A mini milktart with a cinnamon rose stencil on a striped gold-rimmed plate beside a pink napkin, from above

Desserts

Mini Milktarts

These mini versions of the traditional milktart are the perfect dessert to pack for a picnic.

Jump to recipe
A mini milktart on a striped plate with a gold fork, more tarts around it Close-up of the cinnamon rose stencilled on a mini milktart, from above

If you are South African, then you are no stranger to milktart. This dessert draws many parallels to a custard tart, but with a few differences. The first is that the custard has a wonderful spicy note thanks to the cinnamon and nutmeg. The second is that there is a higher ratio of milk to eggs, than in a more traditional custard tart, so it has a softer set.

I often make this recipe, but I was taking it on a picnic and so wanted a smaller version, which would be an individual serving. I also wanted to change the crust a bit, looking for something a bit more sturdy to be transported.

You can find my original milktart recipe on the blog.

A mini milktart with a piece cut away, showing the custard inside A mini milktart on a striped gold-rimmed plate, from above

The recipe

Mini Milktarts

adventureswithsugar.com/mini-milktarts/

Method

Method: pastry

  1. Rub in the butter: Place the cake flour, icing sugar and cold butter in a food processor. Blitz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
  2. Add the egg yolks and vanilla: Combine the egg yolks and vanilla essence together and slowly stream into the flour mixture.
  3. Bring the dough together: When it begins to clump, but before it comes together, remove from the processor and work into a single dough by hand. It's important not to overwork it in the food processor.
  4. Chill: Place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.
  5. Line the tins: When ready to use, roll out to 3mm thick and place into your jumbo muffin tins.
  6. Freeze: Place the pastry-lined muffin tins in the freezer for 20 minutes.
  7. Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 180˚ Celsius.
  8. Blind bake: Remove the tins from the freezer, line them with baking paper, fill them with baking beans and blind bake the pastry for 20 minutes.
  9. Finish baking: Remove the baking beans and bake the pastry for a further 5 minutes. The pastry shells are now ready to use for the mini milktarts.

Method: custard

  1. Keep the oven on: Leave the oven preheated to 180˚ Celsius.
  2. Start the custard: Once the shells come out of the oven, you can begin making the custard.
  3. Infuse the milk: Place 325ml of the milk, the cinnamon sticks and the nutmeg in a medium-sized saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the milk starts to boil.
  4. Mix the flour paste: Whilst the milk is heating, mix the remaining 325ml milk with the flour, corn flour and sugar and set aside.
  5. Thicken the milk: Once the milk in the saucepan comes to a boil, reduce the heat and add in the flour/milk mixture and return to medium heat, stirring continuously.
  6. Add the butter: Then add in the butter and continue to stir until all the butter has melted.
  7. Add the egg yolks: Finally, add in the egg yolks and stir until the custard thickens and looks velvety.
  8. Strain: Pass the custard through a sieve to remove the cinnamon and strain out any lumps.
  9. Fold in the egg whites and fill: Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form and fold into the custard mixture. Pour the custard into the pastry shells.
  10. Bake: Bake for around 15 – 20 minutes, until the custard is set, with a slight wobble in the middle.
  11. Cool and chill: Let the mini milktarts cool to room temperature, before putting them in the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours.
  12. Dust and serve: Dust with cinnamon before serving.

Recipe by adventureswithsugar.com

Comments

No comments yet.

Leave a comment

Comments are read before they appear, and links aren’t allowed.