Milk Tart
South African Milk Tart is an easy dessert recipe that is so creamy and delicious. A homemade custard is poured over a buttery crust and chilled to perfection.
This easy milk tart recipe is so dreamy. A buttery crust is pressed into a tart pan and topped with a homemade custard and sprinkled with cinnamon. This is seriously such an easy and delicious dessert – its almost pudding + pie crust, and its sure to be a big hit with your kids.
I love making easy yet flavorful desserts from around the world. They are such a simple way to introduce cuisine from around the world to kids. Some of my family’s favorites are basbousa cake, blueberry clafoutis, and a fromage blanc tart.
This recipe is pretty straightforward and easy to make. It does require some chilling time, though, so if your schedule is busy I recommend making it the day before you need it, or save this recipe for a weekend when there is time.
How to make a milk tart
This recipe is very simple to make! Here is a brief overview of the recipe to give you an idea of how it works. For the full set of directions and measurements, please make sure you scroll down to the recipe card below!
Make the crust
- Butter a 9” tart pan with a removable bottom and set aside.
- Measure the flour, sugar and salt into a food processor and blend for just a few pulses to mix everything.
- Add in the cubed and frozen butter and pulse to form a rough dough.
- Add in the egg yolk and pulse again just until a dough barely forms.
- Knead the dough as little as possible just to make it come together in a ball. It will be dry and crumbly.
- Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared tart pan, ensuring that the dough goes up the sides all the way and makes an even bottom.
- Freeze for 30 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the freezer and preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Bake the crust for 20-25 minutes, until it is dry and golden brown.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack.
Make the custard filling
- In a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, whisk the milk, butter, and freshly ground nutmeg.
- Bring to a low boil and turn off the heat.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, cornstarch, flour, and vanilla and almond extracts until smooth.
- Add ¼ cup of hot milk to the egg mixture and whisk until combined well.
- Slowly pour the egg mixture into the hot milk, whisking constantly until it is well combined.
- Turn the heat back on to medium and allow it to start to bubble while constantly whisking.
- Cook for 5 minutes while whisking constantly. It will get thicker.
- Pour the custard into the prepared and cooled pastry shell.
- Sprinkle the top with ground cinnamon.
- Place in the fridge and chill for at least 2 hours.
Timing of this recipe
This milk tart doesn’t take too long to make, but does need some time for chilling.
- The crust: You will need about 10 minutes to make the dough, 30 minutes to freeze, 20-25 minutes to bake, and then another 30 minutes to cool.
- The filling: You will need about 15 minutes to make the custard filling, and another 2+ hours for the filling to set once you have placed it in the crust.
Start to finish, this recipe will take you about 3 hours and 45 minutes from when you start to when you can be eating a slice.
Storage Information
This milk tart will keep well in the fridge for up to 4 days. For best results, cover the tart with a layer of plastic wrap after it has set all the way.
How to serve this to your family
This tart is an amazing dessert to enjoy at any time, but if you wanted to serve this at the end of a South African themed meal, you should definitely serve it with Bobotie and South African Yellow Rice. So good!
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South African Milk Tart Recipe
Ingredients
Pastry Crust
- 1 ½ cups unbleached all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 9 Tablespoons unsalted butter cubed and frozen
- 1 egg yolk
Custard Filling
- 2 ¼ cup milk
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg freshly ground
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
Make the crust
- Butter a 9” tart pan with a removable bottom and set aside.
- Measure the flour, sugar and salt into a food processor and blend for just a few pulses to mix everything.
- Add in the cubed and frozen butter and pulse to form a rough dough.
- Add in the egg yolk and pulse again just until a dough barely forms.
- Knead the dough as little as possible just to make it come together in a ball.
- Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared tart pan, ensuring that the dough goes up the sides all the way and makes an even bottom.
- Freeze for 30 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the freezer and preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Bake the crust for 20-25 minutes, until it is dry and golden brown.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack.
Make the custard filling
- In a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, whisk the milk, butter, and freshly ground nutmeg.
- Bring to a low boil and turn off the heat.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, cornstarch, flour, and vanilla and almond extracts until smooth.
- Add ¼ cup of hot milk to the egg mixture and whisk until combined well.
- Slowly pour the egg mixture into the hot milk, whisking constantly until it is well combined.
- Turn the heat back on to medium and allow it to start to bubble while constantly whisking.
- Cook for 5 minutes while whisking constantly. It will get thicker.
- Pour the custard into the prepared and cooled pastry shell.
- Sprinkle the top with ground cinnamon.
- Place in the fridge and chill for at least 2 hours.
