yolks

40g caster sugar

20g cornflour

250ml whole milk

1/2 a vanilla pod, seeds scrapped and pod reserved (I used 1 tsp vanilla paste)

method:

Whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar for 2 to 3 minutes, or until you have a light and thick mixture.

Whisk in the cornflour.

Bring the milk to the boil with the vanilla seeds and the vanilla pod.

Pour the milk in a slow stream on to the egg mixture, whisking all the time.

Return the mixture to a clean pan and whisk continuously over a medium heat, scrapping down the sides and the bottom of the pan.

Once the cream releases a bubble or two, take it off the heat.

Pour the custard into a bowl to cool to room temperature.

When cooled, spoon it into a large pipping bag with a 1cm nozzle and place in a jug so it stays upright.

Put it in the fridge and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

for the rhubarb:

400g rhubarb, washed, trimmed and cut into 10cm pieces

50g caster sugar

method:

Toss the rhubarb in the sugar and place it in a small baking dish.

Roast at 180ºC for 20 minutes or until the rhubarb is tender but not mushy.

to assemble:

Pipe 2 blobs of custard on a serving plate. Stick a pastry rectangle on top, then place 3 to 4 slices of rhubarb on top of the pastry.

Place another piece of pastry over the rhubarb and pipe 2 lines of custard on this second layer of pastry.

Top with the 3rd rectangle and dust with icing sugar.

Repeat to make 4 millefeuilles and serve immediately.

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Eu adoro ruibarbo mas não faço muitas coisas com ele porque, cá em casa, o ruibarbo é amado por uns e odiado por outros.

Eu e a minha filha adoramos. O meu marido odeia e o meu filho, que passou a vida a dizer que odiava, na última vez que fiz algo com ruibarbo, comeu que se fartou e no fim confessou que adora ruibarbo, mas que sempre disse que odiava para agradar e fazer pandilha com o seu papá... GRRR!! Quase o estrangulei nesse dia..., lol!

Quando, de uma das vezes que fui ás compras, vi um molho lindo de ruibarbo, com um aspecto fabuloso e com uma cor rosa linda, não hesitei em trazê-lo comigo para casa.

Como esta receita da Rachel Khoo, era uma das que estava marcada para fazer desde o início, podem calcular que não tive de pensar muito onde utilizar o ruibarbo certo?

Esta é ums sobremesa linda e que causa impacto em qualquer mesa e a combinação de ingredientes é completamente indescritível e difícil de adjectivar.

ingredientes (para 4 pessoas):

1 rectângulo de massa folhada com 375g, retirada do frigorífico 20 minutos antes

1 ovo, batido

2 colheres sopa de açúcar refinado branco

1 colher sopa de açúcar em pó

preparação:

Aquecer o forno a 180ºC e forrar um tabuleiro grande com papel vegetal.

Cortar a massa folhada em 12 rectângulos de 4cm x 10cm cada e colocá-los no tabuleiro.

Pincelar levemente com o ovo e polvilhar com o açúcar refinado.

Cobrir os rectângulos com uma folha de papel vegetal e colocar outro tabuleiro em cima, a fim de evitar que a massa cresça.

Levar ao forno por cerca de 30 minutos.

para o custard:

3 gemas de ovo

40g açúcar refinado branco

20g Maizena

250ml leite gordo

1/2 vagem de baunilha, sementes raspadas e casca reservada (eu usei 1 colher chá de pasta de baunilha).

preparação:

Bater as gemas com o açúcar por 2 ou 3 minutos, ou até obter uma mistura pálida e espessa.

Adicionar a maizena e voltar a bater.

Colocar o leite num tacho com as sementes e a casca da vagem da baunilha e levar ao lume até levantar fervura.

Lentamente e em fio, adicionar o leite a ferver à mistura das gemas, batendo vigorosamente o tempo todo.

Colocar a mistura num tacho limpo e aquecer em lume médio, mexendo o tempo todo e raspando bem os lados e fundo do tacho, até o creme começar a fazer bolhas. Assim que vir uma ou duas bolhas, retirar do lume imediatamente.

Deitar o custard numa taça para arrefecer até estar á temperatura ambiente.

Quando arrefecido, colocar o custard dentro de um saco de pasteleiro equipado com um bico de 1cm de diâmetro.

Colocar o saco de pasteleiro com o custard dentro de um jarro, a fim de o manter direito e refrigerar por 1 ou 2 horas.

para o ruibarbo:

400g ruibarbo, lavado, pontas aparadas e cortado em pedaços de 10cm

50g açúcar refinado branco

preparação:

Misturar os pedaços de ruibarbo com o açúcar e colocá-los num tabuleiro ou recipiente refractário. Levar ao forno a 180ºC, por cerca de 20 minutos, ou até estar macio, mas sem estar desfeito.

para montar os mil folhas:

Com o saco de pasteleiro, colocar dois pontos de custard nos pratos onde vai servir os mil folhas, a fim de evitar que eles deslizem.

Colocar 1 rectângulo de massa folhada no prato e sobre esta, colocar 2 ou 3 pedaços de ruibarbo.

Cobrir com o 2º rectângulo de massa e, sobre este, desenhar duas linhas de custard.

Cobrir com o 3º rectângulo de massa folhada e polvilhar com açúcar em pó.

Repetir o processo, até ter montado os 4 mil folhas.

Servir imediatamente.

Recipe / Receita:

Lavender custard and fillo millefeuilles / Mil folhas de custard de alfazema e massa filo.

One of the good things about blogging is that you get to "meet" interesting people.

Of course, some stand out from the crowd for different reasons like, lifestyle, kindness or whatever. Or only because you feel you have more in common with this or that person.
All of that to say that Mena is one of those people that stands out from the crowd.
A friendship that started with the exchange of some casual e-mails, became something bigger and more intimate in terms of conversations, e-mails, daily messages and even phone calls.
Nowadays, distance is no excuse not to be connected with the people you love, as the internet makes it easy. In fact, Mena and I communicate at least once a day.
I only know Mena by photo and voice but I'm sure one day we are going to meet and I'll finally get the chance to give her a huge hug.
For now, and because today is her birthday, I just want her to know that I didn't forget about it or her.
For Mena's birthday and because she is an "indulgent flower" and my "mana Bundette", I have prepared this indulgent and scrumptious lavender mille feuilles.
Happy birthday my dear friend!!

I just made half of the recipe and the result was 2 small mille feuilles of 3 layers each but I leave you the original recipe which consists in 1 big mille feuille with 6 layers of pastry.

ingredients:

18 sheets of fillo pastry

100g unsalted butter, melted

35g caster sugar

2 tsp icing sugar

method:

Preheat the oven to 160ºC and grease and line with baking paper 3 large oven trays.

Brush one sheet of fillo pastry with some of the melted butter.

Scatter with 3/4 tsp of the caster sugar.

Repeat this process, layering five times in order to form a six layer stack.

Using a sharp knife and a ruler, cut the stack into two 12 x 28cm rectangles, discarding the trimmings.

Repeat the brushing, stacking and cutting process 2 more times and you'll end up with 6 equally sized stacks in total.

Place 2 fillo stacks, side by side, on each tray. Cover with 1 sheet of baking paper. Stack trays on top of each other and place a fourth empty tray on top of the last one.

Bake the stacked trays for 15 minutes.

Carefully remove the stacked trays from the oven and unstack them.

Return the trays to the oven and bake the stacks of fillo, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

Cool the pastry stacks on the baking trays.

ingredients for the lavender custard:

750ml milk

8 egg yolks

220g caster sugar

75g cornflour

1 1/2 tbsp dried lavender flowers

125ml double cream

method:

Heat the milk in a saucepan until boiling point.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar, cornflour and lavender flowers and gradually whisk in the hot milk.

Return the mixture to the pan. Whisk continuously for around 7 minutes over medium heat or until the mixture boils and thickens.

Remove the pan from the heat, whisk for a further minute and strain the custard into a bowl.

Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate until cool.

to assemble the mille feuille:

With an electric mixer, beat the cream in a bowl until soft peaks form. Fold the cream into the lavender custard.

Place a fillo rectangle on a serving plate.

Spread with 1/5 of the lavender custard.

Repeat the process, finishing with a fillo rectangle. Dust with icing sugar and decorate with lavender flowers.

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Uma das melhores contrapartidas de ter um blogue são os conhecimentos e amizades que, numa primeira fase, virtualmente se fazem.

Não sei se é a forma como escrevem, ou algo diferente, o certo é que há pessoas por detrás dos blogues, com quem criamos empatias quase que imediatas e o que, à partida, começa por ser uma troca de e-mails de circunstância ou um tirar de dúvidas, rapidamente se transforma numa troca de e-mails diários e mais profundos.

Esta conversa toda para vos falar da Mena, sim, a nossa querida mamã da Sibéria que dispensa apresentações, a minha querida mana Bundette, com quem criei essa tal empatia acima referida e que, além dos e-mails (diários ou não), dependendo da disponibilidade de cada uma de nós, se passou também á troca de mensagens e até, esporadicamente, conversas telefónicas.

A Mena é daquelas pessoas doces e atenciosas que cativa logo de imediato e não é a distância entre Andorra e a Escócia que nos inibe de estarmos em contacto diário, pois as maravilhas da internet fazem com que não existam distâncias entre nós, a não ser as físicas.

Anseio pelo dia em que conhecerei a Mena pessoalmente e lhe poderei dar o tão prometido abraço apertado, mas até lá e porque a Mena hoje faz anos, deixo-lhe este mil folhas que preparei para ela.

Uma sobremesa indulgente e com flores - alfazema do meu jardim, que está linda e cheia de cor - para a Mena, a minha "flor indulgente do Ocidente"!!

Muitos PARABÉNS minha amiga e que tenhas um dia super feliz e mimado, ainda que os teus pintainhos não estejam aí contigo e olha...,
se choras, levas!!!

Eu só fiz metade da receita e transformei-a em 2 mil folhas pequenos, com 3 camadas de massa cada um, mas deixo-vos a receita completa, que dá para um mil folhas grande, com 6 camadas de massa filo.

ingredientes:

18 folhas de massa filo

100g manteiga sem sal, derretida

35g açúcar refinado branco

2 colheres chá de açúcar em pó

preparação:

Aquecer o forno a 160ºC e untar e forrar com papel vegetal 3 tabuleiros grandes.
Pincelar uma folha de massa filo com manteiga derretida e polvilhar com 3/4 colher de chá de açúcar refinado branco.
Repetir o processo com mais 5 folhas de massa filo, a fim de obter uma pilha de 6 folhas de massa.
Com a ajuda de uma faca afiada e uma régua, cortar a pilha das 6 folhas de massa filo em 2 rectângulos de 12 x 28cm, descartando os excessos.
Repetir o processo de pincelar, polvilhar e cortar, mais duas vezes, por forma a obter mais duas pilhas de 6 folhas de massa cada uma, o que perfará, no final, um total de 6 rectângulos de 12 x 28cm e com 6 folhas de massa filo cada um.
Colocar 2 rectângulos, lado a lado, em cada tabuleiro e cobrir com uma folha de papel vegetal.
Colocar os tabuleiros uns sobre os outros e cobrir o último tabuleiro (o que fica em cima), com um 4º tabuleiro vazio, a fim de criar peso.
Levar a pilha de tabuleiros ao forno e cozer por 15 minutos.
Findo esse tempo, retirar os tabuleiros do forno e separá-los com cuidado.
Levar os tabuleiros de novo ao forno, separados e sem papel vegetal a cobrir a massa filo, por mais 10 minutos, ou até que as pilhas de massa estejam douradinhas.
Deixar as pilhas de massa arrefecer nos próprios tabuleiros.

ingredientes para o creme de alfazema:

750ml leite

8 gemas de ovo

220g açúcar refinado branco

75g Maizena

1 1/2 colheres sopa de flores secas de alfazema biológica

125ml natas para culinária
preparação:

Aquecer o leite num tachinho, até este atingir o ponto de ebulição.
Numa taça, bater os ovos, o açúcar, a Maizena e a alfazema.
Adicionar o leite quente gradualmente, batendo sempre.
Colocar toda a mistura de volta no tacho e levar ao lume por 7 minutos, mexendo sempre, sobre lume médio, ou até a mistura começar a ferver e engrossar.
Retirar o tacho do lume e bater por mais 1 minuto.
Coar a mistura para uma taça, cobrir com película aderente e colocar no frigorífico até estar completamente fria.

para montar o mil folhas:

Com a ajuda da batedeira, bater as natas até estas formarem picos ligeiros.
Misturar as natas com o creme de alfazema, envolvendo bem.
Colocar um rectângulo de massa filo num prato de serviço e cobrir com 1/5 do creme de alfazema.
Repetir o processo, terminando com um rectângulo de massa filo.
Polvilhar com o açúcar em pó e decorar com flores de alfazema.

Recipe / Receita: