Mille-Feuille with Chantilly Cream and Berries

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Wrapping Dough

1. 1
   Thaw the puff pastry in the fridge overnight, until pliable but still cold.

   Refrigerator

   💡Work with store-bought dough while it's cold: warm puff pastry gets sticky and won't puff in the oven, and phyllo sheets dry out fast, so keep the waiting sheets covered with a damp towel.

For the Cream Filling

1. 2
   Whip the cold cream on medium speed, until it starts to thicken.

   ⚙ WhippingBowlHand mixerorStand mixer

   💡Cold cream whips quickly and holds firm: warm cream won't hold air. Stop when the peaks are firm, before it turns grainy.

   💡Whip cream very cold, in a chilled bowl with chilled beaters, and stop when it holds firm: overwhipping turns it grainy and buttery.
2. 3
   Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and keep whipping on high speed to firm peaks.

   Hand mixerorStand mixer

To assemble

1. 4
   Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F) and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

   ⚙ Preheating the OvenOven

   💡Put things in the oven only once it's reached temperature, after the heating light has gone off: an oven that hasn't reached temperature changes baking times, and the bake burns outside or stays underbaked.
2. 5
   Cut the pastry into three equal layers and place them on the baking sheet.

   KnifeBaking sheet
3. 6
   Bake 12–15 minutes, until the layers are browned and crisp.

   ⚙ BakingOvenBaking sheet

   💡Check by the cue (until…), not just the clock: every oven bakes a little differently.
4. 7
   Let the pastry layers cool.

   Cooling rack
5. 8
   Assemble: a layer of pastry, a layer of cream and half of the berries, a layer of pastry, a layer of cream with the rest of the berries and a layer of pastry on top.

   Offset spatula

   💡Assemble only with completely cold cream and cooled layers: warm cream softens the puff pastry, and it loses its crispness.
6. 9
   Sift powdered sugar over the top layer and serve immediately.

   Sifter