This easy recipe for a Dulce de Leche Mille Feuille (Napoleon) will be your new favorite dessert. Puff pastry sheets filled with dulce de leche pastry cream, whipped cream, and topped with a dulce de leche and chocolate design! Mille Feuille is the most impressive dessert!!

Dulce de Leche Millie Feuille on a white plate

Today is my 30th Birthday so I knew I had to celebrate with a fantastic dessert. So here I present to you this Dulce de Leche Mille-Feuille.

The first time I had a dulce de leche napoleon was at Porto’s Bakery & Cafe. If you live in Southern California you have probably come across this famous Cuban Bakery. They produce so many desserts and breads, one of my all time favorites is their dulce de leche napoleon. It was life changing when I tried it.

So it was only a matter of time until I recreated it. I tested this recipe once about a year ago then three times recently- on top of that I also burned three trays of puff pastry- if you follow me on instagram you already knew that!!

I am thrilled to say I am so happy with the results, too happy, actually kinda mad because now that I can recreate a Portos dulce de leche Napoleon I have no excuses and can indulge all the time!! Yoga pants here I come!!

Let’s get to the recipe

What are the ingredients for a dulce de leche napoleon?

Puff Pastry
Pastry Cream
Whipped Cream
Dulce de Leche
Chocolate

up close of a slice of dulce de leche napoleon

How do you bake puff pastry for a napoleon?

Let one puff pastry sheet thaw. When the pastry is pliable place it on a clean surface sprinkled with flour and roll out lengthwise and widthwise to a 10″ X 12″ rectangle. Cut the piece equally into thirds and then using a fork prick all over.

Gently place the pieces on a Silpat lined baking sheet, spaced evenly apart and place in the fridge or freezer to help chill it. When baking pastry you want it to be very cold when going into the oven. While the dough is chilling preheat your oven to 415F/213C.

When you are ready to bake you can sprinkle the pastry with some granulated sugar if you want, then place a piece of parchment paper directly on top of the pastry and place a baking tray on top. This weight of the second tray helps weigh the pastry down, preventing the puffiness that you normally want with puff pastry.

Bake for 20 minutes then remove the tray and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until golden brown. Place on a wire rack to cool completely. You must let it cool completely otherwise the cream filling will slide right off and melt.

What do you fill a napoleon with?

Traditionally it’s just pastry cream but I love a layer of whipped cream.

Pasty Cream (Dulce de Leche in this case)
Whipped Cream

I advise making the dulce de leche pastry cream the day before but it’s up to you. I have a whole post dedicated to making dulce de leche pastry cream– with step-by-step photos!

dulce de leche pastry cream in a glass bowl with a metal whisk

Since I want the whipped cream to stay thicker for this recipe I like to use a stabilized whipped cream- this post shows step-by-step photos on how to make stabilized whipped cream.

Once you have stiff peaks pour the whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip.

How do you assemble a napoleon?

To start I like to make sure I have everything ready to go. Rewhisk the dulce de leche pastry cream and place it in a piping bag fitted with a small-medium round tip Place melted chocolate, whipped cream, and slightly warmed dulce de leche all into their own piping bags.

I place each piping bag in a glass for easy storage-preventing leaking all over your surface.

whipped cream, chocolate, dulce de leche, and pastry cream all in piping bags in glasses

You can trim each puff pastry sheet to be exact or leave it rustic looking.

baked puff pastry sheets on a black cutting board with a knife

Start by making the top layer.

Using an offset spatula spread slightly warmed dulce de leche on top of on pastry sheet, ty to make it as smooth as possible.

With chocolate piping bag draw lines 1/4″ apart across the short way of the pastry. Use a toothpick to pull two lines evenly spaced perpendicular to the chocolate lines.

Pull the toothpick in two more lines in between the original lines and pull in the opposite direction. Set the pastry in the fridge to set while preparing the rest.

Pipe the pastry cream in an even layer, be careful not to get right to the edge as the weight of the other layers will cause spreading. Top with piped whipped cream, then place the last layer of pastry on top and repeat.

Place the dulce de leche designed pastry top on and from the sides slightly press down. Let chill for 30 minutes before serving.

To cut gently hold down and use a serrated knife to cut the pastry- there will be some cream oozing out- it’s impossible to prevent!

Can you make Dulce de Leche Napoleon (Mille Feuille) ahead of time?

You can make the pastry cream, whipped cream, and puff pastry layers a day ahead of time. Then assemble them on the day you want to serve it, a few hours ahead of time.

I would advise not assembling the mille-feuille more than 8 hours before serving.This Dulce de Leche Millie Feuille is best served the day assembled. Store any leftovers in the fridge!

How long does a Dulce de Leche Napoleon (Mille-Feuille) last?

This dessert will last 2-3 days stored in the fridge in an airtight container. Keep in mind the longer it sits the less crunch of the puff pastry you will have. Thus why I suggest assembling it only up to 8 hours before serving time.

slices of dulce de leche millie feuille on round plates

Fancy some more caramel desserts?

Please let me know if you make this Dulce de Leche Millie Feuille (Napoleon) recipe by leaving a rating and review below!

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