In one word: Professional
I took some time thinking about how I wanted my Christmas vanilla slice to look and taste, and went for some new processes this time. Firstly I cut the pastry sheets into circles and blindly baked them until dark golden brown and flaky. I then spent some extra time whipping some thickened cream and using it as additional filling for a whipped custard when it had cooled. The result was a very fluffy, speckled and rich custard that proved surprisingly easy to pipe onto the pastry. The passionfruit icing too had an excellent consistency and spread well, then set beautifully in the fridge. Topped off with some inedible snow flakes, I think that the finished article looked really professional and it was a pleasure to bake and share amongst friends at Christmas....but yes, I did eat most of it!