Vanilla slice is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

pastry comprising a thick layer of

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with Eggs as food, egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in con ...

sandwiched between

puff pastry Puff pastry, also known as , is a light, flaky pastry, its base dough () composed of wheat flour and water. Butter or other solid fat () is then layered into the dough. The dough is repeatedly rolled and folded, rested, re-rolled and folded, encas ...

and topped with icing sugar or thinly iced. Similar varieties of the dessert exist in Europe and North America, and it is believed to have evolved from one of the similar European desserts.

History

Vanilla slice is an Australian variation of many similar desserts comprising vanilla custard and flaky pastry. Most notably this includes the ''

Mille-feuille A (; ),The name is also written as and . also known by the names Napoleon in North America, vanilla slice in the United Kingdom, and custard slice, is a French dessert made of puff pastry layered with pastry cream. Its modern form was influ ...

'', which is believed to have originated in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Other similar pastries include the

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

'' Tompouce'', Polish '' Napoleonka'',

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Cremeschnitte A cremeschnitte (, , , , Bosnian and sr-Latn-Cyrl, krempita, кремпита, separator=/, , , ), also known as vanilla slice or custard slice, is a custard and chantilly cream cream cake dessert commonly associated with the former Austro-Hu ...

'',

Balkan The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

and

Middle Eastern The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

'' Galaktoboureko'', among others. It is believed that the Australian vanilla slice emerged as a variety of one of these similar desserts, but it is unknown which variety or varieties evolved into the modern vanilla slice.

Culture

Vanilla slice is strongly ingrained within Australian "bakery culture", commonly featuring in bakeries across the nation. In keeping with the informality and disdain for pretence in Australian vernacular, it is common to refer to the dessert using colloquial names based on bodily fluids such as

pus Pus is an exudate, typically white-yellow, yellow, or yellow-brown, formed at the site of inflammation during infections, regardless of cause. An accumulation of pus in an enclosed tissue space is known as an abscess, whereas a visible collect ...

phlegm Phlegm (; , ''phlégma'', "inflammation", "humour caused by heat") is mucus produced by the respiratory system, excluding that produced by the throat nasal passages. It often refers to respiratory mucus expelled by coughing, otherwise known as ...

, or

nasal mucus The nasal mucosa lines the nasal cavity. It is part of the respiratory mucosa, the mucous membrane lining the respiratory tract. The nasal mucosa is intimately adherent to the periosteum or perichondrium of the nasal conchae. It is continuous w ...

which are similar in appearance to the custard filling. This includes names such as snot block, snot brick, phlegm cake, or pus pie. To celebrate its cultural significance, an annual competition known as ''The Great Australian Vanilla Slice Triumph'' has been held since 1998. The event began after Victorian Premier

Jeff Kennett Jeffrey Gibb Kennett (born 2 March 1948) is an Australian former politician who served as the 43rd Premier of Victoria between 1992 and 1999, Leader of the Victorian Liberal Party from 1982 to 1989 and from 1991 to 1999, and the Member for ...

visited the Victorian town of

Ouyen Ouyen is a town in Victoria, Australia, located in the Rural City of Mildura at the junction of the Calder Highway and Mallee Highway, south of Mildura, and northwest of Melbourne. At the 2016 census, the town had a population of 1,045. Hi ...

, and considered the local bakery to make the best vanilla slice in Australia. The event was hosted annually in Ouyen until 2001, when it moved to the nearby town of

Merbein Merbein is a town in the Rural City of Mildura, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. It is on the Calder Highway between Mildura and the Murray River crossing at the Murray River crossings, Abbotsford Bridge to Curlwaa, New South Wales, Cu ...

References

{{Australian cuisine Australian desserts Custard desserts Pastries Puff pastry

History

Culture

See also

References