Pasteis de Nata

★★★★4.9· 1,234 ratings

·Serves 4

About this Dish

Portugal's greatest contribution to world pastry — small custard tarts in a flaky pastry shell, dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar. Created by monks at the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos in Lisbon in the 18th century. Pasteis de Belem, the original bakery, has been making them to the same secret recipe since 1837, selling 20,000 a day.

IngredientsServes 4

🧈Unsalted butter, 50g very soft

🥐Ready-made all-butter puff pastry, 320g sheet

🥛Whole milk, 250ml

🍚Plain flour, 2 tablespoons

🍬Caster sugar, 200g

💧Water, 80ml

🥚Egg yolks, 6 large

🍋Lemon zest, from 1 lemon

🌿Cinnamon stick, 1

🤎Ground cinnamon and icing sugar, for dusting

Method

Preheat your oven to its absolute highest setting, ideally 250°C/480°F fan, and place a heavy baking tray inside to heat up. Spread the soft butter all over the puff pastry sheet, then roll it up tightly into a log and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Slice the pastry log into 12 equal discs and press each one into an ungreased muffin tin, using your thumb to push the pastry up the sides to form a thin shell that reaches the top of each cup. Chill the tin in the fridge while you make the custard.

Whisk the flour with 50ml of the milk until smooth, then whisk in the remaining milk and pour into a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens to a paste, then remove from the heat.

In a separate small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, lemon zest and cinnamon stick and boil for 3 minutes without stirring to make a light syrup. Remove the cinnamon stick and slowly pour the hot syrup into the flour paste, stirring vigorously.

Whisk the egg yolks together, then stir them into the warm custard mixture until fully combined and silky smooth. Strain through a fine sieve for the smoothest result, then pour into a jug.

Fill each pastry case about three-quarters full with custard — do not overfill as they puff up. Place the muffin tin on the preheated tray and bake for 12–15 minutes until the custard is set with deep caramelised dark spots on top and the pastry is golden and crisp.

Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Dust generously with ground cinnamon and icing sugar and serve warm — they are best eaten the day they are made.

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