Recipe: Baking Melktert – South African Milk Tart

Ingredients

• 500 g frozen puff pastry
• 1 tsp butter (for greasing the baking pan)
• 750 ml milk
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 25 ml milk (cold)
• 2 tsp vanilla pudding powder
• 3 tbsp flour
• 3 tsp cornstarch
• 60 + 60 g sugar
• 4 eggs, separated
• 6 drops bitter almond oil (optional)
• 1-2 tbsp cinnamon (for decorating)
• 1 round baking pan, 26 cm

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F) top and bottom heat.

2. Grease the baking pan with some butter and line it with the puff pastry.

3. We first put a sheet of puff pastry into the pan and simply trimmed the ends with scissors and 'stuck' them to the Totenrand.

4. Then add the second sheet of puff pastry and trim everything to fit again.

5. For the filling, bring the 750 ml milk to a boil with a pinch of salt, 1 tbsp butter and the cinnamon stick.

6. Remove the whole thing from the heat.

7. Mix 25 ml cold milk well with the pudding powder, the cornstarch and flour.

8. Add this flour mixture spoonful by spoonful into the boiling cinnamon milk, add 60 g sugar, whisk well and bring to a boil again.

9. Let the mixture simmer a little, then remove it from the heat and take out the cinnamon stick.

10. Separate the 4 eggs and first beat the egg whites with the remaining 60 g sugar into stiff peaks.

11. Beat the egg yolks with a hand mixer until creamy.

12. First add the egg yolks to the milk, then fold in the beaten egg whites and mix well.

13. Finally add the bitter almond oil, but beware—it tastes very intense; I would add less or you can omit it altogether.

14. Pour the milk mixture into the baking pan with the puff pastry and bake it in the oven with top and bottom heat at 200° C for about 10 minutes.

15. Then reduce the temperature to 180° C and finish baking for another approx. 10 to 15 minutes.

16. Let the milk tart cool down and sprinkle with a little cinnamon before serving.