Cake “Napoleon” - unique versions of making and serving the most delicious dessert

Cake “Napoleon” is a candidate for the popular delicacy of the same name. The dessert is not inferior to its benign “relative” in structure and taste, with dozens of dough and filling options, and benefits from portioned serving. At this point, housewives will be able to please a larger number of guests by placing a personal piece of sweets in front of each one.

How to make Napoleon cake?

Homemade “Napoleon” is a beautiful base for making cakes of the same name. All you need is to knead the dough from flour, margarine, eggs, vinegar and water. Cool it for an hour, roll it into 4 thin layers, cut into equal sectors, according to the size of the cake. Afterwards, bake in the oven, coat with cream and assemble.

To make Napoleon puff pastry puff pastry puffy and elastic, you need to use premium flour and margarine of the highest fat content.
It is recommended to knead the dough quickly, in a cool room and using cool goods. Otherwise, it will begin to “float” and will be difficult to cope with.

Napoleon cake made from ready-made puff pastry

Homemade “Napoleon” with custard takes a lot of time, which cannot be said about cakes made from store-bought puff pastry, whose production takes no more than 60 minutes. The factory preparation eliminates the painful kneading and provides the opportunity to brew the cream while simultaneously placing the puff pastry squares in the oven for 20 minutes.

sheet of puff pastry – 4 pcs.;
milk – 1.4 l;
yolks – 7 pcs.;
sugar – 350 g;
butter – 200 g;
flour – 100 g.

Beat the yolks with sugar, milk and flour and boil.
Stir in butter.
Cut the shortcakes into segments and bake at 220 degrees for 25 minutes.
Form a Napoleon puff pastry and cool.

Napoleon cake with condensed milk

Cream for “Napoleon” with condensed milk and butter is held in high esteem by almost all housewives. It is made quickly, always comes out delicious, and its production does not require any special financial costs. You can simply beat condensed milk with butter and butter the shortcakes, but it is better to add sweet powder to the cream for greater lightness, airiness and stability of the mass.

butter – 450 g;
flour – 400 g;
testicle – 1 pc.;
condensed milk – 190 g;
sweet powder – 100 g.

Mix half the butter with half the flour.
Using the remaining flour, eggs and a pinch of salt, knead the second type of dough.
Roll out one with the other and cool.
Cut into 6 pieces and bake at 180 degrees for 15 minutes.
Beat the remaining butter with powder and condensed milk.
Soak the shortcakes with cream.
Cut into portions and serve the Napoleon cake with cream after cooling for an hour.

Curd "Napoleon"

“Napoleon” with curd cream combines business with pleasure. Cream based on cottage cheese has an excellent taste, contains a lot of vitamins and is considered a dietary product. For dryish Napoleon cakes, cottage cheese is combined with sour cream. This allows the cream to maintain stability and gain greater permeability.

flour – 600 g;
water – 150 g;
butter – 300 g;
vinegar – 10 ml;
testicle – 2 pcs.;
sour cream – 400 g;
cottage cheese – 450 g;
sugar – 250 g.

Mix vinegar, water, eggs, oil and flour.
Roll out the dough into shortcakes and bake at 200 degrees for 5 minutes.
Beat sour cream with cottage cheese and sugar.
Grease the shortcakes with cream.
After 5 hours, cut into portions and serve the Napoleon curd cake to the table.

Napoleon cake with berry cream

Napoleon cake is a recipe with dozens of production options. Nowadays, light and delicate textures and flavorful colors are in fashion, which is why modern confectioners are focusing on berry insides. They look beautiful when cut, are low in calories and mix perfectly with traditional creams, diluting their cloying with a refreshing sourness.

sheet of puff pastry – 4 pcs.;
berries – 550 g;
sugar – 250 g;
yolks – 4 pcs.;
milk – 500 ml;
starch – 20 g;
flour – 40 g;
sweet powder – 100 g;
cream – 200 ml.

Boil the berries in sugar for 10 minutes.
Cut the dough into sectors and bake at 220 degrees for 10 minutes.
Warm up 250 ml of milk with powder.
Whisk the rest of the milk with starch and yolks.
Combine and boil.
Cool, whip with cream and assemble the cakes.

“Napoleon” from choux pastry

Making Napoleon cake is not limited to traditional ingredients. An indescribably delicious and tender dessert can be created from choux pastry. The extreme, captivates with the smallest product composition, simplicity and speed of production, since it “does not rest” in the refrigerator, but is baked at once.

milk – 500 ml;
testicle – 2 pcs.;
butter – 50 g;
sugar – 110 g;
flour – 250 g;
starch – 60 g;
lemon zest – 20 g;
lemon juice – 40 ml.

Make a dough using flour, half a glass of milk, butter, half sugar and an egg.
Roll out 7 layers and bake at 180 degrees for 10 minutes.
Heat the remaining milk with sugar, add the egg, starch and boil.
Divide the cream into two parts. Add zest and juice to one.
Coat the cake with cream and cut into portions.

"Napoleon" with sour cream

“Napoleon” with sour cream is a favorite homemade delicacy. Thanks to sour cream, whose low cost and unique properties find space both in making cream and in kneading dough, dessert becomes accessible to anyone. Moreover, the shortcakes made with sour cream turn out fluffy and airy, and the cream is tender, stable and indescribably tasty.

sour cream – 900 g;
margarine – 200 g;
flour – 750 g;
testicle – 2 pcs.;
sugar – 325 g;
soda – 5 g.

Combine 200 g of sour cream, soda, margarine, flour, eggs, 75 g of sugar.
Cut the dough into sectors and bake at 200 degrees for 10 minutes.
Beat 700 g of sour cream with 250 g of sugar.
Assemble the Napoleon cake by soaking the shortcakes in cream.

"Napoleon" with mascarpone

The recipe for mascarpone cream for “Napoleon” will appeal to lovers of unique desserts. Even taking into account that cream cheese is a big hit on the pocket, almost all housewives prefer its creamy texture, sweetish taste and ease of production, during which, as a rule, it is not whipped, but simply mixed into another mass.

mascarpone – 700 g;
sweet powder – 170 g;
cream – 450 ml;
vinegar – 5 ml;
testicle – 1 pc.;
flour – 300 g;
butter – 150 g;
water – 125 ml.

Grind the oil with water, vinegar, flour and egg.
Roll out the dough into 7 layers and bake at 200 degrees for 10 minutes.
Cut into segments.
Whip the powder with cream and mascarpone.
Assemble the Napoleon cake, coating the layers with cream.

"Napoleon" with cream

Buttercream for “Napoleon” comes in a variety of options. This group for us includes custard with cream, tender cream with condensed milk, and stable curd creams. But the most common and delicious product is considered to be a cream made from whipped cream and sweet powder. Whipping it is quite simple if you buy heavy cream and cool it very well.

cream – 600 ml;
sweet powder – 250 g;
rum – 20 ml;
sheet of puff pastry – 3 pcs.

Cut the dough into portions and bake in the oven at 220 degrees for 15 minutes.
Whip the cream with powder and rum.
Assemble the cakes, brushing any layer with cream.

Lazy “Napoleon” from “Ears” cookies

“Napoleon” without baking is a godsend for those who don’t want to bother with dough. You don’t have to create this, since the puff pastry “Ears” as a cake layer will make the dessert very similar to the original, and the custard will convey the taste of the traditional “relative”. With all this, everything will take no more than 30 minutes, which is convenient if you are short on time.

cookies – 1 kg;
milk – 700 ml;
yolks – 4 pcs.;
sugar – 200 g;
butter – 150 g;
flour – 120 g.

Beat eggs with sugar, milk and flour.
Boil, cool and beat in the butter.
Lay out the cookies in layers, brushing them with any cream.

Everything you need to know about the Napoleon cake + recipe from the pastry chef of the Pushkin cafe

How do you realize that this is a faithful “Napoleon”, what should the cream be like, should the dough be crunchy and why is this cake so popular? We asked these questions to Alexey Serebryakov, the pastry chef of the Pushkin cafe, and at the same time found out the usual recipe for a dessert beloved since youth.

Pastry chef at the Pushkin cafe

What exactly is “Napoleon” and when did it arise?

It is believed that the dessert was first prepared by the court confectioners of Nicholas II for a reception in honor of the centenary of the victory in the Russian War of 1812. The cake, shaped like a bicorne, consisted of only two main components: custard and yeast-free puff pastry cakes. At the reception, naturally, they saw that the cake looked like Bonaparte’s headdress, so the dessert was immediately called “Napoleon.” The title stuck.

Most likely, the cake prepared at the reception was spotted in Napoleon’s homeland. At that time, French cuisine already had a similar cake, mille-feuille, which means “million petals.” The main difference is that French confectioners prepared the custard using egg yolks, and the cake itself was served immediately after production, due to which it came out crispy; Russian chefs, in turn, prepared the cream with flour and left the dessert overnight (that is, in the dark) so that the shortcakes had time to soak thoroughly. As a result, “Napoleon” came out softer and more airy than its French counterpart. Although in Russia mille-feuille is sometimes called “Napoleon,” guests are more accustomed to it.

As already mentioned, the main thing in “Napoleon” is dough and cream. The dough must certainly be flaky; without it, the cake will not work either in the traditional or in the so-called author’s interpretation. The cream is used only custard - on flour or yolks, it’s up to your taste.

Is it possible to experiment with a traditional recipe?

You can add vanilla, rum or cinnamon to the cream. Previously, at Pushkin, we added salted caramel to the vanilla custard on the yolks - there was a contrast of crispy dough, sweet vanilla and slightly salted caramel. In principle, the cream can even be made from sugar or condensed milk and butter; in Russian times, almost everyone did just that. Naturally, this will not be a traditional “Napoleon” at all. But it’s better not to add berries to the cream, they are very juicy and will ruin the texture. They can be used as decoration.

You can’t really experiment with the dough - it has to be flaky, that’s all. You can work with the texture, for example, caramelize it by adding sugar - then you will get a layer of puff pastry with a thin golden crust, which will enhance the taste and crunch. In our confectionery they make a version of “Napoleon” from filo - the thinnest dough from which baklava and other oriental sweets are made. The texture of phyllo is reminiscent of puff pastry, so it can be used for Napoleon, although it is unlikely that you will be able to prepare phyllo in your kitchen.

Why is “Napoleon” one of the most popular cakes in Russia?

The secret of success is a win-win combination of taste and texture. Crispy dough together with rich, enveloping custard is difficult to spoil. Besides, “Napoleon” is an ordinary cake, there are only two main ingredients, and you can almost always find everything to make it at home.

Cake "Napoleon"

Ingredients

Butter – 250 g

Wheat flour – 700 g

Salt – 1 pinch

Table vinegar – 0.5 tbsp.

Chicken eggs – 2 pcs.

Cream:

Butter – 350 g

Sugar – 1 glass

Vanillin – 1 sachet

338 kcal
1 hour 30 minutes
1 hour 30 minutes

Photo of the finished dish

Video recipe: Napoleon cake

Step-by-step recipe with photos and videos

Everyone knows the Napoleon cake. Do you understand that at first this cake, or rather cakes, got its name from the cocked hat that Napoleon adored so much and was worn by the entire French army. The Napoleon cakes were triangular in shape, layered, with a delicate cream.

I believe any housewife can purchase puff pastry and make Napoleon cakes in her own kitchen. But I’m not looking for easy ways, I like it to be tasty. I won’t be lazy and prepare the dough myself, it’s not as difficult as it seems.

We will need: flour, butter, salt, eggs, vinegar, a little water.

Break the eggs into a measuring cup. Add water to the 160 ml mark. Pour in vinegar and add salt. Beat the mixture with a whisk.

Break 1/3 of the flour into crumbs in a blender with cool butter.

Combine flour and egg mixtures. Add the remaining flour and knead the dough. Beat the dough on the table.

Divide into 11-13 balls and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight (that is, in the dark) .

Roll out any ball into a narrow cake. Prick the dough with a fork and bake until golden brown for 5-7 minutes at 190 degrees.

The shortbreads turn out thin and crispy.

For the cream, prepare warm butter, milk, sugar, yolks, cognac and vanillin.

Place the yolks in a saucepan, mix with sugar and vanilla, pour in slightly more than half the milk. Mix. Heat the remaining milk and pour into the egg mixture, stirring continuously. Heat the mixture over medium heat until thickened. Remove the finished mixture from heat and cool to room temperature.

Beat the butter until fluffy, add the milk-egg mixture in three additions, without stopping beating. At the end add cognac. The result will be a fluffy and tender cream.

Coat the shortcakes with cream. Assemble the cake.

Sprinkle the cake with crumbs from 1 shortbread and nuts. Leave the cake to soak for 2 hours on the table, then put it in the cold.

After 4 hours, cut the cake into triangles and get Napoleon cakes. Sprinkle a plate with sweet powder and lay out one cake.

Now let's enjoy! It's amazing! Cook with pleasure and don’t deny yourself anything!

Cake Napoleon

I would like to share a recipe for a breathtakingly delicious and easy-to-make Napoleon cake. This cake belongs to the level of quick recipes for which we don’t spend a lot of time, and at the end we get an excellent dessert that we wouldn’t be ashamed to treat to friends or serve at a gala table. We will prepare the Napoleon cake from ready-made puff pastry, and we will take the time to cook the custard ourselves, since it cooks quite quickly. See the recipe with photos and cook Napoleon cakes with me.

To prepare Napoleon cake we will need:
– puff pastry – 500g.
(2 packs); – milk – 0.5 l.;
– testicle – 1 pc.;
– sugar – 0.5 tbsp;
– vanilla sugar – 1/2 sachet;
– butter – 25g;
– flour – 1.5 tbsp.

Depending on the number of guests and the need for cakes, you can adjust the amount of dough; you will cook enough cream so that it is enough for 2 packages of dough. First we will prepare the custard for the cakes, and later we will bake the puff pastry and assemble the Napoleon.

How to make custard, recipe

This is a universal custard recipe that you will need for a wide variety of cakes and pastries. I advise you to bookmark it and, as needed, pull it out into the light of God, shake off the dust of time and use it. Here are the ingredients we need to make a delicious, thick and lump-free vanilla custard.

In a small bowl, combine flour, egg and a little milk (150 ml of the total size will be enough). Mix the mixture with a whisk so that there are no lumps.

In a small saucepan, bring the remaining milk to a boil and dissolve sugar and vanilla sugar in it. In a narrow stream, introduce the milk-flour mixture with the egg, continuously stirring the contents of the pan with a whisk, we need to prevent the egg from curdling. With your left hand, pour the mixture from the bowl, with your right hand, stir in a circle with a whisk (for left-handed people, opposite). Set the fire to medium.

Without leaving the pan, prepare the custard for Napoleon cakes. Absolutely, he doesn’t like any thick cream, jam or sauce if the housewife leaves the stove forever - it immediately burns, clumps or begins to boil away. Therefore, be careful). Here is a photo of the custard in the middle of the process, when the mixture has already thickened, but is still watery and there is no suitable mixture to use as a cream for a cake or pastry.

And here is the finished custard for Napoleon cake. It changes its color to the creamiest one, and the whisk creates an exact mark on the surface of the cream. And in appearance it becomes matte-glossy, concentrated.

The last trick in making custard is to add a piece of butter, remove the pan from the heat, stirring so that the butter melts and combines with the cream. Cover the custard with cling film (directly on top of the cream, so that there is no frozen film later) and put it in a cold space to cool. If you need the cakes urgently, place the pan in ice water and change the water from time to time as it heats up from the pan.

Baking puff pastry shortcakes for Napoleon cake

Everything is very simple here. I take baking paper and carefully, practically without flour, roll out a layer of finished puff pastry with a rolling pin to the size of the baking sheet. Then I carefully transfer the paper with the dough to a baking sheet and prick the dough with a fork. The oven is preheated at 180 degrees at this time.

I bake the puff pastry in a preheated oven until done; it shrinks slightly during baking. Cool the prepared puff pastry crust for Napoleon cake on a wire rack.

While one cake is cooling, bake the second one, but with one condition - the baking sheet must be cooled beforehand! If you place a layer of raw dough on a baking sheet, it will not have time to rise and will not cook as fluffy and airy as we need. Therefore, cool the baking sheet before baking the second layer of dough (you can pour cool water from the shower in the bathroom and wipe it dry). That’s it, let’s bake all the puff pastry shortcakes for Napoleon cakes.

Collecting Napoleon cakes

There's just a little bit left to do. Our puff pastry cakes are baked, we cut any of them the way we want, I cut any cake into three parts along the length. We collect all the crumbs that fall off into a separate cup - they will be useful for sprinkling Napoleon cakes.

You see, inside each layer of baked puff pastry there is a large cavity, so I take and cut them into two parts, separating the top layer of dough from the bottom. The more layers in the Napoleon cake, the better, there will be more cream and the cakes will be better soaked and will be the most delicious. Let's start assembling the mini Napoleon cake for now. Place a piece of ready-made puff pastry, place the prepared custard on it and spread it moderately over the dough with a tablespoon.

Then we put the second layer of dough on top, press it slightly with the palm of our hand, coat it with custard and so on - until the dough runs out. I came up with an 8-layer Napoleon. We also coat the cake with custard on top and along the edges, we need it to be thoroughly soaked.

Sprinkle Napoleon with prepared crumbs on top, or chopped nuts. We put it in the refrigerator for several hours, preferably at night (that is, in the dark) . I advise you to somehow cover the Napoleon cakes with film or a lid so that the cream and dough do not dry out.

After the allotted time, we take out Napoleon and cut it into portioned cakes. The cuts come out smooth and beautiful, because... The puff pastry has already been soaked in the custard and no longer crumbles. Serve and enjoy life, bon appetit!

Bon appetit everyone, I was with you, Anna . Read me more often, join my VK , send your recipes for delicious dishes with author’s photos, I will certainly publish them on your behalf!

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