Best Raspberry Napoleons Recipes

LEMON CREAM AND RASPBERRY PHYLLO NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• For Phyllo Squares:
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly oil 2 large baking sheets. Stack phyllo sheets on work surface. Trim to 10 1/2-inch square (reserve scraps for another use). Place 1 phyllo square on work surface (cover remaining phyllo with plastic wrap and damp kitchen towel). Sprinkle with 1 generous teaspoon sugar. Top with second phyllo square. Brush lightly with melted unsalted butter. Sprinkle with 1 generous teaspoon sugar. Top with third phyllo square. Sprinkle with 1 generous teaspoon sugar. Cut phyllo stack into 9 equal stacked squares. Arrange stacked phyllo squares an prepared baking sheet. Repeat layering and cutting with remaining 3 phyllo sheets, sugar and butter making total of 18 stacked phyllo squares. Bake until phyllo is golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to racks and cool completely.
• For Lemon Cream:
• Beat cream, 1 1/2 teaspoons powdered sugar and vanilla in large bowl until medium peaks form. Whisk lemon curd in another medium bowl until smooth. Add to cream mixture. Beat to stiff peaks.
• Spread 1 generous tablespoon lemon cream on each of 6 stacked phyllo squares. Top each with 6 raspberries. Layer each with 6 raspberries. Layer each with 1 phyllo square, 1 more tablespoon lemon cream and 6 raspberries (save any remaining lemon cream for another use). Top each with 1 phyllo square. Sift powdered sugar over desserts. (Can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover loosely and refrigerate).

RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS DESSERT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Roll out 1 puff pastry sheet on a floured work surface until it is 1/4-inch thick. Cut into 16 squares. Transfer to a baking sheet and prick all over with a fork. Repeat with remaining puff pastry sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned on the top and bottom, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool, about 10 minutes.
• Combine cream cheese, white sugar, heavy cream, and lemon zest in a bowl. Mix by hand until smooth and glossy. Dollop cream cheese mixture over 16 squares. Spread out cream cheese mixture and cover with raspberries. Top with the remaining puff pastry squares and dust with confectioners' sugar.

RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out puff pastry to a 10-by-15-inch rectangle. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Prick pastry all over with a fork. Cover completely with another sheet of parchment paper; weight with another baking sheet (same size or slightly smaller) to prevent pastry from puffing up unevenly. Bake, occasionally pressing top sheet down, until pastry is golden, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove top sheet and parchment, and let pastry cool.
• Transfer pastry to a cutting board. With a serrated knife, carefully trim and discard edges; cut into 12 equal pieces.
• Dividing evenly, put a large dollop of pudding (2 to 3 tablespoons) on 8 of the 12 pastry pieces; top with raspberries and a little more pudding.
• Assemble napoleons on serving plates: For each napoleon, stack two pieces of pastry already topped with pudding and raspberries, then top with a plain piece. Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar.
• Make Raspberry Sauce (optional): In a small bowl, stir together 1/4 cup raspberry jam and 1 tablespoon water; pass through a fine-mesh sieve. Thin with additional water if needed.
• Garnish plate with Raspberry Sauce, if desired.

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Place chocolate in a small bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream just to a boil. Pour over chocolate; stir with a whisk until smooth. Cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate, covered, until cold., Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°. Place one sheet of phyllo dough on a work surface. (Keep remaining phyllo covered with plastic wrap and a damp towel to prevent it from drying out). Brush phyllo sheet with butter and sprinkle with sugar. Repeat layers seven times. Cut into eight rectangles. Transfer to an ungreased baking sheet., Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack., Gently split each pastry horizontally in half. In a small bowl, beat ganache just until soft peaks form, about 15 seconds (do not overbeat). Spread half of the mixture over pastry bottoms; top with raspberries and remaining chocolate mixture. Replace tops. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. Serve immediately.

CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Line a 9-by-13-by-2-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside. Place raspberries (if using fresh raspberries, reserve 1/2 cup for garnish) in a medium skillet over medium heat. Simmer until raspberries begin to break down and liquid is released, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer raspberries to a food processor, and puree, about 20 seconds. Pass through a fine sieve. Set aside to cool.
• Fill a large bowl with ice and water; set aside. Bring a stockpot 1/4 full of water to a boil. Let simmer. In a medium stainless-steel bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 2 tablespoons sugar, corn syrup, and kirsch or champagne; place over simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until mixture thickens (when whisk is lifted over the mixture, the ribbonlike trail it leaves on the surface should hold its shape for 1 or 2 seconds), about 4 minutes. Transfer bowl to the ice-water bath; whisk mixture while it cools. Add 3/4 cup raspberry puree to mixture; whisk to combine. Set aside.
• In an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on high speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. While mixer is running, gradually add remaining 6 tablespoons sugar; beat until very stiff, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a bowl. Beat cream with whisk attachment until stiff; fold into egg whites.
• Fold raspberry mixture into egg whites and cream. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan; cover with plastic wrap. Transfer to the freezer; freeze until hardened, at least 4 hours. This can be prepared up to 2 days in advance.
• To make the raspberry sauce, stir superfine sugar into the remaining raspberry puree (about 2 tablespoons). Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• To serve, use a heart-shaped cookie cutter (2 1/2 inches across at the widest point) to cut out 4 hearts from the semifreddo. Divide the raspberry sauce between 2 dessert plates. Place a chocolate heart, off center, on top of the raspberry sauce. Place a semifreddo heart on each chocolate heart and repeat layering until there are 3 layers of chocolate and 2 layers of semifreddo, ending with a chocolate heart. Garnish with the reserved fresh raspberries (if using), sift confectioners' sugar over the raspberries, if desired.

HEART-SHAPED RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Place puff pastry on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and poke holes all over surface using the tines of a fork; top with a second piece of parchment paper. Place 2 baking sheets on top of parchment paper to weigh down; transfer to oven. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Remove puff pastry from oven and uncover; let cool completely. Using a 3 1/4-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut six hearts from puff pastry, reserving scraps.
• Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip with pastry cream. Place 1 heart-shaped piece of puff on each of two dessert plates. Pipe pastry cream over the surface of each heart, almost to the edge. Place raspberries around the perimeter of the pastry cream. Top each with a second puff pastry heart and repeat process. Top each with a third puff pastry heart.
• Crumble a little of the reserved puff pastry scraps and top Napoleons with crumbs. Dust tops with confectioners' sugar and pipe a little pastry cream in the center of each. Top with a raspberry and serve immediately.

CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY HEART NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Line a 9-by-13-by-2-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside. Place raspberries (if using fresh raspberries, reserve 1/2 cup for garnish) in a medium skillet over medium heat. Simmer until raspberries begin to break down and liquid is released, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer raspberries to a food processor, and puree, about 20 seconds. Pass through a fine sieve. Set aside to cool.
• Fill a large bowl with ice and water; set aside. Bring a stockpot 1/4 full of water to a boil. Let simmer. In a medium stainless-steel bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 2 tablespoons sugar, corn syrup, and kirsch or champagne; place over simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until mixture thickens (when whisk is lifted over the mixture, the ribbonlike trail it leaves on the surface should hold its shape for 1 or 2 seconds), about 4 minutes. Transfer bowl to the ice-water bath; whisk mixture while it cools. Add 3/4 cup raspberry puree to mixture; whisk to combine. Set aside.
• In an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on high speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. While mixer is running, gradually add remaining 6 tablespoons sugar; beat until very stiff, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a bowl. Beat cream with whisk attachment until stiff; fold into egg whites.
• Fold raspberry mixture into egg whites and cream. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan; cover with plastic wrap. Transfer to the freezer; freeze until hardened, at least 4 hours. This can be prepared up to 2 days in advance.
• To make the raspberry sauce, stir superfine sugar into the remaining raspberry puree (about 2 tablespoons). Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• To serve, use a heart-shaped cookie cutter (2 1/2 inches across at the widest point) to cut out four hearts from the semifreddo. Divide the raspberry sauce between two dessert plates. Place a chocolate heart, off center, on top of the raspberry sauce. Place a semifreddo heart on each chocolate heart, and repeat layering until there are three layers of chocolate and two layers of semifreddo, ending with a chocolate heart. Garnish with reserved fresh raspberries (if using), and sift confectioners' sugar over the raspberries, if desired.

CRISPY RICE CREPE NAPOLEONS WITH RASPBERRY RED-CHILI-PEPPER SORBET

Steps:

• To make the sorbet, place the peppers, granulated sugar and water in a blender and process until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, discard the solids and set the liquid aside. Place the raspberries in a food processor and process until pureed. Strain the puree through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing on the solids to extract as much puree as possible. Discard the solids. Place the puree in a bowl and whisk in the powdered sugar. Measure out and stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of the chili-and-sugar syrup, to taste. Refrigerate until chilled, and freeze according to the instructions for your ice-cream maker.
• To make the crepes, preheat the oven to 275 degrees. In a bowl, combine the rice flour and sugar. In another bowl, whisk together the egg whites, melted butter and hot water, and stir it into the flour and sugar. Keep stirring until the mixture is smooth.
• Place an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brush it with clarified butter and pour in 2 tablespoons of the batter, swirling the pan to coat it evenly. Cook until the crepe is set but not brown, about 1 minute. Turn and cook the other side. Transfer to a plate and allow to cool slightly. Cut crepe into 4 wedges, and transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Repeat until you have made 6 crepes. Brush them with clarified butter, sprinkle with granulated sugar and bake until crisp, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
• To make the filling, combine the cream and rum, and whip until soft peaks form. Combine the coconut and sugar, and fold into the cream. Place the raspberries and granulated sugar in a bowl and mash with a fork until smooth.
• When ready to serve, place a wedge of crepe on a dessert plate and spread with a layer of coconut mixture, then with raspberry puree. Stack a second wedge on top, and add the coconut and raspberry layers. Repeat again, and top with the fourth wedge of crepe. Place a scoop of sorbet on the side.

CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400ºF.
• Unfold pastry sheet on lightly floured surface; cut along fold lines into 3 rectangles. Cut each rectangle crosswise into 4 smaller rectangles; place on baking sheet. Bake 15 min. or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
• Meanwhile, melt 6 oz. chocolate as directed on package; set aside. Beat whipping cream in medium bowl with mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.
• Beat melted chocolate, cream cheese, powdered sugar and liqueur in large bowl with mixer on medium speed until well blended. Whisk in whipped cream.
• Split each pastry rectangle in half. Spread each bottom half with 3 Tbsp. chocolate mixture. Cover with raspberries and pastry tops. Melt remaining chocolate; drizzle over pastries.

WAFFLE NAPOLEONS WITH RASPBERRY CREAM

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine the raspberries and the 2⁄3 cup sugar, and pulse until the berries have broken down and the mixture is liquefied. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl, pressing with a spatula. Taste and add more sugar, if needed. Transfer 2⁄3 cup of the puree to a small bowl; reserve the remaining puree for garnish. Add the cream and yogurt to the 2⁄3 cup puree and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to a chilled thermo whipper canister and assemble according to the manufacturer's instructions for cold applications. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours. For each napoleon, place 1 heart-shaped waffle on a plate. Shake the thermo whipper canister back and forth 4 to 6 times, then dispense a small amount of the raspberry cream into a bowl to test the consistency. If the cream doesn't hold its shape, shake the canister again. Dispense about 2 Tbs. raspberry cream onto the waffle. Repeat the layering, then top the second layer with another waffle. Garnish the napoleons with confectioners' sugar, the reserved raspberry puree, raspberries and blueberries.