One of my favorite layer cakes - Russian traditional cake "Napoleon". I was so happy to discover veganized alternative! My non-vegan friends couldn't guess what the cream was made of - they thought I made it with milk just for them or gave up being vegan :D !
Prep Time40 minutesmins
Cook Time30 minutesmins
Cooling down30 minutesmins
Total Time2 hourshrs
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Russian, Vegan
Diet: Low Calorie, Low Fat, Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: Easy recipe, Layer Cake, Napoleon cake, Vegan cream
Servings: 16people
Calories: 338kcal
Author: Anastassiya Vizzini
Equipment
High Speed Blender
Ingredients
For the dough:
1cupSparkling water
1cupVegetable oil(coconut oil is the best option, reduce to 1/4 cup for low-fat option)
0.5tsp.Salt
3cupsFlour
For cream:
120gAlmonds
1lWater
1cupSugar(replace with 0.5 cup *Erythritol for low-calorie/sugar-free option)
1cupSemolina
2tbsp.Lemon zest
4tbsp.Lemon juice
0.25tspVanilla
Instructions
Dough:
Mix all ingredients for the dough together in order to receive a soft and fatty dough.
Divide it into 8-10 pieces and leave it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. By the way: it’s no big deal if you would like to use half as much oil as in the recipe. For instance I strive to use as less oils as possible, so from my experience, the layering and crispness of a dough will be the same if you use less oil.
Cream:
Soak almonds in hot (boiling) water for about 10 minutes. After that you can easily peel it.
Blend peeled nuts together with water and sugar in a blender. (I use 3/4 cup of sugar and it's enough for us. But if you want to impress a purchased cakes-lover use a full cup of sugar).
As a result you will get sweet almond “milk”. Pour it into a sauce pan (no need to filter). Gradually add semolina and stir constantly.
Bring it to boil and cook semolina till it's ready.
Let this "porridge" to cool down.
Divide the cream in 2 portions (even if you have a super powerful blender). Put 1 portion into the blender, add 2 tbsp. of lemon juice, vanilla and lemon zest. Blend well. Repeat the same with the second portion using the rest of ingredients (again, 2 tbsp. of lemon juice, vanilla and lemon zest) Cream is ready!
Final stage
Roll out the dough pieces (size about 40x30 cm, standard baking sheet).
Place it in a preheated oven (180'C) and bake until it's ready (about 5 min for the first layer and 2-3 min for next ones, depending on the oven).
When crusts are ready and cooled down you can design your cake. Spread evenly cream on each layer.
The last crust is traditionally broken into crumbs and sprinkled on top.
Nutrition facts
Click here for detailed information on the nutritional value of this cake. Piece of 150 gr. (if cooked with regular sugar and a cup of butter) contains 338 kcal. This way cake is very similar to the original Napoleon. People who are used to the taste of purchased cakes will love this cake too.But I prefer a lighter option. If you reduce amount of oil (to 1/4 cup) and replace sugar with erythyrol (and also reduce the amount to 1/2 cup), then the calorie content will be reduced to 220 kcal for the same 150 grams. The cake will be delicious anyway!
Notes
Decoration. You can decorate your layer cake in a different way. One day I tried to mix half of cream with frozen raspberries in a blender (I had about a cup or less of it). And I decorated the top with strawberries. It turned out very nice!*Sweetener. Nowadays many people try to avoid sugar, and I find it very reasonable. If you are also looking for alternatives, I advise you to watch this short video on different substitutes. Maybe it will help you with decidion! My husband and I have tried Erythritol and so far we like it, but we also want to try xylit - it also has good characteristics.