In the realm of delectable desserts, quick pear napoleons stand out as a symphony of flavors and textures, a culinary masterpiece that captivates taste buds and leaves a lasting impression. These elegant treats, crafted with layers of flaky puff pastry, velvety pastry cream, and the sweet, juicy embrace of pears, are a testament to the transformative power of simple ingredients when combined with creativity and skill. Whether you're a seasoned baker seeking a new challenge or a home cook looking to impress your loved ones, embarking on the journey of creating quick pear napoleons promises an adventure filled with culinary delights.
Here are our top 7 tried and tested recipes!
QUICK & EASY CARAMELIZED PEARS
Seasonal fruit is the perfect starting point for a memorable meal-ender.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Dessert & Treats Recipes
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high. Add pears, one cut side down, and cook until browned, then reduce heat to medium and cook 3 minutes. Turn pears to other cut side and cook 4 minutes. Add sugar and 1 tablespoon water, swirling pan to combine. Turn pears skin side down and cook until sauce is thickened slightly, 2 minutes. Stir in vanilla and pinch of salt. Serve warm with ice cream.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 135 g, Fat 6 g, Fiber 3 g, SaturatedFat 4 g
NAPOLEONS
Golden puff pastry is layered with pastry cream and jam and then iced before being cut into bars.
Provided by Katherine
Categories Bread Yeast Bread Recipes
Time 2h
Yield 20
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Roll out three sheets of puff pastry, each to the same size and a thickness of 1/8 inch. Prick with a fork, and place on baking sheets.
- Bake in preheated oven until golden, about 10 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk with fingers until smooth. Stir in cake flour and half the sugar. Beat in egg yolks. Set aside.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, bring remaining milk and remaining sugar to a rolling boil. Stir in egg yolk mixture; continue stirring and bring to a boil again. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Let cool.
- In a small saucepan or in the microwave, heat the jam until runny.
- Place one sheet of pastry on a board. Spread with cooled pastry cream to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Place a second pastry sheet over the cream. Brush with fruit glaze. Spread remaining pastry cream over glaze. Top with final pastry sheet and gently compress layers, using a baking sheet to press.
- To make icing, beat together confectioners' sugar and lemon juice with enough of the egg whites to make a creamy consistency like that of a cream soup. Working quickly, color a small portion of the frosting with red food coloring. Frost the top and sides of the assembled pastry with white icing. Pipe parallel lines of red icing on top of dessert, then draw a pick or knife crosswise through icing to make the traditional design. Let icing set before cutting into bars.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 405.5 calories, Carbohydrate 60.5 g, Cholesterol 33.3 mg, Fat 16.4 g, Fiber 0.7 g, Protein 5.6 g, SaturatedFat 4.8 g, Sodium 133.2 mg, Sugar 37.1 g
NAPOLEON
A perfectly layered napoleon is a showstopping dessert; slicing it, however, can be a tricky matter. Don't be discouraged if yours doesn't cut neatly into serving pieces; even if it's slightly flattened and oozing pastry cream, each bite will still be delicious.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Dessert & Treats Recipes
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Make puff pastry strips: Lightly flour a clean work surface. Using a rolling pin, gently roll out dough into a 16-by-18-inch rectangle about 1/8 inch thick, being careful not to press too hard around the edges. Using a pastry wheel or sharp knife, cut rectangle crosswise into thirds, with each strip 6 by 16 inches. Transfer to a baking sheet; dock, or pierce, the dough all over with a fork. Cover with plastic wrap; place in refrigerator 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Transfer to oven; bake until strips are puffed and golden all over, about 14 minutes. Set a baking sheet directly on pastry strips, and continue baking until pastry is cooked through and well browned, about 6 minutes. Remove top baking sheet; bake 4 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Using a serrated knife, trim each to 4 1/4 by 12 inches.
- Make the glaze: In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream just to a boil. Place dark chocolate in a bowl, and pour hot cream over chocolate; whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is combined. Whisk in corn syrup. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
- Place white chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk until chocolate is melted, and remove from heat. Let cool.
- Using an offset spatula, spread dark chocolate glaze over one side of the flattest puff pastry strip, making sure to coat entire surface. Place white chocolate in a piping cone; pipe thin lines 3/4 inch apart across width of chocolate-coated strip. To create the distinctive flourish, gently drag the tip of a paring knife or a skewer lengthwise through both coatings, in lines perpendicular to the white chocolate lines. Begin at one of the short ends, and make each line 3/4 inch apart. Alternate the direction each time.
- Place one of the unglazed puff pastry strips on a serving tray. Spread half the pastry cream over the top, leaving a 1/2-inch border all around. Top with remaining unglazed pastry strip; press down gently, and repeat with remaining pastry cream. Top with glazed pastry strip. Transfer to refrigerator, and chill 30 minutes uncovered. Using a long serrated knife, cut into six pieces, and serve.
PEAR AND BERRY NAPOLEON
Provided by Food Network
Categories dessert
Time 1h6m
Yield 4 to 5 servings
Number Of Ingredients 18
Steps:
- For the Pears: Put wine, juice, cinnamon, lemon juice, and sugar substitute in a pot, and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and add some clear glaze to slightly thicken the mixture. Add the sliced pears to the mixture and cool.
- Pastry Cream: Bring to a boil the milk, margarine, and split vanilla bean. Combine eggbeaters, sugar, and cornstarch and add to boiled milk. Cook until thick. Fold pastry cream with some whipped cream.
- Napoleon Sheets: Cut phyllo into rectangle shape. Spray each layer with vegetable spray (4 layers total). Sprinkle top with sugar substitute and bake until golden brown. Each set of Napoleon requires 3 rectangles per order.
- Pear and Berry Napoleon Assembly: In the center of a plate, layer a dollop of pastry cream, a phyllo square, a dollop of cream and berries. Repeat with another phyllo square, pastry cream, and berries. Top with phyllo square and a light sprinkle of powdered sugar. Spoon pears around. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
PEAR PECAN NAPOLEON
Steps:
- Pears: Place the pears, sugar, lemon juice, salt, and cinnamon in a large saute pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the pears are soft and most of the liquid has evaporated, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool.
- Pecan Paste: In a food processor, finely grind the pecans and granulated sugar. Place the pecan mixture in a small bowl and add the water, orange zest, and salt. Mix just until combined.
- Puff Pastry: On a lightly floured work surface, roll the piece of puff pastry into a 16-inch square. Cut into 4 rectangles, each 4 inches wide by 16 inches long. With a fork, pierce small holes all over the pastry. Place the rectangles on two baking sheets. Freeze or refrigerate until firm.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Place a second baking sheet or an inverted wire mesh rack on top of the puff pastry to prevent it from rising as it bakes. Bake until golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
- Assembly: Spread 1/3 of the pecan paste on one of the rectangles of puff pastry. Carefully layer 1/3 of the pears over the pecan paste. Layer two more pieces of pastry with the remaining pecan paste and pears in the same manner. Using a wide metal spatula, carefully stack these three pieces of pastry.
- In a small bowl mix together the sugar and the cinnamon. Dust the fourth piece of puff pastry with the cinnamon sugar and place it on top of the stacked layers of pastry.Using a serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, trim the edges of the napoleon so that they are even. In the same manner, cut the napoleon into 8 pieces and serve a portion on each of 8 plates.
PEAR, BLUE CHEESE, AND FIG NAPOLEONS
Yield Makes 4 cheese-course servings
Number Of Ingredients 3
Steps:
- Cut each pear lengthwise into 10 (1/8- to 1/4-inch-thick) slices (5 from one side, then 5 more from the opposite side), avoiding core and discarding rounded outermost slices.
- Layer 4 pear slices with cheese and fig on each of 4 plates, beginning with largest pear slices, and ending with smallest.
- Sprinkle any remaining cheese and fig around napoleons.
QUICK PEAR NAPOLEANS
We're taking the highway to French elegance with these stacked desserts. Unsweetened whipped cream is a wonderful foil for gooey caramelized pears and flaky puff pastry.
Provided by Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez
Time 45m
Yield Makes 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in upper third.
- Roll out pastry with a floured rolling pin on a lightly floured surface into about a 16-inch square. Trim edges. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet and place another baking sheet on top. Bake until golden and cooked through, 15 to 18 minutes. Remove top baking sheet from pastry and transfer pastry to a rack to cool completely.
- While pastry cools, beat heavy cream with an electric mixer until it just holds soft peaks. Fold in sour cream gently but thoroughly.
- Meanwhile, cook sugar in a dry large heavy skillet over medium heat until it begins to melt, then continue to cook, stirring with a fork, until it is completely melted and golden. Stir in reserved pear syrup and boil, stirring, until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in pears. Remove from heat and swirl in butter until combined.
- Cut pastry into 8 rectangles with a large knife. Place half of rectangles on 4 serving plates. Spread cream mixture over pastry, then spoon pears with caramel over top. Place remaining pastry rectangles on top.
Tips:
- Use ripe pears: The riper the pears, the sweeter and more flavorful your napoleons will be.
- Peel and core the pears before slicing them: This will make them easier to slice and will help to prevent the napoleons from becoming soggy.
- Slice the pears thinly: This will help them to cook evenly.
- Use a good-quality puff pastry: The puff pastry is the foundation of the napoleons, so it's important to use a good-quality one.
- Roll out the puff pastry thinly: This will help the napoleons to be light and flaky.
- Bake the puff pastry until it is golden brown: This will help to give the napoleons a crispy texture.
- Use a creamy filling: The filling is what makes the napoleons so rich and decadent. Use a good-quality cream cheese or crème fraîche, and be sure to add plenty of sugar and vanilla extract.
- Layer the napoleons carefully: Start with a layer of puff pastry, then add a layer of filling, and then top with another layer of puff pastry. Repeat this process until you have used all of the ingredients.
- Chill the napoleons before serving: This will help them to set and will make them easier to slice.
Conclusion:
Pear napoleons are a delicious and elegant dessert that is perfect for any occasion. They are easy to make and can be customized to your liking. With a few simple tips, you can create pear napoleons that will impress your friends and family.
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