Strawberry and macadamia mille-feuille

For the crème diplomat, start by making a crème pâtissière. Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, and flour

In a pan, bring the milk, vanilla pod and seeds up to the boil, then pour this over the yolk mixture whilst whisking continuously. Pour the mix into a clean pan and slowly cook out whilst continuing to whisk, as the custard needs to return to the boil. Once it reaches the boil, remove from the heat and chill until completely cold

Once cooled, pass the crème pâtissière through a sieve into a bowl. Measure out 400g of this and gently fold through the whipped cream. Store in a piping bag fitted with a small nozzle until ready to serve

For the strawberries, make a vanilla syrup by bringing the water and sugar to the boil with the vanilla pod and seeds, until the sugar has dissolved. Set aside and leave to cool

Remove the green leaves and stalks from the strawberries and slice thinly, reserving a few whole strawberries for garnish. Vacuum pac the strawberries, or place in a resealable bag, with 100ml of the vanilla syrup. Set aside to infuse

To make the praline, place the sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan with a little water and heat, without stirring, to form a dark caramel (be brave with the colour, or the finished dish will be too sweet)

Stir in the toasted macadamia nuts and turn the mix out onto a silicone mat or baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Once set and cooled, finely chop the praline, making sure it is not too chunky

Roll the puff pastry through a pasta machine down to the thinnest setting (or roll very thinly by hand). Cut down into manageable sheets and leave to set in the freezer

Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4

Once the pastry has set, cut out pastry discs using a 6 inch round cutter – you need at least 8 (2 for each dessert) with a few to spare in case of breakages

Dust the discs heavily with icing sugar and bake between two silicon baking mats or trays (to keep them flat) for approximately 12 minutes. Allow to cool and dust with some more icing sugar

To assemble, place a circle of the vanilla strawberry slices on a serving plate, then pipe a ring of the crème diplomat around the edge

Fill the centre of the cream circle with a spoonful of the chopped praline and top with a pastry round. Repeat the layers and finish with a pastry disc and a final dusting of icing sugar. Garnish with the reserved strawberries and serve