Napoleon Cake (also known as Napoleon Tort or Torte) is an absolute classic! Popular across Eastern and Central Europe, this cake is a French-Russian fusion that is simply divine! Made with flaky buttery pastry, and layered with rich and creamy creme mousseline, our version of Napoleon Cake also features a couple of layers of tart blackcurrant jam to cut through the sweetness! Not at all difficult to make, and oh-so-good!
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Everyone’s Favourite Cake: Napoleon Torte
Recently, all the signs were there encouraging me to make a classic Napoleon Cake. A few months ago, my best friend was raving about a Lithuanian Napoleon Cake she keeps gettings from a newly-discovered local baker in Kent.
A couple of weeks ago I heard a dog waker call her dog over, and yes, his name was Napoleon (what a name!).
Then my mum mentioned that Napoleon might be her favourite cake in the world when she was asking for advice on what to cook for Easter. That was it, I was going to make a Cake Napoleon and share the recipe on the first Sunday in May – Mother’s Day in most of Eastern and Central Europe!
What is a Napoleon Cake (Napoleon Torte)?
Napoleon or Торт Наполеон is a result of French-Russian collaboration. With elements of the French Mille-Feuille, the combination of pastry cream, flaky puffed pastry dough and crumb coat on top of the cake, this dessert is fit for the French Emperor and your family alike!
Napoleon is one of those cakes that everybody in Eastern Europe loves but is too apprehensive to try to make themselves. I don’t know if it is the number of layers or the luscious pastry cream that many home bakers are scared of, but I personally think it is not much more difficult to make than any other layer cake.
It takes a while from the time you start to the time you can enjoy it, but it doesn’t mean this cake is labour-intensive. It takes about 10 minutes to bring the dough together. 20 minutes to roll out and cut the pastry. Then another 20 minutes to make creme mousseline. And finally another 20 minutes for alternating the layers of puff pastry and rich custard to assemble the cake.
That’s it! Just over an hour and I’m done! The rest of the time is spent cooling and chilling.
The most challenging part of making this cake comes when it is fully assembled. You need to chill the whole cake for at least 12 hours before eating it. And that can really test your patience, if you are anything like me, who always struggles to let my cakes cool, let alone chill for hours before digging in! This time the cake spends in the fridge is crucial though! The puff pastry layers ‘infuse’ with sweet and creamy creme mousseline and blackcurrant jam, and the texture of the cake becomes extremely satisfying to eat (and cut through). So for best results, we highly recommend making this Napoleon dessert a day before you wish to serve it.
Ingredients and Substitutes
For the Easy Puff Pastry Dough
- plain flour: also known as all-purpose flour.
- butter: unsalted butter that is fridge-cold.
- creme fraiche: can be replaced with sour cream.
- egg: a small egg in the UK, and medium if you are in the US.
- a pinch of salt
For Creme Mousseline (Custard Cream)
- milk: whole milk will make the best and most creamy mousseline.
- caster sugar: or white granulated sugar.
- egg: medium
- cornflour: also known as cornstarch.
- plain flour: also known as all-purpose flour.
- vanilla bean paste: we use and love Nielsen Massey Vanilla Bean Paste.
- butter: unsalted softened butter.
Extras:
- jam: blackcurrant or cranberry jam. Lithuanian Napoleon Cake benefits from a tart jam that will cut through the sweetness of the filling.
Step-by-Step Instructions
To make this Lithuanian Napoleon Torte recipe, you will need to make the pastry, butter-enriched pastry cream and assemble the cake before placing it on a cake stand and chilling for at least 12 hours before serving! Let’s begin!
STEP 1: Make the Pastry
Place the plain flour and a pinch of salt onto a large chopping board or granite kitchen surface (something you can cut on). Coarsely grate the fridge cold butter onto the flour. Keep dipping the butter into flour to help it not stick to the grater.
Using a long-bladed knife chop and slice the butter and flour mixture in various directions until you have a mixture resembling coarse breadcrumbs.
Lightly whisk a small egg into a bowl. Make a well in the middle of your buttery flour mixture. Add almost all of the egg and 100g of creme fraiche. Using a knife, chop and slice the mixture to incorporate the wet ingredients into the flour. You may need to add the remaining egg if your mixture is very dry.
Bring the mixture into a ball and knead just enough to bring it together. Then roll into a log. Cut the log into 8 rounds. Wrap them separately in plastic wrap (we love Kirkland Signature cling film) and place them in the fridge for 2 hours.
STEP 2: Make Creme Mousseline
In the meantime, make creme mousseline. In a small bowl, whisk the caster sugar, plain flour, cornflower, an egg and vanilla paste (or vanilla extract) into a paste. Heat the milk until it just reaches boiling point. Keeping the milk on medium-low heat, slowly add the egg and sugar mixture into the hot milk, whisking vigorously at all times to prevent the egg from scrambling.
Once incorporated, increase the heat to medium and stirring continuously, cook for another 5 minutes until the mixture has thickened and covers the back of the spoon. Take it off the heat and leave it to cool completely.
Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy in a large bowl. A tablespoon at a time, keep adding the cooled vanilla pastry cream into the butter and keep beating until all the custard is incorporated. Set aside for later (don’t refrigerate at this point, simply leave at room temperature).
STEP 3: Bake The Pastry
Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Line a large baking sheet (or 2) with baking parchment.
Once your pastry has chilled for at least 2 hours, roll each of the rounds into thin (1-2mm thick) sheets on a floured surface. We highly recommend using a stainless steel rolling pin (it hardly ever sticks)!
Once all the pastry rounds and offcuts are baked, leave them to cool completely.
Using a plate, round cake pan or springform bottom, cut even rounds of the pastry (we used 18cm (7in)) and move the offcuts. Place the rounds on the baking parchment-lined trays and put them in the oven for 9-11 minutes until the pastry is crisp and just starting to brown. They will form the cake layers, so try and keep them uniform and evenly browned.
Bake the offcuts too (we’ll use those to make cake crumbs to decorate the cake with later).
STEP 4: Assemble Cake Napoleon and Chill
To assemble the cake, place a pastry round smooth side down first. Spread a generous tbsp/ 1.5 tablespoon of creme mousseline on top of the pastry going straight to the edges and spread it out into a thin layer. Place another round of pastry on top and press down lightly. Keep on layering, but on two of the layers, skip the vanilla cream mousseline and spread a tablespoon of blackcurrant jam instead. I did that on my second layer and sixth pastry sheets. Finish with a pastry round with the smooth side facing up.
Cover the top and the sides of the cake with the remaining creme mousseline. Using your hands crush the offcuts into crumbs (alternatively, pop them into a food processor and blitz them into pastry crumbs). Press them onto the top and the sides of your Cake Napoleon. You can decorate the cake with chocolate or fresh berries or fruit, but traditionally Napoleon Torte has a very minimalist look.
Chill the cake in the fridge for at least 12 hours before serving! The pastry sheets soften slightly and the Cake Napoleon is easier to slice the next day!
Recipe FAQs
Can I Make Napoleon Cake With Store-Bought Puff Pastry Sheets?
Yes, absolutely. For an Easy Napoleon Cake version, you may cut rounds of pastry from the pre-made puff pastry, but make sure they are not too thick. Note that shop-bought puff pastry will puff up more, so you will have to press the pastry down gently to remove the gaps in between, otherwise it won’t be possible to cut a slice of cake without it crumbling.
Other Showstopping Cake Recipes
We love making cakes here at Somebody Feed Seb. Some of our very best bakes are listed below:
- Lime & Passionfruit Charlotte Royale
- Lithuanian Honey Cake
- Triple Ginger Sticky Toffee Pudding
- Salted Caramel Banana Tarte Tatin
Recipe Card
The Best Napoleon Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Pastry:
- 200 g plain flour
- 125 g unsalted butter fridge cold
- 100 g creme fraiche
- 1 small egg
- a pinch of salt
For Creme Mousseline:
- 250 ml milk
- 110 g caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon cornflour (6g)
- 1 teaspoon plain flour (6g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
- 100 g unsalted butter softened
Extras:
- 2 tablespoon blackcurrant or cranberry jam
Instructions
- Place the plain flour and a pinch of salt onto a large chopping board or granite kitchen surface (something you can cut on). Coarsely grate the fridge cold butter onto the flour. Keep dipping the butter into flour to help it not stick to the grater.
- Using a long-bladed knife chop and slice the butter and flour mixture in various directions until you have a mixture resembling course breadcrumbs.
- Lightly whisk a small egg in a bowl. Make a well in the middle of your buttery flour mixture. Add almost all of the egg and 100g of creme fraiche. Using a knife, chop and slice the mixture to incorporate the wet ingredients into the flour. You may need to add the remaining egg if your mixture is very dry.
- Bring the mixture into a ball and knead just enough to bring it together. Then roll into a log. Cut the log into 8 rounds. Wrap them separately in cling film and place in the fridge for 2 hours.
- In the meantime, make creme mousseline. In a small bowl, whisk the caster sugar, plain flour, cornflower, an egg and vanilla paste into a paste. Heat the milk until it just reaches boiling point. Keeping the milk on low heat, slowly add the egg and sugar mixture into the milk, whisking vigorously at all times to prevent the egg from scrambling.
- Once incorporated, increase the heat to medium and stirring continuously, cook for another 5 minutes until the mixture has thickened and covers the back of the spoon. Take it off the heat and leave to cool completely.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy. A tablespoon at a time, keep adding the cooled custard into the butter and keep beating until all the custard is incorporated. Set aside for later (but don't refrigerate at this point).
- Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Once your pastry has chilled for at least 2 hours, roll each of the rounds into thin (1-2mm thick) sheets on a floured surface. Using a plate or another round object (we used a 7in plate) cut even rounds of the pastry and move the offcuts. Place the rounds on the baking parchment-lined trays put in the oven for 9-11 minutes until the pastry is crisp and just starting to brown. Bake the offcuts too (we'll use those to decorate the cake).
- Once all the pastry rounds and offcuts are baked, leave them to cool completely.
- To assemble the cake, place a pastry round smooth side down. Spread a generous tablespoon or a bit more of creme mousseline on top of the pastry round going straigh to the edges. Place another round of pastry on top and press down lightly. Keep on layering, but on two of the layers, skip the creme mousseline and spread a tablespoon of blackcurrant jam instead. I did that on my 2nd and 6th pastry sheets. Finish with a pastry round with the smooth side facing up.
- Cover the top and the sides with the remaining creme mousseline. Using your hands crush the offcuts into crumbs. Press them onto the top and the sides of your Napoleon Cake. You can decorate the cake with chocolate or fruit, but traditionally Torte Napoleon has very minimalist look.
- Chill the cake in the fridge for at least 12 hours before serving!
Nutrition
Jacqueline Debono
I’ve actually never heard the name Napolean cake but it looks like what we call here in Italy a mille foglie or in French mille-feuille. I’m not sure if they are exactly the same but I love this kind of cake. Your idea of adding jam into some layers sounds delicious. Definitely want to make it this way!
Ieva
Yes, it’s similar! I think Napoleon has more layers though and is easier to cut into slices without it all falling apart (I hadn’t had much luck cutting mille-feuille elegantly :D).
Heather
This cake looks so beautiful and delicious! I might swap out the jam, and those flavors are hard to find here…but can’t wait to try!
Ieva
Absolutely, any tart jam will work brilliantly in this cake!