Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons

Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons! This gorgeous dessert, consisting of layers of store bought puff pastry and a simple, creamy cherry filling, comes together quickly. A fancy fake-out!

Wanna show me you love me? Set me loose at HomeGoods {kid-free, of course}, tell me I’ve got no budget, and I’ll be yours forever.

Ok, maybe it’s not quite that simple, but I’m definitely not a roses and diamonds kind of girl, which means my husband can’t rely on typical advertising to help him out this time of year.

To be fair, though, he doesn’t make traditional Valentine-ing very easy on me, either. For starters, he doesn’t care for chocolate. I mean… what??? Where were my friends when the priest asked, “If anyone can think of a reason these two should not be joined in marriage, speak now…”

If you’re in the same predicament as I am, married to a weirdo chocolate-hater, then I’ve got just the dessert for you to share this Valentine’s Day: Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons!

I want so badly to name these little pretties something much cuter because they’re so darn adorable, but Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons is exactly what they are!

I wouldn’t dare call them “easy” if they weren’t truly so. I used store-bought puff pastry {which I clearly like to punch out into little shapes} and a trusty heart-shaped cookie cutter to create the delicately crunchy heart layers, then whipped together {literally} a super simple mousse in minutes by folding fluffy whipped cream into smooth, slightly tart cream cheese. I sweetened things up by adding a good dollop of cherry preserves {you can use any preserves you like, really} and a bit of powdered sugar, then piped it in between those flaky layers and topped the whole thing off with a simple glaze and festive sprinkles. The result is a shortcut Napeolon-esque treat that just about any Valentine would love.

And if they don’t? Well…  I’d hold off on saying “yes” to any major proposals, if I were you. Because who wouldn’t love to be presented with something this sweet that you made yourself?

Or, you know, go ahead and get married to the fool. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you. 😛

Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons

Easy Cherry Mousse Napoleons! This gorgeous dessert, consisting of layers of store bought puff pastry and a simple, creamy cherry filling, comes together quickly. A fancy fake-out!

Rate Recipe

Pin Recipe

Course Dessert

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Servings 10 Napoleons

Author Dianna Muscari

Ingredients  

• 1 box frozen puff pastry sheets thawed but cold
• ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
• 4 ounces cream cheese softened
• ¼ cup cherry preserves {I used one that is reduced in sugar}
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup powdered sugar

For Glaze

• ½ cup powdered sugar
• 4-5 teaspoons heavy cream*
• Colorful sprinkles

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a large baking sheet by lining with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Make the pastry: Carefully unfold one sheet of thawed puff pastry and place on a lightly floured surface. Using a heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out hearts. {I got about 15 from each sheet of puff pastry by cutting them out as close to one another as possible.} Place on parchment lined baking sheet, leaving about an inch between each heart. Continue until you've cut out as many as you can.
• Place a second piece of parchment paper over the hearts and place another baking sheet on top to weigh it down.
• Place in the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes or until the hearts are golden brown. Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack until they're completely cool.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: In a small bowl, beat the heavy whipping cream until it forms stiff peaks. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese, cherry preserves and vanilla extract until combined and smooth. {There may be some small lumps if you have preserves with fruit pieces, which is fine. Just make sure there are no lumps of cream cheese remaining.}
• Slowly add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until it is completely incorporated and smooth.
• Scoop half of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and fold it in gently until just combined. Add the remaining whipped cream and fold it in until there are no more visible streaks of whipped cream.
• Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.
• Assemble: Place one piece of heart pastry on a pan or plate as the bottom "floor" of the pastry. Pipe filling onto the pastry, then top with another pastry heart and pipe another layer of filling. Top with a final pastry heart. Continue until all the pastry hearts are used up.
• Make glaze: Whisk together powdered sugar with heavy cream {milk or half and half will do, too, but you may need less liquid, so add a small amount at at time until the desired consistency is reached. You'll want it to be thin enough to pipe and spread, but thick enough that it doesn't run.}. Put the glaze into a zip top bag for easy piping.
• Glaze tops: Snip the tip of the bag and carefully glaze the top layer by outlining the heart and filling it in to "flood" it. Top with colored sprinkles while the icing is still wet.