Pasteis de Nata (Portuguese Custard Tarts)
Shatteringly crisp pastry cases holding a silky cinnamon custard with burnt, blistered tops. Easier than they look with ready made puff.
- Time1 hr
- LevelMedium
- Costabout £0.25 a head
- Oven240°C (220°C fan)
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Put the sugar, water, cinnamon stick and lemon peel in a small pan. Bring to the boil and bubble without stirring for 4 minutes until syrupy. Take off the heat.
4 min - 2
Whisk the flour with 50 ml of the cold milk until smooth. Heat the rest of the milk until steaming, then whisk in the flour paste. Cook, whisking, for 2 minutes until thick.
2 min - 3
Remove the cinnamon and lemon from the syrup and whisk the syrup into the milk mixture. Leave to cool for 10 minutes, then beat in the egg yolks. Pour through a sieve into a jug.
- 4
Heat the oven to its highest setting, about 240°C (220°C fan). Grease a 12 hole muffin tin with the butter.
- 5
Unroll the pastry and roll it up tightly from the long side into a log. Cut into 12 equal discs. Place each disc cut side up in a hole. With a wet thumb, press from the centre outwards until the pastry lines the hole and stands just above the rim.
- 6
Fill each case three quarters full with custard. Bake for 15 minutes until the pastry is golden and the tops are blistered with dark brown spots.
15 min - 7
Cool for 5 minutes in the tin. Dust with cinnamon and icing sugar and eat warm.
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.