Milfeuille

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A layered pastry made of thin sheets of dough, typically filled with cream or custard
2. A French dessert known for its alternating layers of pastry and filling
3. A confection that showcases the contrast between flaky texture and rich creaminess in its structure

Etymology: Before it named a pastry, "mille-feuille" was the French name for yarrow, a common wild herb with feathery, finely divided leaves. Its Latin ancestor, "millefolium", combines "mille" (thousand) and "folium" (leaf), so the plant was named for its countless leaflets. The pastry borrows that image of many thin leaves stacked together. The pastry's layers of flaky dough and cream make the comparison clear: a stack of delicate sheets, each one a "leaf." Culinary writers have used the name for this dessert for a long time, and the French name stayed attached to it even as the pastry spread across Europe and beyond.