Lotus' Pastéis de Nata20:30
Hub : What are we having for dinner?
Me : Tandoori Chicken.
H : What with?
M : Cucumber.
H : That's all?
M : What did you mean by that? You said that you wanted to eat light at night...
H : Can we make a raita? How about fries too?
M : ....
21:30
H : What's for dessert?
M : What do you mean dessert? You said you wanted to eat light...
H : There's nothing to eat in this house. Did you not just go to the supermarket?
M : I did, I went to get eggs, milk --
H : You came back late and still there's nothing to eat.
22:00
M : My dear Master, allow me to present you with your dessert.
Pastéis de Nata (Portuguese Egg Tarts) :
Puff Pastry
Icing Sugar
Ground Cinnamon
2 Eggs
2 Egg Yolks
60g Sugar
140ml Whipping Cream
200ml Milk
A few drops Vanilla extract
We've been to Lisbon twice and one of the things we would keep popping into our mouths in between meals of gorgeous seafood and bacalhau dishes was their absolutely yummy Egg Tarts. Our favourite was the old establishment Pastéis de Belem in the capital.
I will not dare to say that I've gotten the recipe right, since the original recipe is still a closely guarded secret. And how you like the egg custard is really a matter of personal taste. I'm not too much into very smooth custards, and so will not even bother to strain or pre-cook my filling. I beat all the filling ingredients together till smooth, that's all.
What is more important to me is the crust. It has to be very crispy and I am happy to say that I got it right. The trick is to pre-heat your oven to between 220 and 250ºC and then bake your tarts for the 1st 15 minutes in this temperature. Some would even pre-bake the pie crusts but I do not think that this is really necessary. Then finish the cuisson in a lower temperature (150-180ºC) for the last 5-10 minutes. Mine were small, shallow tarts so I adjusted the cooking time accordingly. Sprinkle the tarts with a ground cinnamon-icing sugar mix before serving. Truth be told, I used the mix even for the pie crusts and the filling. Just love it. And it's just as good eaten cold, actually.
Very Good! Specially when they are warm.
RépondreSupprimerAnd its not bacalao, I think you mean Bacalhau.;)))
RépondreSupprimerOK, thanks, I stand corrected. Tend to get mixed up between Spanish, Italian, whatever...
RépondreSupprimerNo problem! Here in Portugal, most of the time we´re used to speak the English to interact with tourists.The Portuguese language (is known to be) is hard to understand and speak.
RépondreSupprimerCheers!
Indeed when we were in Lisbon we noticed how good most Portuguese people are with other languages like French or English. My own dear friend Sergio is an example, he even writes in English sometimes in his (Portuguese) blog.
RépondreSupprimerIt's funny how the grass is always greener on the other side. I wish for once, just once that my husband will ask me what's for dessert. :P
RépondreSupprimerYes it's true. As a small country we need to speak other languages Serene. Bigger countries like Spain, France or Germany do not have that necessity because they don't need so much to communicate outside their country. That's why they are so bad in other languages. By the way your friend has eaten bacalhau made in 2 different ways when she was in Porto. Pasteis de Belém are really delicious !!!
RépondreSupprimerLol! Oh my god....you just can't win with them.
RépondreSupprimerSergio, I am thinking of making a few bacalhau dishes soon, but I usually make the French ones. If you have a few good Portuguese recipes, email me.
RépondreSupprimerIn a quick thought, I know at least 6 dishes made with Bacalhau.
RépondreSupprimer1. Bacalhau com todos (the traditional, usually (one of the most eaten on Christmas)
2. Bacalhau à brás
3. Bacalhau à gomes sá
4. Bacalhau assado
5. Bacalahu com natas
6. Bacalhau à Lagareiro
But at least there are like more than 100 recipes with Bacalhau (all Portuguese)
Hei Sergio talvés nos vejamos em Peter Murphy! hehehehehe
RépondreSupprimerLuky one with a concert by is door step!
Sim Luis o Peter Murphy é um dos meu favoritos.
RépondreSupprimerRegarding again about bacalhau, forget the french dishes Serene. The portugueses are the experts in bacalhau. But to do that you have to get them dry and salted, and I suppose only in Portugal you can do it. Sorry. You really must come here to eat more than 100 different receips of splendid bacalhau.
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RépondreSupprimerI see quite a number of dry and salted bacalhau around, my dears. Good stuff is always exported. I'll think about the recipes and see what I can do about them. Keep a lookout for what may be coming next on East meets West.
RépondreSupprimerIt sounds to me that Lewis is an obvious lover of Bacalhau... to be honest I am too especially pasteis de bacalhau & bacalhau com grao which is codfish with boiled cheek peas with lots of extra virgin olive oil and tons of garlic with a good glass of fruity read...I am actually salivating as I write this...Portuguese egg custards are my favourite too in the cake section...I love the cousine and I feel it reflects some on my inter-European foods...Well done with this posting I loved it...here is my blog who knows you may find it inspirational (or not)
RépondreSupprimerRico-Tried and Tested Recipes