Homemade vanilla slice is a wonderfully satisfying baked dessert item perfect for picnics, packed lunches, and day trips.

There is a little effort to make the three core elements of baked puff pastry, a vanilla custard, and the icing. Once made it is worth the effort both looking and tasting great.

The custard is not a traditional egg version but rather one made of custard powder and cornflour (cornstarch) which means it both holds together better as is very firm and travels better as is more stable.

Recipe Directions

1. Pastry

2. Preheat the oven to 210 degrees C (415 degrees F).

3. Take the puff pastry (having thawed if necessary) and pierce it multiple times with a fork to help reduce the amount of puff, thus creating a firmer shell for the vanilla slice.

4. Lay the sheets of puff pastry on a lightly greased baking tray. Place in the oven and cook for 8 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and place on a cooling rack until needed.

5. Vanilla Custard

6. In the saucepan add the cream then the cornfour and custard powder, then whisk until well combined and completely smooth.

7. Start to heat the cream mixture continually mixing, when warm and starting to slightly thicken add the sugar and mix in. Continue to heat and stir until boiling, it will be very, very thick.

   Tip: It is important to make sure the mixture has boiled otherwise the cornflour (cornstarch) will create a floury/gritty feel if not cooked in.

8. When thickened take off the heat then stir in the butter and vanilla until well combined. Continue stirring until cooled to room temperature.

9. Icing

10. Combine the icing sugar with the water and stir until well combined and smooth.

11. Transfer a small amount, about 2 tablespoons to a plastic bag. Add a few drops of red food coloring to create a pink color. Squish in the bag to create a consistent color.

12. To Assemble

13. If you have a cake tin the same size as the puff pastry use that. Otherwise use a sheet of pastry and foil to create a cake tin the same size. 

14. The first sheet of puff pastry is placed in the foil cake tin flat side down (same way as cooked).

15. Top the puff pastry with all the vanilla custard and spread evenly making sure there are no air pockets.

16. Top the vanilla custard with the second sheet of pastry flat side up (opposite to how it was cooked), this creates a flat surface for the icing.

17. Tip the white icing on top of the puff pastry and spread to evenly cover the top.

18. Cut a tiny corner of the plastic bag off and run the pink icing back and forth to create parallel lines across the top of the slice.

19. Using a toothpick or skewer drag it at right angles to the pink lines going from one side to the other back and forth to create a traditional pattern.

20. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to set before slicing. Overnight if possible.

21. Using a large knife cut the vanilla slice into square or rectangle serving pieces. If the edges are messy they may be trimmed to create a cleaner serving slice.