Description
Portuguese Custard Tarts, known as Pasteis de Nata, are delicate and flaky puff pastry shells filled with a creamy, lightly caramelized custard. This traditional dessert offers a perfect balance of crispy texture and smooth, sweet filling, baked to perfection with a characteristic burnt-sugar crust.
Ingredients
Pastry
- 420 g homemade rough puff pastry
Custard Filling
- ½ cup heavy cream (35% fat dairy cream, 118 ml)
- ½ cup sugar (granulated white sugar, 115 g)
- 1 ¼ cup whole milk (300 ml, 3.5% milk fat)
- 2 egg yolks
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch (11 g)
- 1¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the pastry shells: Roll out the puff pastry into a 10 x 12 inch (25 x 30 cm) rectangle. Starting from the 10-inch side, roll the pastry tightly to form a 10-inch long roll. Chill the roll in the freezer for 30 minutes until firm.
- Cut and roll disks: Cut the chilled pastry roll into 12 equal disks weighing about 35 g each. Place each disk on a lightly floured surface with the swirls facing up, then roll out each piece into a flat disc about 1/4 inch wider than the tart tin diameter and approximately 3/16 inches thick, using minimal flour and a pastry scraper to handle the discs gently.
- Form tart shells: Place each disk into the bottom of each custard tart tin, pressing the dough gently to adhere to the bottom and sides, forming a lip around the edge to prevent custard overflow. Work quickly to keep dough cool and avoid overworking. Freeze the shells for at least 35 minutes or until frozen; they can be stored frozen up to 2 weeks before use.
- Prepare custard filling: In a small saucepan, whisk together heavy cream, sugar, whole milk, egg yolks, cornstarch, and vanilla extract until sugar dissolves completely.
- Cook custard: Heat the mixture over medium-low heat, whisking constantly until the custard thickens enough to coat the sides of the pan and steam begins to form. Remove from heat just before pudding consistency, continuing to whisk until cool enough. The custard should have a fairly thin consistency.
- Cool custard: Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent skin formation and allow it to cool completely.
- Preheat oven: Set the oven to 475°F (245°C). Place the frozen tart shells on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- Fill tart shells: Spoon cooled custard into each shell so it is about 3/16 inches below the top edge. Work quickly to avoid custard soaking into the pastry.
- Bake tarts: Place the sheet pan in the middle rack of the oven, immediately reduce temperature to 450°F (230°C), and bake for approximately 30 minutes. Check at 20 minutes and rotate pan if browning unevenly. After 25 minutes, look for golden pastry and characteristic scorched bubbles on the custard. Adjust baking accordingly and turn off oven if browning too fast to use residual heat.
- Cool and serve: Remove tarts from oven, leave them in tins, and cool on a rack. Wait until warm but not hot before removing from tins and serving.
- Reheat instructions: To reheat, preheat oven or toaster oven to 350°F and warm tarts for 7-10 minutes until heated through.
Notes
- The puff pastry dough can be homemade or store-bought for convenience, but homemade yields the best texture.
- Chilling the pastry shells before baking helps maintain a crisp, flaky texture.
- Be patient while cooking the custard over low heat; high heat can curdle the eggs.
- Pressing plastic wrap onto the custard while cooling prevents a skin from forming.
- Oven temperatures may vary; monitoring browning closely helps achieve signature caramelized spots without burning.
- These tarts are best enjoyed warm but can be reheated as described.
- Freezing the formed pastry shells ahead of time makes this recipe manageable for meal planning.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Portuguese
