This cake is a Russian New Year’s Eve tradition, and therefore no, this recipe I’ve been promising to share for
15 years isn’t late, rolling up here with a mere 36 hours left in the year, it’s
exactly on time. The
Napolyeon Tort is inspired by a classic mille-feuille (French for “thousand leaves”) which is made with layers of puffed pastry filled with pastry cream. The Russian version has far more layers and, like the
Russian Honey Cake, is coated with crumbs made from extra cake.
It was created in 1912, when it was created to honor the 100th anniversary of Russia’s defeat of Napoleon’s invasion — initially it was shaped to resemble his triangular bicorne (hat); the crumbs are said to represent the snow that did the French troops in. Due to ingredient limitations, margarine often replaces butter, the cream is sometimes made without eggs, and the cake layers are more brittle than a traditional
pâte feuilletée, but as each family makes it their own way, you’d be pressed to find two recipes that agree on what makes a perfect one.
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