PASTEIS DE NATA - PORTUGUESE CUSTARD TART

Anyone that's been to Portugal will have tried these amazing little tarts, usually served with a sprinkling of sugar and cinnamon, they're truly unforgettable!


Here's the written recipe:

For the rough puff:

150g all purpose flour (1 1/5 cup)
95g water (6 1/2 TBS)
105g butter (1/2 cup)

Knead this until it comes together as a smooth ball, about two minutes.

You could of course skip this step and use puff pastry, but I recommend you try doing this.

Roll out the dough and spread butter over 2/3 of it. Letter fold it then turn it 90 degrees.

Roll out again, spread butter over 2/3 of the dough, letter fold and turn 90 degrees once again.

Roll the dough out one more time, but this time spread the remaining butter all over the surface.

Roll the dough into a tight cigar and refrigerate for at least 2/3 hours, preferably overnight.

Please note this dough is very sticky so don't be afraid to flour your countertop generously and use a bench scraper to help you out.

Don't worry if it doesn't look perfect, it's in the name...rough puff!

For the custard filling:

Syrup
160g sugar (3/4 cup)
75g water (1/3 cup)

Milk mixture
225g milk (1 cup)
100g cream (7 TBS)

Slurry
50g milk (3 1/2 TBS)
35g flour (7 TBS)

6 yolks

Flavourings (optional)
Cinnamon
Lemon peel
Vanilla essence

In a large bowl prepare your slurry by combining the 50g of milk and flour.
Set aside.

In a small pot combine your sugar and water, add your flavourings, I chose lemon and cinnamon as this is more traditional.

Do not stir the mixture or it might crystallise.
Bring to the boil, and let it roll for one minute, then turn the heat off and sit it to the side.

Meanwhile heat up your milk and cream.
Once simmering, pour the mixture over you slurry and whisk well.
Return everything to a medium heat and stir constantly until it thickens (about 2 minutes)

At this point add in your syrup, mix well and leave to cool for at least 10 minutes.

Once the mixture has cooled a bit, add in your yolks, whisking vigorously.

Strain your custard and cover it making sure the plastic is touching the custard, this will prevent a skin from forming.

NOTE: You can make custard when you're ready to use it or the previous day when you make the pastry, just refrigerate it.

Portion your dough cigar into 12.

Flatten each disc and then work it up the sides of well greased cupcake tin as shown in the video.
Wetting your fingers will prevent the dough from sticking to your hands.

Fill the each tart about 3/4 full as shown in the video.

This recipe will give you the right amount of dough and filling for a 7cm diameter X 3cm deep cupcake tin.

Traditionally these tarts should be cooked hot and fast to achieve the characteristic burnt top.
Unfortunately most home ovens don't go high enough for that.
BUT FEAR NOT!

Set your oven as high as it will go, mine is 250c fan which is approximately 270c static or 520f

And cook for 8/10, turning half way to ensure even cooking, keep an eye on them as every oven is different.

Then turn the grill (broil) mode on to get the typical blistering on top! And DONE!

Let cool for as long as you can resist!

Serve warm with a dusting of sugar and cinnamon...so good!

As always thank you for watching, if you enjoyed this recipe please leave a like, comment below and subscribe to the channel for more upcoming videos.

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