Carla’s Strawberry Napoleon

Ingredients

• Puff Pastry
• 1 package frozen Puff Pastry (two sheets), thawed per package instructions
• 1 tsp Butter, melted
• Strawberry Compote
• 1 lb fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 1/4 cup super fine granulated sugar
• Zest from ½ lemon
• Pastry Cream
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1/2 cup superfine sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 4 egg yolks (room temperature)
• 2 Tbls butter (cubed)
• 2 tsp good vanilla extract
• icing
• 1-1/2 cups Powdered Sugar
• 2 Tbls water (add up to ½ tbls more if needed)
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/8 cup chocolate chips or melting chocolate
• 
  

Instructions

• Puff Pastry
  Gently roll the puffed pastry on floured surface to 1/8” thickness. Cut into 24 rectangles (12 each sheet). Transfer the pastry to parchment or silpat lined baking sheets being sure there’s a small distance between pastries.
  Cook per package directions – until lightly browned. Remove and allow to cool completely.

Strawberry Compote

Place the strawberries and sugar in a medium pot with a pinch of salt. Cook 9-11 minutes until the sugar is dissolved – use a potato masher to break up the berries as it cooks. The liquid should reduce by half and it should thicken so you see the bottom as you stir.

Cool then cover the compote with plastic wrap, pressing plastic onto top of the compote to prevent a skin from forming. Place it in refrigerator until well chilled or even overnight.

Pastry Cream

Have everything at hand and ready when you start – having a helper makes it easier. You’ll have a few minutes of intense cooking but it’s worth it.

Heat the cream in a saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming. Quickly whisk in the sugar, cornstarch and return to a low boil.

In a small bowl, whisk eggs and temper with 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture by whisking the eggs and slowly dribbling the milk mixture into it - stirring constantly - to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Gradually pour the egg mixture into the milk pot on the stove and continue to whisk as the mixture returns to a boil. Continue to cook until thick about 3 minutes.

Strain the cream through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl (this gets out any lumps from the cornstarch). Add the butter, cut into bits, and stir until it’s melted. Add the vanilla and stir until creamy.

Let the cream cool for a few minutes and then cover with plastic wrap, pressing plastic onto top of cream to prevent a skin from forming. Place in refrigerator until chilled or even overnight.

Icing

In a medium bowl, whisk powdered sugar to remove lumps. Add water and lemon juice and stir to create a smooth icing.

Assembly

You can do this in three layers, but I prefer two. With a plastic reclosable bag or pastry bag, pipe the cream into the center of a puff pastry. Top with strawberry compote. Then dip a puff pastry into the icing, let the excess drip off, and place it on top of the compote.

Next drizzle chocolate over the top (heat in a double boiler or microwave and pipe it with a plastic bag or bottle). Use a knife or toothpick to draw through the chocolate and icing layer left to right, right to left, and then left to right again.

Serve immediately.

MAKE AHEAD:

Make the cream and strawberry compote the night ahead. Bake the puff pastry and make the day of and assemble just before serving.

Apple Brown Betty with Almond Whipped Cream

What is an Apple Brown Betty? It’s a dessert made with layers of spiced apples, brown sugar, and a  buttered crumb of some sort. Generally if a bread product is used it’s a Betty. If it’s an oatmeal topping, it’s a fruit crisp. The Apple Brown Betty (it can be made with other fruits too like cranberry, blueberry, raspberry, etc.) dates back to the early 1800′s and is said to have been created in the American colonies.

Ingredients

• Apple Betty
• 3 lbs tart apples (like Granny Smith, Pink Lady, or Gravenstein - about 9 medium), washed, peeled and sliced
• 10 slices good quality cinnamon-raisin bread, cubed
• ¾ c packed brown sugar
• ½ c butter, melted
• 1 tsp almond extract
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground cardamom
• ⅛ tsp salt
• WHIPPED CREAM
• 1 c heavy whipping cream
• 2 Tbls sugar
• 1 tsp grated lemon peel
• ½ tsp almond extract

Instructions

Place uniformly sliced apples in the bottom of an ungreased 4- or 5-qt. slow cooker.

In a large bowl, combine the rest of the Apply Betty ingredients - toss to mix. Dump the Apple Betty mixture on top of the apple slices.

Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until apples are tender.

Meanwhile, In a mixing bowl, beat the cream until it begins to thicken. Add the sugar, lemon zest, and almond extract and continue beating until soft peaks form. Refrigerate

Serve the warm apple mixture with the chilled whipped almond cream