The Portuguese cream cakes widely known as Pasteis de Natas one of the most characteristic specialties in Portuguese cuisine. They are also known as "Pasteis de Belem" because they are known to have been created by the monks at the UNESCO listed Hieronymite Monastery in Belem, Lisbon, before the 18th century.
The little cakes are easy and quick to prepare and are a delightful sweet finish to your meal or to be enjoyed as a sweet break in the afternoon.
What you will need
For the puff pastry:
300 g flour
250 g pastry margarine or butter
pinch of salt
water
For the filling:
5 dl cream
4 eggyolks
2 teaspoonful flour
100 g sugar
peel from one grated lemon
cinnamon
How to make the pastry
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Mix the flour, a little bit of salt and enough water to make an even, kneadable dough and leave to rest for about 15 minutes. Divide the butter margarine into three portions. Spread out the dough and sprinkle one portion of margarine onto it and roll, repeat this operation twice more with the other two portions of butter / margarine and then leave to rest for about 20 minutes. Cut the dough into 2 cm thick slices and then shape each slice into a muffin baking tray without overflowing on the edges.
How to make the filling
Beat the egg yolks and place a casserole together with the cream, flour, sugar and grated lemon. Simmer on a low heat and stir carefully. When it comes to the boil, re move the casserole from the heat and leave to cool down.
With a spoon, distribute the cream filling into the moulds. Place the cakes into the oven and bake until they are a dark golden colour. Remove from the oven and leave to cool down before removing from the form, Sprinkle with cinnamon powder before serving.
Enjoy!
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