How can you achieve the glazed top in a mille-feuille?
A mille-feuille (or tompouce) is a pastry, consisting of layers of puff pastry with pastry cream in-between (see this if you don't know it).
If you buy it in a pastry store, I find that the glazed top is unique for this pastry. Recipes online tell me that it's confectioner sugar and egg whites, but I think it's something else. It's solid, yet soft. You can see your tooth print in it. It's white and sweet. I can't exactly explain how it differs from regular egg white/sugar icing, but in my opinion it does.
Does anybody have a clue what I'm talking about? Do you know what's in it? Or is it just a basic egg white/sugar icing, and is my mind playing tricks on me?
Best Answer
The dessert discribed is not truley a "Tom Pouce", that is a different pastry. What is discribed in the question is a "Napoleon" dessert pastry. The Mille Feuille or Puff Pastry is topped with an icing called "Fondant". Fondant in it's simplest (shortcut) form is made by mixed powdered sugar and water until the desired thickness is reached. Some time in the open air will harden it a little further beacause of the water drying out. Fondant made correctly is by making a simple syrup (water and sugar cooked together), cooking it to the "soft ball" stage or temperature of simple syrup, then dispursing it onto a marble slab (to cool it quickly) and with 2 baker knives (one in each hand) fold and kneed the sugar until it frosts from transluscent color to the frosty and shyny white color. This is an old skill which has been taken over by machines. Fontdant is now purchased from larger makers in 5 gal. buckets for a cost of appr. $25.00.
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Quick Answer about "How can you achieve the glazed top in a mille-feuille?"
8. To make the glaze add the powdered sugar to a bowl then add the vanilla and a few tablespoons of milk. Whisk together then add more milk as needed until you get a thick, spreadable consistency.What are the different layers of a mille-feuille?
Composition. Traditionally, a mille-feuille is made up of three layers of puff pastry, and two layers of cr\xe8me p\xe2tissi\xe8re. The top layer is coated with a sprinkling of powdered sugar. In later variations, the top is glazed with icing, in alternating white (icing) and brown (chocolate) strips, and then combed.How would you describe mille-feuille?
Translated to English, millefeuille (pronounced meel-foy) means one thousand sheets, layers, or leaves. It's an old-school French pastry that's airy, crispy, flaky, and decadent in all the right places. "The flavors of a millefeuille are simple, but the textures are amazing," said Ansel.What are thousand layers?
Millefoglie, better known by it's French name, mille-feuille, literally means, \u201ca thousand layers.\u201d Although it has a French origin, it is the go-to dessert for many Italian celebrations.How do you cut a mille-feuille?
It is advised to chill a classic three-layered Mille Feuille cake for a few hours or freeze it for 20 to 30 minutes and then cut it with a sharp knife, better the serrated one. This one-layered dessert is easily cut right after making it with the same type of knife without squashing the dessert.French Dessert Mille-Feuille | MasterChef Canada | MasterChef World
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Answer 2
Mille feuille (Napoleon), eclairs and petit fours, to name but a few, are definitely iced with fondant pastry - also known as poured fondant. Not a royal icing.
There are 3 types of fondant:
- Pastry Fondant - known as poured fondant
- Confectioners Fondant - can be interchangeable as poured fondant.
- Rolled Fondant
Both poured and confectioners are identical to the naked eye. The difference being the addition of cream of tartar for the sugar inversion.
"Paul Bras" was absolutely correct in his answer.
As a semi-retired pastry chef I still make Fondant at home. No longer using a marble slab and spatulas. A modern twist, a food processor will work the hot paste 50C (120F) to a perfect smooth finish in much less time. Poured and stored in zip lock plastic bags.
Answer 3
The simplest icing is just water and powdered sugar. The sugar and egg white is called 'royal icing'. I'm guessing that the difference between your result and the store bought result is oven drying; Once you apply the icing on the pastry, you put it in a low heat oven for some time until it's dry (50ºC, 10').
Answer 4
It's called bakers fondant and is usually only available through the trade
Answer 5
Yes, I recognize it. That type of glaze is made with just water and powdered sugar.
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