Slovenia - Kremna Rezina

This deliciously creamy pastry originates from Lake Bled in Slovenia. It's a pretty straight forward recipe but does require quite a few steps and some forethought as it needs time to set in the fridge. Similar pastries are eaten around the world. It particularly reminds me of a vanilla slice in the UK, which is one of my favourites. Two layers of crisp, buttery pastry filled with a set vanilla custard and fresh cream.

Ingredients - makes one 9x12 inch tray (20 pieces)
Recipe adapted from Slovenian Kitchen

2 x sheets of puff pastry

Custard
830ml whole milk (660ml for saucepan, 170ml for egg yolks)
5 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
225g caster sugar (160g for egg yolks, 65g for meringue)
100g plain flour
1 tbsp cornflour
1/2 tsp white vinegar

Cream
500ml double cream
50g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

For the puff pastry:
Preheat your oven to 210°C. Line two large trays with baking paper. (You can do this one puff pastry sheet at a time if you don’t have enough trays.)
Take your puff pastry and roll each sheet to slightly larger than 9x12 inches. The pastry will shrink as it bakes, so rolling it slightly larger will ensure that it fits to your tray later on. Prick the top of the pastry sheets with a fork, lay a piece of baking paper on top followed by another tray so that the puff is sandwiched in-between. Bake for 5 minutes before lowering the temperature to 180°C and bake for a further 10-15 minutes. Once the pastry is almost completely golden, remove the top baking tray and bake for a further 5 minutes to ensure its evenly crisp and golden. Leave to cool before trimming both sheets to 9x12 inches.
Line your 9x12inch tray with a piece of parchment that fits widthways and overhangs on two sides. Place one of the trimmed puff pastry sheets into the bottom and set aside. Cut the top puff pastry sheet into 20 squares. It roughly works out to 6cmx5.8cm. (By cutting the pastry squares now, you’ll prevent the filling from squidging out when you go to serve it later.)

For the Custard filling:
Separate the eggs. Place the yolks into a large bowl and the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk the egg whites on medium-high speed until frothy. Add in 65g of sugar before whisking on high until the meringue reaches stiff peaks. Add in the cornflour and vinegar and whisk for another minute. Leave to one side until needed.

Place 660ml of the milk and the vanilla into a saucepan and place over low heat. Meanwhile, whisk the flour and 160g of sugar into the egg yolks. Once incorporated, whisk in the remaining 170ml of milk into the yolks. Once the milk is simmering, gradually pour into the yolks while whisking. Pour the custard back into the saucepan and place over medium heat. Continually whisk the custard until it starts to boil. Continue to whisk for 10 minutes while the custard bubbles away. Keep an eye on it to make sure its not catching on the bottom of the pan. Once the custard is thick and cooked out, remove from the heat.

If needed, give the meringue a quick whisk to make sure its still stiff. Fold the hot custard into the meringue in three additions, working quickly but gently. Spread the thick custard on top of the puff pastry you prepared earlier in the tray. Place clingfilm on the surface and leave to set in the fridge for at least 4-5 hours. (I like to leave mine overnight.)

For the Vanilla Cream:
Once your custard is set; whisk the cream, sugar and vanilla together until firm. Spread the cream on top of the custard and top with the cut puff pastry squares. Set in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Finishing:
Portion the Kremna Rezina using a sharp serrated knife and dust liberally with icing sugar.