Portuguese Tarts Recipe (Pastels de nata)

I Love Custard, and I love the Portuguese Tarts. Making the custard for these tarts are really easy.  This would be my best custard to date.

So I looked at Jamie Olivers Portuguese Tarts, and I looked at "Not quite Nigellas" Bill Grangers recipe.
Im still trying to per-fect the pastry base but Im sure Im very close to getting it Cafe style.
The kids loved it. The guys at worked also loved them.

So there are two different methods of making your custard prior to pouring it into your tarts. The Jamie Oliver way is to mix the custard ingredients together and pour it (uncooked) into the pre-cooked pastry shells.

Or the Bill Granger way, cook your custard on the cook top first, let it cool, then pour it into the pre cooked pastry shells. I prefer the latter,  but both work fine.
Most French and Portuguese pastry chefs Ive seen pour it in uncooked.

Now I would prepare my custard first (especially if you are cooking the custard). This will allow it to cool whilst your are preparing the pastry.

Custard 

• 3 egg yolks 
• 115g caster sugar (maybe a but less depending how sweet you like your custard)
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 230ml Cream 
• 170ml Milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract or  Vanilla Bean Paste

Mix the cornflour and half the cream together (until all lumps are out), then pour the balance of the cream and stir it but dont over stir it too much.

Whisk your eggs into the caster sugar and whisk until combined. Add the milk. 

Then mix it into your corn flour mix. and whisk it all together until all lumps are out and mixed well. 

Stir on low heat on your cook top and stir slowly until nice and thick. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. 


Then Let it cool. Once cool pour into your pre cooked pastry shells. Then bake for 8 - 10 minutes or until golden (and if your lucky some little burn marks on your custard) 

Pastry

Use one sheet of pre rolled Puff Pastry (from the shop). 

Sprinkle over with Cinnamon and spread by hand. 

Then roll the pastry like a pencil and cut into 6 equal pieces. 

Stand the little cuts upright then squash down flat with your palm. (i squashed them downflat and then rolled them a little large enough to fit in the cakle tin).

Insert your flat rolls into your baking tray and spread them up the sides with your fingers. 

Bake for 200 deg C for 15 minutes. (I inserted some cup cake paper on top of the pastry and filled with rice, so the pastry doesn't grow out of the pan).

Remove from oven. Remove the rice and paper and they are ready to pour in your custard. 

Pour in the custard (almost to the top, but not all the way).

Bake for a further 8 - 10 minutes until golden brown. 

Watch how they do it in France. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nj8Qs8FrArQ&feature=fvwrel