GF Pistachio Raspberry Cake & FBS 2014 Recap

“You can’t have your cake and eat it too”

Though I’m not exactly sure why, this post has been one of the hardest for me to write . But it must be the right thing for me to write, because it scares me a bit.....  And I’ve recently been learning that fear isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Writing this post has required much more personal reflection than I anticipated and a good deal of vulnerability...

It was a somewhat last minute decision when we decided I should attend Food Blog South 2014 in Birmingham, AL. I had been dreaming of attending a food blogging conference for years, but either the timing was off, or the conference just didn’t fit into the budget. Food Blog South had been well recommended by my friends Helene and Tami, and in the month prior to the conference date, I just couldn’t get the idea of attending out of my head.

I thought attending FBS could help me with some of the technical side of blogging and perhaps help me figure out how to monetize Sweet Treats. I don’t have advertisers or sponsors, so most of the time, everything seen on Sweet Treats is paid for out of my own pocket. I would love to generate some income from something I’m passionate about, like pastry and photography and teaching and documenting/telling stories....

So on a leap of faith, and a few prayers, I purchased my ticket for FBS, booked the hotel, and figured out my airline ticket.  Since Tami was also going to the conference (she and Helene were speaking at a couple sessions about food styling and photography), she graciously invited me to come to the Atlanta area before the conference and drive to and from Birmingham with her.  Little did we know that I would later get stuck in Georgia due to the snow storm, but I’ve already told that story.

I knew before the conference that I would be given a lot of of information all in one day, but I don’t think I quite understood just how huge that amount of info would really be.  So much information in one day!  By the end of it, I truly felt like my head may explode....  It felt like trying to drink from a firehose instead of a water fountain. 

Though I wish I could have attended multiple sessions at the same time, I decided to attend mostly “Technical Track” sessions. I took as many notes as possible & even live-tweeted a few of the sessions to help myself remember key points. But in the end, Food Blog South challenged me in ways I didn’t expect. I left with a lot of personal questions to contemplate and soul searching to do... Why do I blog in the first place? Who am I creating these posts for? Myself? Others? Potential advertisers/sponsors? I don’t have all the answers, even now that I’ve been actively pondering these questions for several weeks.

I realize now that my preconceived ideas about attending the conference were a bit naive. Of course there isn’t a magic button or a simple way to turn what I do into a business, if that’s even what I still want to do. And I realize that it was foolish to think I could keep Sweet Treats exactly the same as it has been & expect to turn it into a business.  Something would have to change, potentially quite drastically, and I’m not sure I’m quite ready to compromise what I’ve been building for over 4 years. That’s not to say that in the future there won’t be changes, I just know that I’m not ready now. I can’t have my cake and eat it too.

But one of the most profound, lasting effects of Food Blog South 2014 is that it has challenged me to think of myself, for the first time, as a writer. Even typing that sentence makes me a bit nervous. I’ve more often considered myself a pastry chef/photographer/educator, who happens to do a bit of writing on the side.... I’ve never considered myself good enough to be called a writer. But I’m realizing that the writing I do is just as important as the photos or the food.  My blog readership might not be large, but they are *readers* nonetheless.  FBS showed me that perhaps I need to explore this world of “writing” more than I have in the past. 

One final note, before I switch to cake..... I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Molly Wizenberg’s lovely keynote address at the end of Food Blog South. Her words were so inspiring and encouraging that I really feel they deserve their own recap in a future post.  In some ways, I think her talk helped me to have the courage to write this post. But, if you want a preview, author/writing coach/editor and FBS speaker Dianne Jacob transcribed a portion of Molly’s address, which you can read here.

As I’ve been trying to process my feelings and grapple with thinking of myself as a writer, my mind has continued to wander towards cake. I know, shocking, since I do have an insatiable sweet tooth.  I’ve been thinking about layer cakes & about how much I wanted to make one--also ironic, because layer cakes are usually more of a source of stress rather than joy. But there’s something almost meditative about the steps to make the cake, the icing and the assembly/decoration process. All the steps take time, giving a person a lot of time to think.

During the making and assembling of this delicious pistachio cake, the phrase “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” kept cycling through my head. It has been a good reminder to me and frankly a comfort too. I know the cake isn’t perfect (I’m a bit out of practice), but I appreciate it’s aesthetics, imperfections and all, and what the cake stands for.  And yes, I ate two slices :)  

Pistachio Cake with Raspberry Filling 
cake adapted from Epicurious.com
Design inspired by Seven Spoons 
Yields 2-6" cakes (approximately 8 to 10 servings)

I've been eyeing this cake design for several years. Though the original source sadly doesn't include the recipes (or any images of the cake interior), I found a suitable replacement on Epicurious. The pistachio cake just might be one of my new all-time favorite cakes!  

Pistachio Cake 
6 oz Raw Pistachios
4.25 oz / 1 cup Jeanne’s GF AP Flour Mix (or use regular AP if not GF)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 fl oz / 1/2 cup whole milk
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp Almond Extract
4 oz / 1/2 cup / 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
7 oz / 1 cup sugar
3 large eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter two 6-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper & butter the parchment. Set aside. 
2. Process the pistachios in a food processor until finely ground (but not so much that you create pistachio butter). 
3. Whisk together the finely ground pistachios with the GF flour, baking powder and sea salt. Set aside.
4. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the milk with the extracts. Set aside. 
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar on low to medium speed until the ingredients have completely come together, have lightened in color and increased in volume.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
6. Add the eggs in two additions, mixing on low speed after each addition.  
7. Add the pistachio mixture alternately with the milk mixture, beginning and ending with the pistachio mixture. Mix on low speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, remove the bowl from the mixer & finish mixing by hand. 
8. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. Smooth the tops well with a small offset spatula. 
9. Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 25-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. 
10. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert the cakes onto a cooling wrack to cool completely. 

Note: I had a few mishaps when baking the cake layers. The original recipe makes a single 9" cake, but when I was adapting the recipe, I increased the amounts too much, overfilled my pans & ended up with overflowing cake batter in the oven during the baking process. Coincidentally, the lava-cake phenomenon caused the middles to sink more than they normally would.  I have adjusted the cake amounts so that you shouldn't have the overflowing mess I had and hopefully the sinking middle is fixed as well :) And if you're looking for volume amounts instead of weights, see the original recipe link. 

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

4 oz Egg Whites

8 oz Granulated Sugar

12 oz Unsalted Butter, softened to room temperature 

splash Vanilla Extract

1. In a very clean metal mixing bowl (preferably one that attaches to a stand mixer), whisk together the egg whites and granulated sugar. 
2. Place the mixing bowl over a small sauce pan of simmering water to make a double boiler.  Continue whisking the whites and sugar until all the sugar has dissolved and the mixture reaches at least 140 F on an instant read thermometer.  
3. Remove the top bowl (being careful not to burn yourself on the hot metal of the bowl or on any drips from the hot condensation on the bottom of the bowl) & attach to a stand mixer. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment. Whip on high speed until a fluffy meringue forms & the bowl cools to room temperature. 
4. Once the meringue cools completely, lower the speed of the mixer to medium and begin adding the butter, one tablespoon at a time. 
5. After the butter has all been added, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the vanilla. Mix on medium high speed just to ensure everything is combined. 
6. Hold the icing at room temperature until ready to use. 

Assembly

Pistachio Cakes (cooled)

6-ish Tbl Seedless Raspberry Preserves

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Fresh Raspberries & chopped pistachios for garnish 

1. Use a long serrated knife to level each cake layer and torte it into two separate layers. Set aside. I use a revolving cake stand to decorate. It isn’t necessary, but it does make the process much easier! 
2. Place approximately 1/4 of the icing into a piping bag, either fitted with a large plain tip or simply cut off the tip of the piping bag.
3. Place one cake layer onto a cake board. Use a small offset spatula to spread 1.5 Tbl to 2 Tbl of seedless raspberry preserves onto the top of the first layer, leaving the outside 1/2” free from jam. Use the icing in the piping bag to pipe a “dam” in the jam free edge. Top with a second cake layer press lightly to adhere. Repeat the process until all the last layer is placed on top. 
4. Crumb coat the cake, if desired, by spreading a very thin layer of icing over the top and sides of the cake, just to seal in any crumbs.  Refrigerate for 20 minutes. 
5. After the optional crumb coat has chilled, give the cake a second, thicker layer of icing. Center the cake on the revolving cake stand, and add a generous dollop of icing to the top of the cake. Use a large offset spatula to spread a thick layer of icing over the top of the cake and down the sides.  Add additional icing to the side of the cake, if necessary.  Use a bench scraper (or the same large offset spatula) to remove the excess icing & smooth the sides (this process should also push the icing up to heights greater than the top of the cake).  Once the sides are smoothed, use the back side of a clean offset spatula to smooth the top of the cake. Come at the cake from a 45 degree angle & pass the back edge of the spatula over the top of the cake--this process should smooth the top and remove excess icing. 
6. Once the cake has been iced, decorate with chopped pistachios and fresh raspberries. 
7. Refrigerate the cake for a couple of hours to allow the flavors to meld, but allow to sit at room temperature for at least 20 minutes before serving for best flavor and texture. 
8. Cover any exposed cake edges (after serving) and store the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to a week.  Or freeze, well wrapped, for longevity.  

Note: If you’re new to cake assembly or would like to see techniques very similar to the ones I use to to ice cakes, visit Zoe Bakes or Sweetapolita for their instructional videos.  

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Pistachio Gelato & Gluten Free Ice Cream Cones

If there’s a flavor that reminds me the most of traveling abroad, that flavor would be pistachio. Specifically pistachio ice cream or pistachio gelato.  When I taste pistachio, I’m instantly transported back to the trips I’ve taken & the memories that were created.

I have fond memories of consuming many, many pistachio ice cream cones in both the Czech Republic and France. Though I can’t remember a specific pistachio experience in London, I’m sure there had to be one!

In deciding what was best to do with the remainder of my precious pistachio paste, ice cream or gelato seemed like the perfect thing. Though it’s nearly the end of September, the weather remains hot--definitely still ice cream weather for a long while yet.

My pistachio paste that I brought back from France is a bit more intense, both on the flavor side and the color side, than I expected. There’s no question by both the appearance & the taste that this ice cream is pistachio! I am rather picky about my pistachio ice cream.... I like it to taste like pistachio, but not actually have any pistachio pieces in it. Generally, I’m not a huge fan of any nuts in my ice cream.

Ice cream out of a dish is great, but there’s something a little extra special about cones. Since I can’t find gluten free cones here, the best course of action was to make them myself.  I don’t have a waffle cone iron or a pizzelle iron, but I do have my beloved krumkake iron that unfortunately only usually gets put to good use during the Christmas season. It worked as a perfect stand in.

While esthetically the cones could use a little work (it was difficult to get the closed point at the bottom due to how extremely hot they were!), they tasted perfect. The slight nutty flavor from the almond flour and coconut oil complimented the intense pistachio flavor quite nicely.  You could absolutely not tell that they were gluten free!

With every mini-cone that I’ve consumed, the travel bug continues to bite & I look forward to future travels & adventures abroad. Hopefully they, too, will have some sort of pistachio ice cream cone.

Pistachio Gelato
Inspired by David Lebovitz

Classic gelato is made using whole milk (no cream) and a good amount of egg yolks; however, this version, inspired by a David Lebovitz recipe, has milk but no yolks. He writes that not including the yolks is not only mimics the classic Sicilian style but also allows the pistachio flavor to better shine through. I found, however, that my particular pistachio paste was particularly strong in flavor. I added the addition of cream cheese to try to soften the pistachio paste flavor just slightly.

32 g (4 Tbl) Cornstarch
4 cups whole milk, divided
65+65 g (2/3 c) sugar 

1.5 oz Cream Cheese, slightly softened

1/8 tsp Almond Extract
7  oz (200 g g) Pistachio Paste
a couple drops of lemon juice 

1 Tbl Vodka (optional) 

1.  In a small bowl, make a slurry with the cornstarch & approximately half a cup of milk.  Mix until the starch is well dissolved & there are no lumps. I use my clean fingers for this particular job. 
2. Pour the remaining milk into a sauce pan & sprinkle the sugar over the top. Heat over medium high heat, not stirring at all. Once the mixture almost begins to boil, whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Cook at a simmer, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. 
3. Place the cream cheese in a medium sized bowl.  Add a little of the hot dairy to the cream cheese & whisk until smooth. Add a little more dairy & whisk again.  Then, pour the cheese mixture back into the dairy.  Cool slightly 
4. Add the almond extract and pistachio paste. Whisk until completely smooth.  Transfer to a clean bowl & chill over an ice bath until cool.  Cover the bowl & refrigerate until very cold, preferably overnight.  
5. Just before processing in the ice cream machine, whisk in the vodka, if using.  The alcohol will keep the gelato from freezing rock solid.  Churn the ice cream according to your ice cream machine’s instructions. 
6. Place the finished ice cream into a container with a lid & freeze a couple of hours before serving. 

Ice Cream Cones
Inspired by The Advanced Professional Pastry Chef

yield’s approximately 14 small cones 

1 oz (2 Tbl) Butter, melted
1 oz (2 Tbl) Coconut Oil, melted
2 oz Confectioners Sugar, sifted

2 oz (1/4 c, approx 2 large)  Egg White
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
pinch salt

2 oz Almond Flour 
2 oz GF AP flour

1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter & coconut oil. 
2. Sift the confectioners sugar over the butter & oil while continuing to whisk. 
3. Drizzle in the egg white & mix well.  Add the vanilla and salt. 
4. Pour in the almond flour. Whisk until smooth. 
5. Add the GF flour & whisk until everything is homogenized.
6. Refrigerate the batter for at least 30 minutes. 
7. Preheat the iron. A Pizzelle Bakeror Cone Maker is ideal, but I used a krumkake iron because it was what I have.  
8. Drop the batter by the tablespoon-ful (I used a small cookie scoop) onto the hot iron. Close the top & cook until golden.  
9. Immediately remove from the iron & wrap around a cone form. Be careful not to burn your fingers! Wear gloves if the hot cookie burns your fingers too much. Try to make the bottom of the cone into the best point possible. Allow to cool for a minute in the cone form, then transfer the a rack to continue cooling. 
10. Repeat the process with the remaining batter, making as many cones as needed right then.  
11. Batter will keep for 1 week in the refrigerator. Baked cones are very susceptible to moisture & must be stored in an airtight container once they are cool. It is best to make the cones only as needed rather than trying to store already made cones. 

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Pistachio Raspberry Napoleon

In high school, I had the privilege of traveling to France (and Monaco) for 17 days with my French class.  I did not so much enjoy high school, but I really, really loved that trip! We started in Paris & then traveled via motor-coach in a giant circle around the rest of the country.

For most of the trip, we ate lunch on our own in whatever city we happened to be visiting that day.   Even in high school, I knew that someday I wanted to study pastry.  I am not at all ashamed to say that most every lunch included dessert.  Sometimes, dessert was the only food group!  Luckily, the friends I made during the trip agreed with dessert for lunch :)

One day, towards the tail end of the trip when we were in the norther part of France, along the cost, I bought a “Mille-Feuille” (also known as a “Napoleon”) for lunch.  It was a beautiful pastry, layered with cream & strawberries, and topped with a healthy dusting of confectioners‘ sugar.  Somewhere in my boxes of France mementos at my parents’ house is a photo I took of the pastry...

While the napoleon may have looked exquisite & delicious, it only took one bite for me to realize that the pastry was burned.  Badly burnt.  Sadly, I ended up throwing out the pastry layers and just eating the cream & strawberries.  Even though this first napoleon experience was not-so-great, I knew that someday I would eat a better one.

That trip to France did really help further my palate, & it exposed me to new things within the culinary world . Pistachio, in particular, remains one of my all time favorite flavors.  As does red currant.  And, of course, I fell in love with croissants, pain au chocolat, jam & nutella for breakfast.

Fast forward just a few years (ha!) to my time in culinary school.  Laminated Doughs & Breakfast Pastries quickly became my favorite class.  We made our own puff pastry, laminated it with European butter, and one week we turned some of the finished puff pastry into amazingly delicious, yet challenging Napoleons.  Finally, I tasted a real napoleon that wasn’t burned!

Classical napoleons, topped with poured fondant & chocolate stripes, aren’t an easy task.  They require lots of work & also require the person making/assembling them to be on top of their “mis-en-place,” meaning that everything must be completely ready & in place before the assembly process begins.  I struggled with the napoleon as a student & while my pastry was delicious, it wasn’t nearly as beautiful as it should have been (or as beautiful as Chef Jeff’s was).  When I became an instructor & taught the Laminated Doughs class, I still was a little nervous on napoleon day when I had to demo this challenging item to 16 eager students (and then grade them on their results)....

While I love the classical napoleon, both for it’s flavor and for the skill it requires one to possess to execute flawlessly, I experimented with alternate presentations for the same components.  The squares were pre-cut to their serving size.  The vanilla diplomat cream filling was decoratively piped.  Fruit could be added.  The fondant & chocolate topping was exchanged for a pattern of powdered sugar.

I have a terrible habit of hoarding ingredients I deem “special.”  As I was brainstorming future posts & looking through my cabinets & freezer, I remembered the remaining piece of gluten free blitz puff pastry that needed to be used before it developed freezer burn.  And in the dark, back corner of the pantry, I discovered an even bigger gem: pistachio paste!  Ironically, I brought the pistachio paste back from my second trip to France .  I’ve been saving it for a special occasion, but really, that just means it’s just hiding in my pantry.  My aformentioned love of pistachio drove me to buy the paste three years ago, but allowing it to just sit in the back of the pantry really does no one any favors.  So, I cracked the can open, inhaling the wonderful fragrance of pistachios &  was inspired to make a pistachio napoleon with raspberries.  Not only are pistachios and raspberries visually pretty together, their flavors also are a great compliment.

I knew there wasn’t enough leftover blitz puff pastry to make very many napoleons, so in lieu of just eating the pistachio diplomat cream with a spoon (which it IS delicious enough to do), I bought a box of commercial puff pastry.  I used the regular puff pastry to make a couple napoleons to give as thank-you gifts.

In one bite of the napoleon, I’m transported both back to my trips to France, and also to my days as a culinary student & instructor.  Good memories :)


PISTACHIO RASPBERRY NAPOLEONS 

• In the above images, the larger napoleon was made with commercial, store-bought puff pastry. The smaller, individual size napoleon was made with gluten free blitz puff pastry.  
• The batch of pastry cream & diplomat cream will make enough to fill two sheets of regular puff pastry and all the gluten free pastry rectangles as well. 

Baking Commercial Puff Pastry Sheets (large Napoleons) 

1. Allow the puff pastry to thaw at room temperature for approximately an hour.  Preheat the oven to 400 F. 
2. Open the package & separate the two pieces of puff pastry.  Save the second piece for later (or hold it in the refrigerator until the first pieces is done & then repeat the steps.) Gently open the folds of the pastry.  
3. Using a pastry wheel & a ruler (I like to use my quilter’s ruler), cut off the edges of the puff pastry pieces, just to expose the lamination.  Cut each piece into three equal pieces approximately 3 inches wide.  
4. Place the 3” wide pieces onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Use a fork to dock the dough (make little holes in it) all over the surface of the dough.  Top with a second piece of parchment & a second sheet pan.  The puff pastry should now be sandwiched between the parchment & the pans.  Add a heavy, oven-safe weight to the top pan--I like to use my cast iron skillet.  
5. Bake the skillet-topped pans for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven & remove the cast iron skillet (DON’T FORGET THAT THE PANS ARE HOT!!) Flip the pans with the pastry over & remove the top pan (which was previously the bottom) and the top layer of parchment.  Return the pan to the oven (the bottom pan will be upside down, but that’s OK). and continue baking until the pastry is golden.  Rotate as needed to promote even browning.  The finished pastry should be quite brown, but not burned. Mine took approximately 7 additional minutes to bake.  Allow the baked pastry to cool at room temperature.  
6. After the rectangles have trim with a small, sharp paring knife until all the pieces are the same size & the edges have been re-exposed. Save any scrap pieces to eat with leftover diplomat cream :)  Some of the rectangles may break, but just use those for the bottom or inside layers when assembling. Decide which piece is the prettiest & reserve that one for the top.  Set aside until ready to assemble.

Baking Gluten Free Blitz Puff Pastry (individual Napoleons)

1.  Allow the frozen blitz puff pastry to thaw at room temperature for approximately 10 minutes (for a flat sheet)
2. Use a ruler & pastry wheel to cut the dough into 2x4 inch rectangles.  
3. Place the rectangles onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  Return to the freezer for 10 minutes. 
4. Preheat the oven to 400 F. 
5. Bake the rectangles for 25 minutes (or until lightly golden).  Remove the pan from the oven.  With an offset spatula, very carefully flip each piece over.  They do tend to ooze a bit of butter & that hot butter will burn!  
6. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 5 to 10 more minutes, or until the pastry is golden.  
7. Remove from the oven & cool to room temperature.  

Pastry Cream
Note: Cut the batch in half if you aren’t planning on assembling more than 1 napoleon (i.e. using more than 1 sheet of commercial puff pastry).  I bought my pistachio paste in France, but you can find several kinds here.  Alternately, unsalted pistachios can be steeped in milk & then pureed, but the flavor will not be as strong & the texture will be much more grainy.   

9.75 oz  Milk
1.5 oz  Pistachio Paste (similar here)
1 fl oz  cold Water
0.15 oz  Granulated Gelatin (approximately half a packet)
2 oz Egg Yolks (approximately 4 yolks, don’t worry if it goes a little over)
4 oz  Granulated Sugar
0.85 oz  Cornstarch
0.55 oz  Butter

1. In a medium sized stainless steel sauce pan, combine the milk and pistachio paste.  Heat over medium heat until it simmers, whisking often.  Remove from the heat, cover & allow to steep 10 minutes or so while the other ingredients are prepared. 
2. In a microwave safe small bowl, add the cold water.  Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water.  Stir lightly to ensure all the granules are moistened.  Set aside to bloom.  
3. Separate the cold eggs.  Reserve the whites for a different use. 
4. In a medium sized heat-proof bowl (glass, metal, etc.), Whisk together the granulated sugar & cornstarch.  
5. Return the pistachio milk to the stove top & heat over medium high heat until it begins to steam.  Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks into the granulated sugar/cornstarch mixture.  Place a damp towel or a silicone pot holder underneath the bowl if it moves around too much.  Do not allow this mixture to sit or the sugar may cause the egg mixture to chemically cook & create lumps in the final cream. 
6. Slowly temper the hot pistachio liquid into the egg mixture, while whisking constantly.  Once all the two are combined, return them to the sauce pan and heat over medium high heat, whisking constantly. 
7. Continue cooking & mixing until the custard boils.  Allow to boil for a minimum of 15 seconds (count slowly), then remove from the heat.  Whisk in the butter
8. Place the bloomed gelatin into the microwave & heat on high for 10 seconds (or until liquid).  Whisk the melted gelatin into the custard.  Pour the custard into a separate bowl & cover with plastic wrap touching the surface.  Refrigerate until ready to make the diplomat cream, just before assembly. 

Diplomat Cream 
Wait to make the diplomat cream until just before assembly! It won’t pipe as well if made earlier. Cut the batch in half if you aren’t planning on assembling more than 1 napoleon (i.e. using more than 1 sheet of commercial puff pastry)

16 oz Pastry Cream (with the gelatin added) 
16 oz Whipping Cream
1 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste (or substitute extract) 

1. Approximately 30 minutes before making the diplomat cream, remove the pastry cream from the refrigerator & allow to come to room temperature. 
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream until medium peaks form. Beat in the vanilla bean paste. 
3. Whisk the room temperature pastry cream to break it up a bit.  Add half of the whipped cream to the pastry cream & whisk to combine.  Pour the pastry cream/whipped cream back into the bowl of whipped cream & gently fold to combine.  
4. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.  
5. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip (I used an Ateco #808). Reserve any leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.  

Tri-layer Assembly
Baked Puff pastry pieces, trimmed (regular, not gluten free ones)
Diplomat Cream
1/2 to 1 pint Raspberries, unwashed 
Confectioners sugar 
Pistachios, finely chopped (optional garnish) 

1. Build the napoleon on a parchment lined sheet pan.  Pick through the raspberries & decide which ones are prettiest for the outside edges and which ones are not as beautiful that may be hidden on the inside.  Set aside a couple of extra pretty garnish berries, if desired. Lay out the raspberries on some paper towel.  Do NOT wash them. Due to their fragile nature, the raspberries may not hold up as well if they are washed & they risk bleeding into the pastry cream.  
2. On the base layer, pipe three large dots/rounds with the diplomat cream along the short side of the baked puff pastry.  Next to the dots, snuggly place 4 raspberries (or however many fit best), remembering to put the prettiest ones towards the outside where they will be seen.  Repeat the cream dots & raspberry rows throughout the remaining width of the pastry.  Top with a second piece of puff pastry & gently press to adhere, but not so hard that the cream and berries are squashed.  
3. Repeat the cream and berry layer process on the second tier of pastry.  Top with the prettiest piece of pastry. Lightly press. 
4. Place the pan into the refrigerator to chill the napoleon for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours. 
5. Just before serving, cut parchment paper into equal strips. Lay the strips diagonally across the top of the pastry.  Liberally sift powdered sugar over the top.  Gently remove the strips, being careful not to disrupt the sugar pattern.  On one corner, lay an extra line of chopped pistachios. Top with a couple additional fresh raspberries. 
6. Serve immediately.  Use a hot, but dry, serrated knife to cut the napoleon into pieces.  Because pastry will begin to get soggy, this dessert is best consumed within 24 hours of assembly.  Store any leftovers in an airtight container (or well wrapped) in the refrigerator.  Leftovers will become soggy, but will still still taste delicious.  

Individual variation (Gluten Free) 

1. Follow the same steps as before, only make the individual napoleons two layers instead of three.  

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