Pastel de Nata

The iconic and well-known Portuguese dessert is Pastel de Nata or Pastéis de Natas (plural). Every Pasteleria or pastry store has its own take on Pastel de Nata. This sweet and creamy Portuguese egg tart is so delicious that it may become your new favorite pastry.

Monks from the Jerónimos Monastery in Santa Maria de Belem devised the pastel de nata in the 18th century. It was customary practice at the time to starch nuns' habits with egg whites, which naturally left the monks with a lot of leftover yolks. They began making them into delightful two-bite custard tarts to use them up. Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém, which is located near the monastery where the tarts were invented, claims to be the only site in Portugal that serves the original recipe.

Pastel de Nata is created using flour, butter, eggs, cinnamon, and sugar. The dough is stacked with a lot of butter, which gives the shells a crispy and cracking aspect. After that, the dough is cut into small pie shells and filled with the egg custard filling. Pastel de nata is served warm from a very hot oven with a small strong cup of Portuguese coffee, known in Lisbon as bica. One bite into this crispy, creamy sweet custard, dusted with cinnamon, will make your eyes roll in delight.

"A bride who eats a pastry will never take off her ring," says an old Portuguese proverb. As a result, it's not uncommon to see newlyweds stopping at Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém for a delicious pastry (or two) for good luck.