Easy French Dessert Recipes

Most French desserts look like they took forever to make, but looks can be deceiving once you know the secrets of easy French dessert recipes.

Napoleons

Napoleons are notoriously difficult to make and are not usually considered one of the easy French dessert recipes to be found. But fortunately for us, just about any dessert that involves layers of cream and puff pastry are considered a Napoleon. Also fortunately for us, puff pastry can be bought in most supermarkets and that puts the 'easy' in this French dessert recipe.

Broken down to its basic parts, a Napoleon is a layered dessert that consists of baked puff pastry, pastry cream, and fondant. Although you might have a sheet of puff pastry in your freezer, you might not have the time or inclination to make a batch of pastry cream. As far as fondant goes, you need glycerin to make it. Glycerin is hard to find and isn't called for in a lot of recipes, so I don't keep it in stock.

Easy Napoleon

Ingredients

• 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry the size of a cookie sheet
• 1 package of vanilla pudding
• 8 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate
• 8 ounces of heavy cream

Instructions

1. Let the puff pastry thaw out.
2. Roll the puff pastry out to the size of your cookie sheet.
3. Let the puff pastry rest in your refrigerator for 30 minutes.
4. While the pastry is resting, make the vanilla pudding according to the package directions.
5. Let the pudding rest in the refrigerator.
6. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
7. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl.
8. Heat the heavy cream in a saucepan over a medium flame.
9. Once the cream starts to simmer, pour it over the chocolate and stir with a whisk.
10. Prick the surface of the puff pastry with a fork.
11. Place a sheet of parchment paper over the pastry.
12. Place a second cookie sheet on top of the pastry.
13. Bake for ten minutes.
14. Remove the top cookie sheet and bake for ten more minutes until lightly golden brown.
15. Remove from the oven and let cool.
16. Cut the cooled puff pastry into thirds widthwise.
17. Spread a layer of vanilla pudding over one of the puff pastry rectangles.
18. Place a second puff pastry layer over the pudding.
19. Spread a layer of pudding over the second pastry.
20. Place the final puff pastry on the pudding layer.
21. Pour the ganache over the Napoleon.
22. Place in your refrigerator and let set, at least one hour.
23. To make it look like a real Napoleon, make a batch of royal icing and pipe it in a thin line over the ganache.
24. Using a toothpick, drag it over the ganache across the lines of royal frosting.

Chocolate Madeleines

These delicate cookies look like they took forever to master but are easy and fun.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs, separated
• 2/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/8 cup sugar (1/4 cup plus 1/8 cup)
• ¾ cup butter
• 1/8 cup cocoa
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat.
2. Remove from the heat and let cool.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and cocoa powder.
4. Beat the yolks slightly and then add them to the flour mixture.
5. Combine thoroughly.
6. Beat the egg whites slightly.
7. Add them to the yolk and flour mixture.
8. Add the butter and vanilla extract.
9. Whisk to combine.
10. Let the batter rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
11. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
12. Spoon 1 tablespoon of batter into each of the Madeleine molds.
13. Bake for 4 minutes.
14. Reduce heat in oven to 375 degrees and continue to bake for another 4 minutes.
15. While the Madeleines cool, turn the oven back to 425 in preparation for the next batch.
16. The falling oven (going from 425 to 375) allows the insides of the cookies to properly cook while the outsides become crisp.

Easy French Dessert Recipes

French desserts don't have to be complicated to be fun and tasty. Once you get the hang of these deserts try others, there's a whole world of deliciousness waiting to be discovered.