Custard tarts
16 January 2026
Difficulty:
Price: Cheap
🔥 220 calories per serving
With the pastry dough made last week, I had some leftover puff pastry, so I thought it was the perfect time to make pasteis de nata! You probably know these little cream tarts baked in the oven, one of the most famous Portuguese specialties: crispy puff pastry filled with a cream flavored with citrus and cinnamon, the perfect treat to end a good meal!
I made this recipe on a whim and I didn't have a pasteis mold, so I used muffin tins; the result would surely have been better (with better-cooked pastry) in proper molds, but if you don't want to invest in equipment for just one recipe, it's possible to make them without 😉
Equipment:
Pasteis de nata molds
Ingredients:
I used cinnamon from Koro: code ILETAITUNGATEAU for 5% off everything on the site (non-affiliated).
Preparation time:
For 18 pasteis de nata:
The cream:
180g of granulated sugar
35g of flour
500g of whole milk
Zest of 1 lemon
Vanilla powder (optional)
1 teaspoon of cinnamon (to adjust to your taste)
6 egg yolks
Dissolve the flour cold with a bit of milk to have a smooth mixture without lumps.
Heat the rest of the milk with the zest, cinnamon, and vanilla.
When the mixture is hot, add the flour, mix well, and return to the heat. Thicken over medium heat while stirring constantly, like for a pastry cream. When the mixture has thickened, add the egg yolks off the heat while stirring constantly.
The puff pastry & baking:
300g of puff pastry
20g of butter
15g of powdered sugar
Roll out the puff pastry to a thickness of 2mm. Melt the butter and brush it on top, then sprinkle with sugar. This step is optional but allows for a crispier/caramelized pastry.
Roll the dough to make a log, then cut pieces 1 to 1.5cm thick and spread them in the pasteis molds (or like me, in muffin tins).
Fill the pastry bases with the cream, then bake in the preheated oven at 210°C for 15 to 20 minutes.
Unmold and let cool on a rack before sprinkling with cinnamon and enjoying!
I made this recipe on a whim and I didn't have a pasteis mold, so I used muffin tins; the result would surely have been better (with better-cooked pastry) in proper molds, but if you don't want to invest in equipment for just one recipe, it's possible to make them without 😉
Equipment:
Pasteis de nata molds
Ingredients:
I used cinnamon from Koro: code ILETAITUNGATEAU for 5% off everything on the site (non-affiliated).
Preparation time:
For 18 pasteis de nata:
The cream:
180g of granulated sugar
35g of flour
500g of whole milk
Zest of 1 lemon
Vanilla powder (optional)
1 teaspoon of cinnamon (to adjust to your taste)
6 egg yolks
Dissolve the flour cold with a bit of milk to have a smooth mixture without lumps.
Heat the rest of the milk with the zest, cinnamon, and vanilla.
When the mixture is hot, add the flour, mix well, and return to the heat. Thicken over medium heat while stirring constantly, like for a pastry cream. When the mixture has thickened, add the egg yolks off the heat while stirring constantly.
The puff pastry & baking:
300g of puff pastry
20g of butter
15g of powdered sugar
Roll out the puff pastry to a thickness of 2mm. Melt the butter and brush it on top, then sprinkle with sugar. This step is optional but allows for a crispier/caramelized pastry.
Roll the dough to make a log, then cut pieces 1 to 1.5cm thick and spread them in the pasteis molds (or like me, in muffin tins).
Fill the pastry bases with the cream, then bake in the preheated oven at 210°C for 15 to 20 minutes.
Unmold and let cool on a rack before sprinkling with cinnamon and enjoying!
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