Portuguese dessert recipes

fredbram · October 23, 2003

I just returned from a trip to Lisbon and would like to play around baking some Portuguese pastries. Does anyone know of an english language book of portuguese pastry recipes, or an online source for same?

alacarte · October 23, 2003

I bet Dave Leite's site has some tidbits.

fredbram · October 23, 2003

I bet Dave Leite's site has some tidbits.

You are right, he does have some tidbits. I didn't know of him, thanks. I also, from links on his website, located 3 or 4 Portuguese cookbooks. None of them are pastry books per se, but they each have some dessert recipes.

kitwilliams · October 23, 2003

If anyone finds an authentic recipe for pasteis de nata, please post it here. I've tried lots that I've found online and none come close to those I've devoured at Lisboa Patisserie in London, not to mention what I might have if I EVER get to Portugal!

Thanks!

fredbram · October 23, 2003

There is a pasteis de nata recipe on Dave Leite's website. I can't vouch for it yet.

kitwilliams · October 23, 2003

There is a pasteis de nata recipe on Dave Leite's website. I can't vouch for it yet.

Please, someone, correct me if I'm wrong but the nata I had at Lisboa Patisserie in London seemed to have more of a well-docked puff pastry crust than that of a flaky pie crust.

What have people experienced in Portugal?

Of course, the perfect filling is essential but I'll start from the bottom up.

lamington · October 24, 2003

There is a pasteis de nata recipe on Dave Leite's website. I can't vouch for it yet.
Please, someone, correct me if I'm wrong but the nata I had at Lisboa Patisserie in London seemed to have more of a well-docked puff pastry crust than that of a flaky pie crust.

The correct pastry is absolutely definitely a puff pastry. The method that Leite's recipe uses is used for some other tartlets in Portugal, but not correct for typical pasteis de nata (note that his recipe is from a book about food of the Azores).

In my experience, the custard in most domestic recipes for pasteis de nata is heavier on the flour/cornstarch than the genuine articles.

Portuguese Home Cooking by Ana Patuleia Ortins (Interlink Books, 2001) has a good description of method and produces a reasonable tart. I also have a traditional recipe from a popular cookbook in Portuguese, using an egg and cream custard without any flour/cornflour -- haven't yet succeeded in cooking the pasteis without the custard separating!

fredbram · October 24, 2003

Please, someone, correct me if I'm wrong but the nata I had at Lisboa Patisserie in London seemed to have more of a well-docked puff pastry crust than that of a flaky pie crust.

The correct pastry is absolutely definitely a puff pastry. The method that Leite's recipe uses is used for some other tartlets in Portugal, but not correct for typical pasteis de nata (note that his recipe is from a book about food of the Azores).

lamington · October 25, 2003

The sheet of pastry is rolled up, then sliced across the roll, giving fairly thin discs of pastry (about 5mm thick). The disc is then pressed into its pan, becoming very thin in the process (the coils of pastry which form the disc are in effect staggered down the walls of the pan and pressed flat). Cooked at very high heat, the layers separate well and give a filo-like texture, especially around the rim of the tart.

fredbram · October 25, 2003

That makes sense, Thanks.

David Leite · October 25, 2003

Hi Guys,

I thought I would jump in and maybe (hopefully) clarify a few things:

1. The dough in the pasteis de nata on my site is not the "original" nor typical. My recipe comes from the Azores, and I used it because the real pastry, called massa folhada is very hard to make. (Forgive the misspelling, if it is indeed mispelled; I'm at a small-town library at a WINDOWS computer; don't have my Portuguese culinary dictionary. Also, I can't figure out the freaking diacritcal marks on this machine! I'm a diehard Mac user.)

When I was in Lisbon recently, I got a tour of the Confeitaria de Belem, the pastry shop where the "pasteis de Belem"--the mother of all pasteis de nata--supposedly originated. (No other pastry can be called pasteis de Belem because only the pasteis made on the premise can have that name.) I watched the whole pastry-making process, except for the mixing of the custard, because that recipe has been secret for more than a century. Actually, years ago the recipe was given to the family who owns the confeitaria by monks from the nearby Jeronimos monastery. (Fools, the family makes a fortune on these. Their record: 40,000 pastries in one day.)

Since then, I have found a restaurant in NYC (Alfama) that makes the closest things to the orginal. Just this week I was there learning how to make massa folhada and the custard with the executive chef. I will be returning several more times to really get the hang of it. This is research for an enventual book and an article. So stay tuned. I will have Alfama's recipe, the history, and all the other good stuff. But let me say that you really have to have patience to makes these little lovlies, because it's a lot of work.

And for the record, the pastry used in the orginal is not classic puff pastry. It's a laminated dough, absolutely, but it's made very differently. In fact, the work surface doesn't have to be kept cold, as with mille feuille,nor does the dough have to sit in the fridge for hours in between turns. It's utterly fascinating--creative, too.

Also for those people who have the problem of the custard separating, I believe I have that solved, too (at least according the the chef.)

David

kitwilliams · October 25, 2003

Oh, David -- you are CRUEL to be teasing us so! At least tell us (if you know) when this eventual book and/or article may be published!

I DREAM of pasteis de nata!!!

PS But thank you for jumping in and (somewhat) clarifying the pastry for us!

David Leite · October 27, 2003

Oh, David -- you are CRUEL to be teasing us so! At least tell us (if you know) when this eventual book and/or article may be published!
I DREAM of pasteis de nata!!!
PS But thank you for jumping in and (somewhat) clarifying the pastry for us!

kitwilliams,

Yes it was a bit nasty of me, but I wanted to get my two cents in as fast as possible.

The article? In the next month or so, I'd say. I'll drop a note to tell you when and where it will appear.

The book...that's a whole other thread! :wacko:

MiguelCardoso · October 31, 2003

Fred: Although there are a lot of recipes online and in the standard cookery books, nobody in Portugal makes pastéis de nata - they're too much work and are never as good as the ones you buy from the pastelarias. I live very near Belém so my wife and I often drop by to pick up a warm six-pack. Not without consuming a hot one on the premises - which annoyingly always taste even better. A bitter truth is that, although thousands of pastelarias make pastéis de nata several times a day - and do their best to get it right, will all the right ingredients and the local savoir-faire, only those of the Casa dos Pastéis de Belém are sublime. So beware of trying to make them yourself, I'd say. ;)

Anyway, I was looking around for a recipe in English to tide you over until David reveals all - to no avail, I'm afraid. I did find a website for a Portuguese pastelaria in Canada which I've heard good things about: http://www.pasteis-de-nata.com. Perhaps you can convince them to FedEx a few? They are easily revived, slowly, in a warm oven. Sprinkle with cinnamon powder (as freshly grated as possible) and icing sugar and they're as good as new.

David Leite · October 31, 2003

Miguel,

Is Casa dos Pastéis the same as the Antiga Confeitaría de Belém?

David

MiguelCardoso · October 31, 2003

Yes, David - it is. That's what we lisboetas call it - no one has time for the full, official name.

A typical Belém afternoon for me is: call in at the Centro Cultural de Belém for an exhibition; amble across to the Casa Do Vinho, a splendid wine shop (with excellent estate-bottled olive oils and home-made chutneys and spreads) on the premises; walk past the Jerónimos monastery to the newspaper kiosk (fully stocked with the foreign press) and then cross the street to the Pastéis, for a couple of pastéis and a "galão com café de máquina duplo", two espressos poured into hot milk. If it's sunny and I'm not feeling too lazy, I'll grab a six-pack (they have the most wonderful take-out packets, as you know) and wander around the beautiful, slightly wild Botanical Gardens, just behind.

You obviously chose the right place for your research, that's for sure!

May I take this opportunity to warmly thank and congratulate you for your generous website, valiantly sticking up for our culinary traditions and brilliantly passing them on to other cultures? I specially relish the Azorean recipes/memories - although I often go to São Miguel, I'm ashamed to say the first "sopa de couve" I ever tried was yours - straight from the Internet... And it was delicious! Though the reverse translations weren't easy ("swiss kale"?) so I cheated and phoned a friend of mine in Ponta Delgada. :)

MiguelCardoso · October 31, 2003

I forgot to add, though no doubt anyone who has visited Belém will know, that two other delicious pastéis are baked on the very same street: the "pastéis de feijão" (which sound disgusting in translation, "bean tarts", but are dry and marzipan-like, ideal for drinking with a good Port or Setúbal Moscatel) and the "pastéis de laranja" (orange-flavoured bean tarts). Amusingly, these "pastéis" are older than the "nata" ones - we're talking 18th Century here - and so bill themselves as the "verdadeiros pastéis de Belém" (the true Belém pastries). But when you go into their shop (right in front of where the President lives) the employees have this dour, rancorous expression, as they well know that the "pastéis de Belém", i.e. "nata", only forty yards away are a raging success, while theirs are merely a local institution. But they're equally sumptuous - rather like the best Sintra "queijadas".

I eagerly await for the world to discover the fascinating world of Portuguese pastries and sweets - the "doces de ovos" still made in convents are probably the most elaborate and sophisticated of all desserts, outshining even the French. Their cathedral is a legendary "pastelaria" called "Zé da Calçada" up in the North, in dreamy Amarante.

Oops, sorry for rambling on.

Chloe · October 31, 2003

Two books in English to look out for are "The Taste of Portugal" by Edite Vieira (frequently mispelled Viera) and "Traditional Portuguese Cooking" - a translation of Maria de Lourdes Modesto's classic, published in Portugal by Verbo. Neither book compromises on tradition!

My favourite simple Portuguese cake is Bolo Joana:

Beat 6 eggs with 250g sugar until pale, add 250g ground almonds, grated peel of one lemon and some cinnamon. Beat again. Then add 125g chila/angel hair jam (Malabar Gourd preserve, or whatever you want to call it), 125 g flour and bake in a greased and floured cake tin in a medium oven. Serve with a plain white icing, if you want to! Very well behaved cake. Has survived the gas running half-way through baking and other adventures.

Fred, are you interested in any specific type of recipe?

abraço

Chloe

north Portugal

David Leite · October 31, 2003

Chloe,

I was told to be careful about Modesto's book. The recipes were supposedly sent in by her TV audience and printed as is, therefore there isn't the consistency or testing that goes into what we consider a classic book. It's a great resoource, especially sociologically and culturally, but as the bible of Portuguese cooking, it's supposedly lacking.

David

Chloe · October 31, 2003

I was told to be careful about Modesto's book. The recipes were supposedly sent in by her TV audience and printed as is, therefore there isn't the consistency or testing that goes into what we consider a classic book.

That would be a pity.

It's a great resoource, especially sociologically and culturally, but as the bible of Portuguese cooking, it's supposedly lacking.

Hmm, I wonder if there is a truly tested "bible" in Portugal? The 1984 Readers Digest "Tesouros da Cozinha Tradicional Portugesa", or Pantagruel??

As a curiousity, "British Cookery", published by the British Tourist Authority et al (originally) in 1977, includes a recipe for Belem Tarts, from Ireland. 10 egg yolks, half pound caster sugar, 1 pint cream, pinch of salt, in flaky pastry shells.

Recipe also in Irish Teatime Recipes

Chloe

north Portugal

kitwilliams · October 31, 2003

As a curiousity, "British Cookery", published by the British Tourist Authority et al (originally) in 1977, includes a recipe for Belem Tarts, from Ireland. 10 egg yolks, half pound caster sugar, 1 pint cream, pinch of salt, in flaky pastry shells.
Recipe also in Irish Teatime Recipes
Chloe
north Portugal

Have you tried this recipe, Chloe? And, if so, should I assume that that "pint" of cream is an imperial pint (20 oz.) rather than 16 oz. as in a pint here in the States?

hmmm. I just googled "Imperial pint" and it states that this is indeed 20 oz. but also says that each British ounce is slightly smaller than an American ounce. Can anyone clarify for me?

MiguelCardoso · November 1, 2003

Maria de Lourdes Modesto, whom I much enjoy working with, prefers her own "Receitas Escolhidas" to "Cozinha Tradicional". For a highly cultural approach, her "Festas e Comeres do Povo Português", written with Afonso Praça, is invaluable.

Alfredo Saramago's series of outsize books, stunningly photographed by Inês Gonçalves - "A Cozinha do Alentejo", "A Cozinha do Minho", etc - are useful but the recipes are jusat the merest of outlines.

This is also the fault of Pantagruel - it's really written for accomplished cooks - but it is indeed the "bible" pf Portuguese cooking. My favourite book is the recently republished "Culinária Portuguesa" by António Oliveira Bello, a.k.a "Olleboma."

Chloe · November 1, 2003

Maria de Lourdes Modesto, whom I much enjoy working with, prefers her own "Receitas Escolhidas" to "Cozinha Tradicional". For a highly cultural approach, her "Festas e Comeres do Povo Português", written with Afonso Praça, is invaluable.

I've eyed "Festas e Comeres" many a time, but the price has never been quite right :smile:

Alfredo Saramago's series of outsize books, stunningly photographed by Inês Gonçalves - "A Cozinha do Alentejo", "A Cozinha do Minho", etc - are useful but the recipes are jusat the merest of outlines.

These I do have and they are beautiful, but I have certainly got the impression that the recipes are a little bit lackadaisical. A pity that such an effort has gone into producing fine (and not ostentatious) books, without due care with the recipes.

This is also the fault of Pantagruel - it's really written for accomplished cooks - but it is indeed the "bible" pf Portuguese cooking. My favourite book is the recently republished "Culinária Portuguesa" by António Oliveira Bello, a.k.a "Olleboma."

Excellent book! Hardly shows its age.

Chloe

north Portugal

who had "fusion" pasta with kid for lunch

fredbram · November 1, 2003

Thanks for the recent responses from Portugal, Miguel and Chloe.

Miguel, making Pasteis de Nata would probably be a onetime event just to challenge myself--I understand that it wouldn't be practical to whip them up every Sunday. But it would be fun to see how close I can get to the wonderful ones that we ate in Belem last month, just once.

Chloe, I am actually more interested in the sort of very coarse crumb, rustic cakes that we saw in Lisboa. Often ground almond based, usually uniced, one was pumpkin based. I really enjoy these types of moist cakes, seems like probably lots of egg yolks in some of them because they had that orange color that I will never get in the US because our eggs are so inferior.

I had some of the pastéis de feijão also when we were there and they are delightful. The ones I bought were actually packaged, from the town a bit north of Lisboa whose name I can't remember at the moment.

What is Malabar gourd jam?

Chloe · November 1, 2003

Chloe, I am actually more interested in the sort of very coarse crumb, rustic cakes that we saw in Lisboa. Often ground almond based, usually uniced, one was pumpkin based. I really enjoy these types of moist cakes, seems like probably lots of egg yolks in some of them because they had that orange color that I will never get in the US because our eggs are so inferior.

This page has some eggy/almondy recipes Algarve Recipes - a pity that only the Algarve page of the Roteiro Gastronómico has been translated (and slightly idiosyncratic translations :smile: ).

What is Malabar gourd jam?

It's a preserve made with from the spaghetti-squash-like Cucurbita ficifolia - see Chila jam

Photo of the squash at Cucurbita ficifolia

Chloe

north Portugal

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