Pasteis de Nata are a traditional Portuguese tart filled with a sweet, rich eggy custard. A recently cancelled trip to Lisbon had me craving these little tarts and so I went on a mission to create my own vegan version. The custard is made with silken tofu as it has a very soft texture and is similar to a set custard when at room temperature.
Makes 15:
Ingredients:
- 150g Silken Tofu
- 160ml Oat Milk
- 2 tbsp Icing Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric
- 1 tbsp Cornflour
- 2 tbsp Oat Milk
- Cinnamon for dusting
- 225g Ready Made Puff Pastry – check that it is vegan
Method:
- Start by making the custard; blend the tofu, icing sugar and 160ml of oat milk in a blender until smooth.
- Add the tofu mix into a saucepan, whisk in the turmeric powder and heat gently until simmering. Make a paste out of the cornflour and 2 tbsp of oat milk and whisk into the simmering custard. Bring to a boil for a couple of minutes until custard has thickened slightly, making sure that there are no lumps. Set aside and leave to cool down.
- Preheat the oven to 190 degrees.
- On a floured surface, roll out your pastry until it is about 1 cm thick. Using a cutter, cut circles that are bigger than the size of your tartlet tin. Place the circle of pastry in the tart case and cut away the excess using a sharp knife of scissors. Repeat until all of the tart cases are filled.
- Once cooled whisk the custard again to remove any lumps that might have formed and fill each pastry case 3/4 of the way full. Make sure to leave some room at the top as the custard will puff up in the oven.
- Bake for 14 minutes in the oven. Remove from the oven when slightly golden on the edges, dust with cinnamon and leave to cool. The custard will be liquid when warm but set when cool.
- Best eaten on the day they are baked.
Fran
x
