Millefeuille and at least as many variants

It’s a fact! Millefeuille is no longer that delicious dessert made from 729 delicate pairs of caramelized sheets, created in 1651. Under the impetus of inventive chefs its possibilities are infinite, as Laurence du Tilly reveals in her book “Millefeuilles sucrés et salés” (Sweet and savoury millefeuilles).

She believes that the first rule to be adhered to is - overlay! “Put together a pastry, pasta or a biscuit (cookie, oatcake, ravioli, puff pastry, shortbread, etc.) and another ingredient (meat, fish, vegetable, compote, mousse, etc.). The base component may also be a vegetable, fish or meat, you just need to ensure that the whole thing will be solid enough to hold up when stacked!”.

The colours should also be vibrant, following the example of Amina Lamrani, chef at the Foundouk de Marrakech restaurant (Morocco). His savoury versions (millefeuille of avocado and spider crab meat) or sweet ones (millefeuille with fruit and brown caramel sauce) are absolute masterstrokes that taste incomparable. You then need to play with the textures as Sakura Mori, pastry chef at the restaurant of Alain Passard, l’Arpège, in Paris, does so artfully.

The secret of his sweet millefeuille is in the “crispy butter dough which is a delicious base for a stack of rhubarb, apples and vanilla strawberries, simmered for many hours”! It is also vital to juggle with the flavours by combining sweet and bitter or sweet and savoury, and this is essential according to the chef, Dalibor Navratil, of the famous Villa Voyta in Prague (Czech Republic). His appetizer, a millefeuille of rich Greenland prawns, prepared on a base of extra virgin olive oil, is very popular.

Finally, you have to let your imagination speak, which chef Thomas Keller, does not hesitate to do, in his restaurant Per Se in New York. His innovative cuisine includes a millefeuille of potatoes, morels and Bordeaux sauce – delicious!