Napoleon Cake (Russian Custard Pastry Cake)
Six crisp puff pastry layers with thick vanilla custard cream, left to soften overnight and finished with golden crumbs.
- Time1 hr 15 plus overnight chilling
- LevelMedium
- Costabout £0.75 a head
- Oven200°C (180°C fan)
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Make the custard. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour with 100 ml of the milk until smooth. Heat the rest of the milk in a pan until steaming, then pour onto the yolk mixture, whisking all the time.
- 2
Return to the pan and stir over a medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes until very thick and bubbling. Take off the heat and stir in the vanilla and the butter, a piece at a time. Press cling film onto the surface and cool completely.
4 min - 3
Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Cut each pastry sheet in half to make 6 rectangles. Lay each on a lined baking tray, prick all over with a fork, cover with baking parchment and press down with a second tray. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden and flat, in batches.
16 min 40 s - 4
Trim the cooled pastry rectangles to the same size. Crush all the trimmings into coarse crumbs.
- 5
Beat the cold custard until smooth and glossy. Layer the pastry with custard in between, finishing with a layer of custard. Press crumbs over the top and sides.
- 6
Cover and chill for at least 6 hours or overnight so the pastry softens. Cut into slices with a sharp serrated knife.
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.
