From Restaurant Dio Deka in Los Gatos, California.  Flaky puff pastry with a rum cream filling. Recipe presented by California Farm Bureau Federation, article by Jim Morris

Servings: 3-4

I N G R E D I E N T S
8 cups sugar, divided
4 1/4 cups water
4 1/4 cups milk
2 vanilla beans, scraped
4 egg yolks
3/4 cup cornstarch
5 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup rum
2 cups heavy cream, whipped
1 lb sliced almonds
3 sheets frozen puff pastry (thawed)
Powdered sugar


I N S T R U C T I O N S

Simple Syrup
Bring 7 cups sugar and water to a boil. Set aside and let cool.

Pastry Cream
Heat milk and vanilla beans in a pot.  Ina bowl, wish together egg yolks and remaining 1 cup sugar.  Whisk in cornstarch.  Mix the milk mixture into the egg mixture.  Return ingredients to pot and let thicken over medium heat.  Add butter and let cool.  Fold in rum and whipped cream.

Candied Almonds
Toss 1/2 cup simple syrup with almonds.  Place in a single layer in a large casserole dish and bake at 275 degrees, stirring frequently until crunchy and golden in color, about 1 hour.  Remove from  oven and let cool.

Puff Pastry
Cut each sheet of puff pastry into four 3x5 inch rectangles, for a total of 12 pieces.   Place on a baking sheet and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Bake at 300 degrees until golden and flaky, about 12 minutes.

To Assemble and Serve
Place 1 piece of puff pastry on a dish.  Top with about 1/2 cup of the pastry cream.  Repeat layers, ending with a third piece of puff pastry.  Spread a thin layer of cream on the sides of each stack, but leave the top piece of the pastry exposed.  Cover the sides with almonds, sprinkle all over with powdered sugar and serve.