Absolutely had to do it, my relatives were SURROUNDING me with pastries and such at New Years... here's my successful experiment in lowcarb conversion
Vanilla Slice
Recipe By : Judi IslandGirl
Serving Size : 12
Categories : Cakes & Icings, Candies & Treats, Eggs, Ethnic & Holiday, Veggie Ovo-Lacto
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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1/8 teaspoon Sweetener, Stevia 'Working' Liquid
500 milliliters Whipping Cream 35% -- ~ 2 C
250 milliliters half and half -- ~ 1 C
250 milliliters water -- filtered
75 milliliters syrup, sf DaVinci French Vanilla -- ~ 1/4 C
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 egg yolks, whole -- beaten
3 1/2 tablespoons gelatin powder, unsweetened
3 phyllo pastry sheets -- thawed if necessary
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup sweetener, Splenda granular
125 milliliters Whipping Cream 35% -- ~ 1/2 C
5 drops Sweetener, Stevia 'Working' Liquid
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Custard Base: Lightly panspray or butter a 13x9x3" pan (I used a pyrex cake pan). Beat the yolks thoroughly and set aside. Stir together the first 7 ingredients, from Sweetener through salt, in a heavy-bottomed non-reactive saucepan and, whisking regularly over moderate heat, bring to just short of scalding (do not boil). Taking the pan off the heat, temper the yolks by pouring, while whisking, some of the hot cream mixture over them and then whisk the yolk mixture back into the cream til thoroughly blended. Sprinkle on the gelatin, and returning the pan to low heat, whisk gently until the mixture is thickened (do not boil). Pour the thickened custard mixture into the prepared pan to cool and set (3 to 5 hours).
Pastry Tops: Preheat oven to 350F. Cut phyllo sheets in half crosswise. Following the usual handling instructions (on the box :-), lay out and butter, using a pastry brush and the melted butter and olive oil, the first 3 half-sheets of phyllo (a.k.a. filo) dough on an ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle the top of the buttered 3rd sheet evenly with half the Splenda. Continue layering and buttering the remaining 3 sheets; topping with the remaining Splenda. Slice lengthwise with a sharp knife into 3 long "rows" and crosswise into 4, so 12 even rectangular pastries are outlined. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes or until puffy and golden. Set aside to cool for later assembly.
Assembly: Beat the whipping cream, with the stevia and vanilla, til quite thick and set aside. Using a sharp knife, loosen the custard around the edges and then carefully slice into 12 oblongs (3 slices lengthwise and 4 slices crosswise). Using a spatula, carefully plate the vanilla custard oblongs. Drop a spoonful of whipped cream on top of each oblong ("glue") and then, using the spatula, place a 'pastry' slice on top of each custard oblong. Finally, drop a spoonful of whipped cream on top of each pastry.
Serve immediately if possible (assembly recommended just prior to serving).
Description: "tompoes" a vanilla custard napoleon
Copyright: "Judith van den Broek, LowCarb FoodExperts Canada"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 275 Calories; 26g Fat (85.0% calories from fat); 5g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 171mg Cholesterol; 95mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : (a) The famous Vanilla Slice, a la Dutch Bakery, attempt 1 to capture the flavour and feel ... 2001-12-31 (family as guinea pigs).
(b) if using agar-agar instead of regular gelatin, would be Veggie Ovo-Lacto.
(c) can use your favourite granular heat-proof sweetener instead of Splenda.
(d) genuine vanilla extract is recommended (vs. synthetic) where possible.
(e) if not using DaVinci sugarfree syrup in the custard, increase sweetener to taste (may need to double), increase water by 1/4 Cups and add 1/2 to 1 Teaspoon pure vanilla extract.