Pastéis de nata, simple and super tasty Portuguese mini cakes

These days, you don't have to go all the way to Portugal for them; you see them more and more often here: Pastéis de nata. A few years ago, I stumbled upon this delicious recipe, and I'm happy to share it with you again. Because with this sweet little pastry, you can secretly extend summer a little longer. Pastéis de nata, loosely translated: cream puffs (one reason enough to get started).

The iconic Portuguese pastry originated in Belém , the port on the Tagus River. Today, you can find the tastiest version of this sweet treat at the famous bakery "Pastéis de Belém" (established in 1837) in a Lisbon suburb. Day in, day out, there's a huge queue for a takeaway box or a table in the hectic maze of rooms and cubicles of the adjacent coffee shop.

Why are the cakes so ridiculously delicious?

Perhaps the contrast between the crispy puff pastry and the creamy, sweet filling does the trick. The pleasantly small size makes it a great snack. In Portugal, they always come with a small bag of sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle on top. It's not very convenient to eat, but it's delicious.

There are many different recipes in circulation, but this seemed to be the most authentic recipe that I found, among other places, in Trouw by Karin van Luiten (who, by the way, has a fantastic website full of recipes). The cakes are not difficult to make, I can share from my own experience, and perhaps that's why they're an extra fun project for the weekend.

Ingredients

Number of cakes: 8 pieces
Kcal: definitely a lot
You will need: muffin/cupcake tin

• 4 to 6 slices of butter puff pastry (frozen)
• 8 egg yolks
• 300 ml whole milk
• 200 g granulated sugar
• 1 vanilla pod
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• pinch of cinnamon
• butter & flour for greasing
• powdered sugar and cinnamon for the finishing touch (optional)

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 220 ˚C
2. Grease 8 cavities of the muffin tin with butter and dust with some flour
3. Thaw the puff pastry sheets and roll them out slightly thinner. Theoretically, you can efficiently cut 8 circles from 4 sheets, but use a little more dough if that doesn't work. You should have enough to cover the base and raised edges.
4. Prick the base with a fork to prevent rising. Place the pan in the refrigerator.
5. Cut the vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out the marrow
6. Place the stick and marrow together with milk, sugar and cornflour in a pan, heat until boiling and let it simmer very gently for 10 minutes
7. Remove the vanilla pod. Whisk in the beaten egg yolks and let them thicken slowly over low heat, stirring regularly, but do not boil, as this will make the mixture scrambled. Pour the filling into the ramekins. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon.
8. Place the tarts in the oven for about 20 minutes until they are cooked through and crispy, with dark spots on the filling.
9. Sprinkle with some icing sugar before serving (optional)

Store the pastries outside the refrigerator, so preferably eat them the same day. They're best enjoyed straight from the oven, that's when they're at their best!

And, are you going to make them too?

The author: Mariko Naber

Branding expert and online entrepreneur Mariko is the happy brain behind Happlify. Together with her partner, Mark, she runs Happlify, Sell Your Stuff Online, and the branding agency Loaded Ink BNO . She loves feel-good vibes, random acts of kindness, meatballs, chocolate mousse, family time, the sea, piña coladas, sugar & spice, and everything nice.