Gâteau Napoléon – Recette en vidéo

Ingredients (23 cm diameter cake):

biscuit:

• 160 g very cold water
• 50 grams vodka (or brandy)
• 20 g white vinegar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 620 g flour
• 400 g cold butter

cream:

• 1300g milk (1100+200)
• 7 egg yolks
• 360 g de sucre
• 100g flour
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 230g softened butter (30+200)

instruct:

1. the day before, morning : starts with Prepare cookie dough. In a bowl, combine cold water, vodka, white vinegar, eggs, and salt.
2. Sift flour. Add this to the bowl of a food processor, add the cold butter cut into small pieces and blend for a few seconds to get a sandy mixture*.
3. Pour this mixture into a large salad bowl (too large to finish the dough in a food processor), make a well in the center, and add the liquid ingredients. Knead quickly into a dough. It’s okay if there are little bits of butter left in the dough. It will melt during baking and form flaky cookies.
4. Divide the dough into 13 equal portions, each about 100g. Quickly make the balls and return them to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
5. Meanwhile, prepare the pastry cream. Pour 1.1 kg of milk into the pot and bring to a boil.
6. Meanwhile, in a salad bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar. Add flour and mix well. Add the remaining 200 g of milk in 2-3 portions to dilute the preparation and make it uniform in texture.
7. Gradually pour the hot milk into this mixture, stirring until smooth and free of lumps.
8. Pour the mixture back into the pan and heat over low heat (8/14 for me), stirring regularly so that the yolks don’t solidify. The cream should thicken.
9. When ready, remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract and 30 g of butter cut into cubes. Mix well to combine them.
10. Pour the cream into a large bowl, cover with film to prevent a film from forming on its surface and allow to cool completely to room temperature (2-3 hours).
11. Meanwhile, prepare cookies. Preheat the oven to 220°C, static heat. Prepare 2 baking sheets and line them with silicone mats or baking paper.
12. Remove the ball of dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a lightly floured work surface into a round slightly larger than 23 cm. The dough is very easy to work with. Use a plate or frame to cut out a circle 23cm in diameter.
13. Poke holes in the surface of the dough with a fork and place it on a parchment-lined baking sheet without stretching it. Also set the cut pieces aside, gathering them together so they don’t burn. Once cooked, they are used to spread on cakes.
14. Place in oven and bake for 8 minutes or until cookies are golden brown. Meanwhile, prepare the next cookie.
15. Place the cookies on a plate and place the dough scraps into a bowl. Repeat until dough is used up.
16. The afternoon before: Prepare the cream. Whip the cooled custard for a few seconds to soften. Then add 200 grams of softened butter cut into small pieces and continue mixing little by little.
17. Once all the butter is in, continue whisking a little more to thicken the cream.
18. Make edits cake. Place a cookie on the tray (add a tablespoon of cream beforehand so that the cake sticks to the tray so that it does not move). Add 3 tablespoons of cream and spread proportionally over the entire surface. Do the same with the remaining 12 cookies.
19. Keep a little cream at the end and spread it around the edges of the cake.
20. Mix the cooked dough scraps (or crush them with a rolling pin). Cover the cake generously, using your hands to adhere the crumbs to the cake.
21. Place the cake in the refrigerator overnight so the cookies absorb the cream and soften.
22. Refrigerate with a cup of good tea. What a treat!

Tips and Tricks:

* If you don’t have a food processor, place the flour in a large bowl and add the diced cold butter and stir with your fingertips to get the same result. You need to do this quickly so the butter doesn’t have time to heat up and soften. Or place the flour on a work surface, add cubes of butter on top, and quickly chop this mixture with a knife.