MILLE FEUILLE

Linda Lipschitz, owner of Belle’s Patisserie (bellespatisserie.co.za), shares her recipes for a fabulous high tea

INGREDIENTS

• 3 x 25cm sheets of ready-made puff pastry
• 150g icing sugar, to serve

For the creme:

• 1 litre milk
• 200g castor sugar
• 30g butter
• 80g cornflour
• 5 eggs

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C. Place the pastry sheets onto greased baking trays and bake for 25–30 minutes until golden brown and cooked.
2. To make the pastry crème: place 900ml of the milk in a saucepan and gently bring to the boil. Stir in 170g of the castor sugar and the butter.
3. Mix the balance of the sugar and milk, the cornflour and eggs together in a mixing bowl, until well combined. Pour 125ml of the hot milk mixture onto the cool egg mixture and mix well. Pour the egg mixture into the hot milk mixture in the saucepan and cook, stirring continuously until it thickens. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool.
4. A few hours before serving, place a sheet of the baked puff pastry onto a serving plate and spread half the pastry crème on top. Use a pallet knife to smooth it out. Top with another sheet of puff pastry and smooth the rest of the pastry crème over the top. Place the last sheet of puff pastry on the top.
5. Store the mille feuille in the fridge until set (about 1½ –2 hours).
6. To serve, remove from the fridge and dust with icing sugar.

This recipe serves 6.