Caramelized Fig & Rosemary...Caramelized Fig & Rosemary Mille-Feuille with Goat Cheese Crème Légère

An avant-garde interpretation of the classic French pastry, featuring caramelized fresh figs infused with wild rosemary, a velvety, tangy goat cheese crème légère, and a smoked pine nut nougatine.

Ingredients

Cooking Instructions

1. 01

   Preheat your convection oven to 200°C (390°F). Roll out the puff pastry to 3mm thickness on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Prick the pastry thoroughly with a fork, cover with another layer of parchment, and place a second heavy baking sheet on top to prevent uneven rising. Bake for 15 minutes.

2. 02

   Remove the top baking sheet and parchment. Dust the pastry generously with powdered sugar and return to the oven at 220°C (425°F) for 5-7 minutes, watching closely until the sugar melts into a shiny, deep golden-brown caramel layer. Let cool completely, then use a serrated knife to gently saw into twelve equal 4x9cm rectangles.

3. 03

   To make the crème légère, bloom the gelatin sheet in ice water for 5 minutes. In a small saucepan, warm 50ml of the heavy cream with 40g of granulated sugar and the scraped vanilla bean seeds until just simmering. Whisk in the squeezed gelatin until fully dissolved. Pour this warm mixture over the room-temperature goat cheese and blend with an immersion blender until completely smooth.

4. 04

   Whip the remaining 150ml of chilled heavy cream to soft peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the goat cheese mixture in three stages to preserve the aeration. Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a medium round tip and chill for at least 30 minutes to set.

5. 05

   For the smoked pine nut nougatine, melt 40g of granulated sugar in a dry pan over medium-high heat until a golden caramel forms. Stir in the pine nuts and smoked sea salt, immediately pour onto a silicone baking mat, and roll out flat with a rolling pin. Once cool, crush into coarse shards.

6. 06

   For the figs, melt the butter in a pan over medium heat with the rosemary sprigs to infuse the fat. Place the figs cut-side down in the pan, sear for 2 minutes, then drizzle with the lavender honey. Baste the figs with the foaming honey-butter for 1 additional minute until slightly soft and glazed. Remove from heat and discard the rosemary.

7. 07

   To assemble, place one caramelized pastry rectangle on each of four plates. Pipe neat bulbs of the goat cheese crème légère across the pastry. Carefully place three caramelized fig halves on top. Rest a second pastry rectangle over the figs. Pipe another layer of the cream and dot with the remaining figs. Garnish with the smoked pine nut nougatine shards and micro-basil or rosemary flowers if desired. Serve immediately.