Light Pastéis de Nata

📝 Ingredients

• 1 sheet of puff pastry (about 230 g)
• 10 g unsalted butter (for the tin)
• 400 ml semi-skimmed milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 80 g caster sugar
• 30 g cornflour
• 1 lemon (for the zest)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon (to serve)

🍴 Utensils

• Muffin tin (12 holes)
• Saucepan
• Whisk
• Peeler
• Very sharp knife
• Cling film

📖 Steps

1. Peel the lemon zest into wide strips with a vegetable peeler, leaving behind the bitter white pith. In a saucepan off the heat, whisk the cornflour with the cold milk until completely dissolved, then add the sugar, yolks and vanilla and whisk again.
2. Add the strips of zest and put the pan over a medium heat. Cook for 5 to 7 min, whisking constantly and scraping the bottom well, until the custard thickens and coats the whisk like a soft pastry cream. Remove from the heat immediately.
3. Remove the zest, pour the custard into a bowl and press cling film onto the surface to stop a skin forming. Leave to cool slightly for 20 min. Preheat the oven to 240 °C, ideally fan: a very hot oven is the secret to the caramelised spots.
4. Carefully butter the 12 holes of the tin with your fingers. Unroll the puff pastry, roll it up tightly on itself from one edge, like a fat cigar, then cut this roll into 12 slices of equal thickness (the end pieces are smaller, that's normal).
5. Place each slice flat, spiral side up, in the bottom of a hole. With a wet thumb, press the pastry from the centre outwards, then push it up the sides until it comes slightly above the rim: the base should be thin, about 2 mm.
6. Whisk the cooled custard until smooth, then divide it between the pastry cases, filling them only three quarters full, as it puffs up during baking. If the pastry has softened while shaping, put the tin in the fridge for 10 min.
7. Bake in the lower third of the oven for 14 to 16 min, until the pastry is deep golden and the custard is covered in brown spots. If the spots don't appear, put under the grill for 1 to 2 min, keeping a close eye on them.
8. Leave to rest in the tin for 10 min, then turn out by running the tip of a knife around the edges. Dust with a pinch of cinnamon when serving, ideally warm. They keep for 2 days in the fridge: put them back in the oven for 5 min at 180 °C to crisp them up again.