Mint chocolate mille-feuille

  • medium
  • 6-8, with extra ice cream leftover
  • 60 minutes
Not yet rated

Crisp discs of puff pastry meet thick, rich chocolate mousse and a scoop of refreshing mint ice cream in this beautiful, towering dessert from Andrew Sheridan. Making the ice cream and mousse in advance means all you have to do on the day is bake the pastry and assemble.

Some of the more unusual ingredients in the ice cream (super neutrose, trimoline and dextrose) are added to create a super smooth texture and reduce the amount of ice crystals present. If you're struggling to find them, omit the super neutrose, replace the trimoline with honey and the dextrose with caster sugar – your ice cream won't be as silky as Andrew's, but it'll still taste fantastic.

First published in 2021

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Mousse

  • 6 gelatine leaves
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 80g of caster sugar
  • 460ml of double cream
  • 300ml of whole milk
  • 80g of dark chocolate, 70% cocoa solids, finely chopped
  • 20g of cocoa powder, 70% cocoa solids

Ice cream

  • 415g of semi-skimmed milk
  • 60g of mint leaves
  • 100g of whipping cream
  • 25g of milk powder
  • 12g of dextrose
  • 12g of trimoline
  • 84g of caster sugar
  • 3g of Super neutrose

to serve

  • 1 puff pastry block, best quality
  • icing sugar, for dusting

Equipment

  • Ice cream maker
  • Hand blender
  • Small round pastry cutter
  • Piping bag and nozzle
  • Cooking thermometer

Method

1
Begin with the ice cream, as this can be made well in advance. Bring the milk to the boil, then add the mint leaves and blanch for 20 seconds. Strain the mint leaves (reserving the milk), then refresh in iced water. Drain thoroughly, wringing the leaves out to remove as much liquid as possible, then set aside
2
Pour the infused milk into a clean pan along with the cream and bring to 40°C, stirring regularly. Add the rest of the ingredients, then continue to heat and stir until the mixture reaches 80°C. Once you hit this temperature, strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a container, cover with cling film and allow to cool completely
  • 100g of whipping cream
  • 25g of milk powder
  • 12g of dextrose
  • 12g of trimoline
  • 84g of caster sugar
  • 3g of Super neutrose
3
Once cool, add the drained blanched mint leaves and use a hand blender to blitz the mixture until fully incorporated. Transfer to an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions, then reserve in the freezer until needed
4
For the mousse, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for 5-10 minutes to soften. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl until pale and frothy, and bring 300ml of the cream and the milk to the boil
  • 6 gelatine leaves
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 80g of caster sugar
  • 300ml of double cream
  • 300ml of whole milk
5
Pour a little of the hot cream over the egg yolks, whisking to temper, then gradually add the egg yolk mixture back into the pan of cream, whisking thoroughly. Continue to cook over a low heat until the mixture thickens slightly, then remove from the heat
6
Add the chopped chocolate and cocoa to the mousse base, whisking until melted, then add the gelatine and continue whisking until dissolved. Place the pan in a bowl of iced water to cool quickly
7
While the mixture cools, semi-whip the remaining 160ml of double cream
  • 160ml of double cream
8
When the chocolate mixture is at room temperature, fold in the semi-whipped cream until fully incorporated. Transfer to a piping bag and keep in the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours before serving
9
To make the pastry rounds, preheat and oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Roll the puff pastry out until approximately 5mm thick, then use a 5cm cutter to stamp out discs of dough – you want around 24-32 discs in total, so you may need to re-roll out the trimmings. Line a baking sheet (or several, depending on size) with baking paper, then arrange the discs on it in a single layer. Bake for 14 minutes or until puffed up and golden, then leave to cool. If making these in advance, store them in an airtight container until needed
  • 1 puff pastry block, best quality
10
To serve, pipe a base of mousse on each serving plate. Top with a pastry disc, then continue creating a tower of alternating layers of mousse and pastry. Finish with a pastry disc, then dust with icing sugar. Delicately balance a scoop of the mint ice cream on top to finish
  • icing sugar, for dusting
First published in 2021

Ambitious, inventive and completely dedicated to his craft, Andrew Sheridan is one of the finest chefs North Wales has ever produced.

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