My Family Milk Tart

It seems every nation has their own version of a custard tart - the Portuguese have pasteis de nata, the British have their vanilla custard tarts, Italians their 'torta di nonna' and our South African milk tart sort of falls somewhere in the middle with it's cinnamon topping. No matter what part of the world you're from, it seems we're all unanimously in love with the combination of a creamy egg custard and a crisp pastry base. 

With heritage in mind, I knew there was only one place to go for a proper milk tart recipe in honour of National Milk Tart Day which is today! So I dug out my Great Aunt May's tattered recipe book (I've written about her before). There, right in the very front, was our family recipe for milk tart. There are no notes on where it came from, but I found the same recipe scribbled in the margins of my grandmothers book so I know it's a family favourite!   

The pastry is an interesting one - it contains oil, which is a little odd for me, but ensures a ridiculously crumbly pastry. From her other recipes, I can tell Great Aunt May loved a good shortcut, and this one is no exception. This pastry? It doesn't need to be blind baked! Yes, you read correctly. Can I get a hallelujah on that?! 'Cos if you've ever had to fuss with beans and baking paper and all that nonsense, you'll be rejoicing with me now!

The filling is lusciously velvety with just the slightest quiver - I prefer my milk tart a bit softer than most so if you like yours more set, then just increase the cornstarch. This recipe also makes the sweetest little mini milk tarts - I made these using an old-fashioned madeleine tin which belonged to my grandmother. It seemed totally appropriate for the occasion. 

My Family Milk Tart 

Recipe by Great Aunty May

Makes 1 large tart or 24 small tartlets

No-fuss pastry

110g butter, softened

2 tbsp (30ml) castor sugar

2 tbsp (30ml) vegetable oil

1 egg

2 cups (500ml) cake flour

1 tsp (5ml) baking powder

pinch of salt

Filling

600ml milk

2 tbsp (30ml) cornstarch/cornflour

1 tbsp (15ml) cake flour

4 tbsp (60ml) sugar

3 eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra for dusting

Cream the butter and castor sugar until light and fluffy. Add the oil and egg and beat well. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt to form a soft pastry. 

Press a thin layer of the pastry into a greased standard pie dish. Prick the bottom and bake at 180C for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool. 

For the filling, bring the milk to a boil (I added a cinnamon stick and bay leaf to mine). 

In the meantime, whisk together the cornstarch, flour, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla and cinnamon and a little of the milk to make a creamy paste. Pour the hot milk over the paste, whisking continuously then return to the heat and cook until thickened. 
Whisk the egg whites until stiff then whisk into the still-warm filling. 

Pour the mixture into the baked tart case and sprinkle with extra cinnamon. 

IF YOU LIKED THIS THEN YOU'LL LIKE:

Milk tart pancakes

Milk tart cake

Custard slices

Crème caramel

There is something so beautifully old-fashioned about creme caramel. What's not to love? A velvety smooth, creamy custard and sweet hit of slightly bitter caramel that floods your plate? Heaven. It once enjoyed it's upside down life as an extremely popular pudding in the late 20th century where it apparently graced the top of almost every dessert menu. But since then, except for the sachets of instant creme caramel mix you can buy on the shelf (which taste nothing like the real thing), it's been abandoned and rarely pops up in cookbooks and magazines. Is it because people are scared of it? Set custard can be daunting and then you add caramel to that mix and the whole unmoulding bit is pretty terrifying I guess... I decided to resurrect the glorious classic, but to take away the terror, I've added gelatine to mine - just to be safe! And if vintage shoes and handbags can enjoy a revival, why can't a retro dessert? I'd certainly choose a pudding over prada anyday anyway!

Crème caramel

Makes 4-6

150g demerara sugar

80ml water

1 tsp powdered gelatine

180ml milk

180ml cream

2 large eggs

4 egg yolks

75g castor sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

Heat the demerara sugar and water until dissolved, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes or until golden in colour.

Pour into the bottom of 4 small ramekins and set aside to cool. Sprinkle the gelatine over 2 tbsp water and allow to bloom. Set aside. Combine the milk and cream in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatine. Whisk the eggs, yolks, sugar and vanilla together and slowly whisk in the hot milk. Pour into the caramel-filled ramekins, place in a roasting dish and fill half-way up the sides of the ramekins with hot water. Bake in a preheated oven set to 150C for 35 minutes or until just set. When the caramels wobble like jelly, they are ready. Remove from the roasting tray and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Turn out the crème caramels by running a knife around the rim and place a plate on top. Flip the plate over to release the caramels.

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Vanilla custard slices

This recipe was given to me by my childhood best friend, Tammy whose mom used to send her to our farm with a tin filled with these creamy slices almost every Friday after school. We'd sit in the treehouse we built ourselves and devour them, getting custard all over our hands and then relishing the process of licking the creamy filling off our fingers. I must add that the recipe wasn't just handed to me, it was handwritten and carefully placed in a folder along with all my best friends' favourite recipes (also scribbled down on paper) for my 18th birthday. The title of the little cookbook? 

'Katelyn's Favouriteistest Favourite Flop-proof Recipe Cookbook - Made with love by all her friends' 

How awesome is that? Pretty awesome. 

Almost as awesome as these custard slices.

Photography by Gunther Schubert of Vorsprung Studio 

Custard slices

Makes 16-20

2 x 200g packets unsalted cream crackers

½ cup cake flour

100ml maizena or cornflour

20ml custard powder

pinch of salt

100ml water

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs, separated

1L milk

1 cup white sugar

60g butter or margarine

Lemon glaze

1 cup icing sugar, sifted

juice of 1 lemon

Line a 20 x 30cm cake tin with baking paper and arrange the crackers in the bottom.

Make a paste with the flour, cornflour, custard powder, salt, water, vanilla and egg yolks. Heat the milk, sugar and butter and add to the paste while whisking. Return to the pot and cook until the custard is thick, stirring continuously.

Whip the egg whites until stiff then fold into the lukewarm custard. Pour the custard over the crackers and place another layer of crackers on top. Allow to set in the fridge until completely cool.

Mix the icing sugar and lemon juice together with a little hot water to form a paste and drizzle over the tops of the custard slices. Cut into slices and serve.

Ginger, custard and red wine pear tarts

The second part of my obsession with red wine poached pears continues with this fabulously simple tart. Because who doesn't love a pretty tart? Erm. This dessert has everything going for it, simplicity, beauty and a delicious variety of textures - the crunch of ginger biscuits, the smooth custardy-creamy-airy filling and the soft bite of those gently poached pears. Heaven on a fork I tell you! The red wine pears add a lovely flavour to the dessert but feel free to experiment with other seasonal fruit and biscuits. Dark chocolate biscuits and pomegranate rubies or coconut and caramelised pineapple or buttery shortbread and stewed vanilla guavas!  

Ginger, custard and red wine pear tarts

Makes 4-6

200g gingernut biscuits, crushed 
75g butter or margarine, melted
3 egg yolks 1⁄3 cup castor sugar
1 cup cream

1t vanilla extract 
21⁄2T corn flour 
2 cups milk
4 pears poached in red wine, sliced (click here for the recipe)

Mix the crushed biscuits and butter or margarine and press into 4-6 small springform tart tins then refrigerate until set. 
Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and cornflour to form a paste. 
Slowly add the milk, place in a saucepan and simmer until thickened. 
Cover the surface with plastic wrap and allow to cool completely then refrigerate for 1 hour. 
Whip the cream until thick and stiff peaks form then fold in the custard. 
Spoon into the tart cases and top with thin slices of poached pear.