Entree: Italy – Puglia – Pasticciotto Leccese (Small Lecce-style baked shortcrust pastries filled with rich vanilla egg custard)

Serving Size: 8

Approximate Time

Prep 45 min

Cook 25 min

Additional 1 hr 15 min

Total 2 hrs 25 min

Ingredients

For the pastry (pasta frolla):
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter, cold and diced
- 1/3 cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract
- 1 tsp (5 g) lemon zest, finely grated
- 1/4 tsp (1.5 g) fine salt
For the custard (crema pasticcera):
- 3 cups (720 ml) whole milk
- 2/3 cup (135 g) granulated sugar
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1/3 cup (40 g) cornstarch
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) vanilla extract or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
- 2 tbsp (30 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
To finish:
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp (15 ml) milk for egg wash
- Powdered sugar for dusting (optional)

Instructions

1. Make the pastry: in a bowl or food processor, cut cold butter into flour, sugar, salt and lemon zest until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the egg and vanilla and pulse or mix briefly until dough comes together; do not overwork. Form into a disk, wrap, and chill at least 1 hour.
2. Make the custard: heat milk with vanilla until just simmering. Whisk egg yolks with sugar until pale, then whisk in cornstarch until smooth. Temper the yolk mixture by slowly whisking in about 1/3 of the hot milk, then return everything to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick and bubbling. Remove from heat, stir in butter, transfer to a bowl, cover surface with plastic wrap to prevent skin, and chill until cool.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter and flour eight 3–3.5 inch (8–9 cm) tart molds or use a standard muffin tin.
4. Assemble: roll out chilled pastry on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thickness. Cut eight rounds to line the molds and eight slightly smaller rounds for lids. Line each mold with pastry, trim excess, fill with chilled custard to about 2/3 full, and cover with a lid round; seal edges by pressing gently. Brush tops with egg wash.
5. Bake: place molds on a baking sheet and bake 22–28 minutes until pastry is deeply golden and custard is set. Rotate once for even color.
6. Cool and serve: allow pasticciotti to cool in molds 10 minutes, then unmold. Dust with powdered sugar if desired and serve warm or at room temperature.