Feuilletine is a pastry chef's best kept secret, adding a delicate crunch and textural contrast to just about any dessert.
Yield: about 3 cups
Prep Time: 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 5 minutesminutes
Ingredients
4tablespoons/ 56gunsalted butter, at room temperature
½cup/ 60gpowdered sugar, sifted*
1large egg, at room temperature
½cup/ 60gall purpose or cake flour, sifted*
¼teaspoonfine sea salt
¼teaspoonbaking soda
2teaspoons/ 14gmolasses, optional
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two half sheet baking pans with silicone baking mats (parchment paper will work, but I find silicone to be easier to spread on and it bakes more evenly as well).
Cream butter with powdered sugar until smooth. You can use an electric mixer if you'd like, or do it by hand with a spoon or spatula.
Add egg and beat or use a whisk until incorporated and mostly emulsified.
Sift flour, salt, and baking soda. Add molasses, then mix until smooth and no streaks or chunks of dry flour remains.
Drop 1/4 of batter (about 50-60g worth or a large cookie scoop) onto prepared baking pan. Use an offset spatula to spread batter into a very thin, even layer over the entire surface. (I find it easiest to do this on a silicone mat outside of the baking pan, and then transfer the silicone mat to the baking sheet before baking.)
Bake for 4 to 6 minutes, rotating baking pan halfway through, and keeping a close eye on it during the last couple minutes especially as it will burn rather quickly. If you are using parchment paper or baking on thinner baking sheets, it will likely bake quicker, so start checking at 3 minutes. The finished feuilletine should be an even golden brown color across the entire surface.
Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 10 to 15 minutes; it will crisp up as it cools. Once cool, break into pieces and pour into a bowl or storage container.
Repeat with remaining batter on cooled sheet pans (this recipe makes enough for 4 sheet pans worth). You can wipe and reuse the silicone mats or even parchment sheets, just wipe off all the crumbly bits leftover from the previous batch first.
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week or two; in more humid climates it may not stay as crispy quite as long.
Notes
Don't skip the sift! Sifting both the powdered sugar and the flour is a necessary step to ensure the batter is super smooth without any lumps whatsoever.