Sometimes late at night (Saturday at 10:45), something takes over my body. The compulsion for something sweet, something that requires an oven, possesses me. I search for recipes, anything that will hit the spot and can be made with ingredients on hand. More often than not, the recipe I choose ends up being annoyingly complicated and time consuming. Along comes the name “Strawberry Pistachio Mille-feuillantines”, sounds good to me.

In a nutshell, mille-feuill (in French ’thousand sheets’) is a multi-layer pastry of alternating crust (usually puff pastry) and fillings. It is sort of pronounced “mee fuh-yuh“, although most Americans prefer “Napoleon”. This version is a very simple take on that, made with pistachio wafers (not one thousand), heavy cream, and strawberries. The recipe is easy, and once the wafers are done, the assembly is very quick. I was happy with the end result and would make these again, though probably not at midnight.

Makes 4 - 6 mille-feuillantines

Pistachio wafers:
1/2 cup shelled natural pistachios
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Filling:
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chilled heavy cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 pint strawberries, sliced (reserve a few for garnish)
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

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Preheat oven to 325° F - I baked the wafers on a cookie sheet lined with a silpat, but you could also use parchment paper. Rub off loose pieces of skin from the pistachios and using a food processor, grind the nuts w/sugar. Whisk together the pistachio/sugar mixture, flour, and salt, then add the egg whites, melted butter and vanilla.

Drop about 1.5 teaspoons of batter onto the sheet and then spread the batter into small rounds, about 3.5” each, leaving a couple of inches for them to spread as they cook. Bake the wafers on the oven’s middle rack for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown and the wafer is golden. The next step is a little tricky because after you remove the wafers from the oven, they need to be transferred to a cooling rack and can easily tear. I slowly slid a metal spatula under each, and then made sure it stayed flat on the rack to cool. If you have leftover wafers, they are great alone.

In a cold bowl, start beating the cream with an electric mixer (or by hand), as the cream starts to gain texture, add the sugar. Beat the mixture until it holds stiff peaks, add vanilla and mix until combined.

Assembly

Each mille-feuillantine should be assembled on the plate it will be served. Lay out the first wafer and spread about 2 tablespoons of whipped cream onto it, leaving a small border. On top of the cream, add a few sliced strawberries and repeat the process again, then top the two layers with one final wafer. Add a small dollop of cream to the top and dust with a little confectioners’ sugar and broken pistachio (an easy way to make a nice texture is to break the pistachio with the side of your chef’s knife, in the same way you would crush garlic). Garnish with sliced or diced strawberries and you are done!

This recipe is adapted (modified) from Gourmet Magazine, June 1997/Epicurious.com.