Vanilla Caramel Pastries a.k.a. Caramel Flakies. A copycat version of the classic Canadian snack cake from Vachon. Easy to make using frozen puff pastry.
Vanilla Caramel Pastries a.k.a Caramel Flakies
Attention folks with a chronic sweet tooth!
Inspired by a popular Canadian snack cake (which will be obvious our resident readers), I made these for a planned family picnic which ended up being a family dinner at my Mom’s house.
Puff pastry frozen sheets often come rolled in parchment paper for easy transfer to a baking sheet. and easy clean up.
Indoors or out, these were a great success, particularly with the kids. I originally planned to make these only with the thick caramel filling but number one son insisted that a thin layer of vanilla frosting was also necessary.
When he’s right, he’s right.
I’m a big fan of good quality, all butter frozen puff pastry and use it all the time. It is just so convenient to buy it in pre rolled sheets from the supermarket freezer.
The real French pastry technique for making proper puff pastry is time consuming and requires lots of rolling and chilling the dough. I most often think that it isn’t worth the effort when as equally good product s readily available.
Frozen puff pastry makes these so easy to bake.
You’ll find quite a number of recipes here that use it, including this very popular recipe basked upon my childhood love of Vachon Flakies. You can ind my own recipe version of Homemade Flakies here.
Like this Vanilla Caramel Pastries recipe?
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Vanilla Caramel Pastries a.k.a. Caramel Flakies
Vanilla Caramel Pastries a.k.a. Caramel Flakies - a copycat version of the classic Canadian snack cake from Vachon. Easy to make using frozen puff pastry.
Ingredients
- 1 lb puff pastry
For the caramel
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
For the vanilla frosting
- 2 cups icing sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 4 tbsp milk (approximately)
- 1-2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Cut pastry in 9 squares per sheet, do not roll it out, you want the full thickness of the pastry.
- Sprinkle the tops with sugar and bake for about 13-15 minutes at 375 degrees F until evenly golden brown.
- Cool on a wire rack.
To prepare the Caramel Filling
- Begin by mixing the sugar and water in a medium saucepan. NOTE: I use a larger saucepan than seemingly required because the sugar foams up when you add the butter and cream so make sure you have a large enough pot; 1 1/2 quarts should do.
- Boil the sugar and water over medium heat until the mixture begins to turn a light amber color. It is very easy to burn this mixture which can happen very quickly once the proper color is achieved, so have your butter and cream at the ready, as timing is crucial for this recipe. Do not stir the mixture as it boils but swirl the mixture as needed to pick up any crystallization that might form at the sides.
- When the color is right, quickly add the butter and stir quickly until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat immediately and pour in the whipping cream, stirring constantly until the sauce is uniformly smooth.Return to the stove at medium low heat and simmer slowly, stirring often until the mixture reaches 230 degrees F on a candy thermometer (just below soft ball stage). Remove from heat and cool completely to room temperature.
To prepare the Vanilla Frosting
- Beat all ingredients together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
To construct the pastries
- Split the cooled pastries horizontally with a sharp serrated knife.
- Spread a rounded teaspoon of the caramel on the bottom pastry and a heaping teaspoon of vanilla frosting on the top half of the pastry before bringing the two halves together.
- Store in an airtight plastic container in the refrigerator.
Nutrition Information
Yield
18Serving Size
1 gramsAmount Per Serving Calories 321Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 28mgSodium 127mgCarbohydrates 35gFiber 0gSugar 23gProtein 2g
The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.
Wendy
Wednesday 21st of August 2024
Hi! Barry these sound yummy 😋…..but I noticed in the Caramel recipe there is butter mentioned in the instructions ..but not in the ingredients….so how much do I need?
Joy B
Thursday 18th of April 2019
I just made my second batch of these, and I cheated!
Are used prepared whipped white frosting, as well as commercial caramel spread for these. I was very please with the results.
Today for my son-in-law’s birthday dessert, I made one gigantic caramel flakie - I used an entire sheet of puff pastry to make a caramel flakie about 10” x 10”. I think he will be pleased.
Margaret
Wednesday 30th of November 2016
Can these be frozen? Was thinking of making a triple batch.
Darlene toope
Friday 25th of November 2016
Made these caramel and vanilla pastries They were a big hit
Anonymous
Saturday 21st of April 2012
I used to have a favourite flaky store bought version, this would cut out all the bad stuff, printing.