The recipe is supposed to make enough dough for 7 tarts, or 6 if you want a thicker crust. Plan A: Make 7 tarts (as per recipe) total, including one slightly smaller one You can also use disposable tins in roughly the same size (ususally a little more shallow), often used by bakeries and restaurants, as I had first considered. Getting the right tins was one reason it took me so long to work on this project but Lokness at The Missing Lokness was kind enough to point me to inexpensive ones available at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. You need ones about 3-inches in width and 1-1/2 inches deep. Let's start with the tart tins themselves. Now that we got that short history out of the way, let's get cooking! Here's a rundown of what I learned. I just love the tender, crisp, sweet cookie crust against that familiar egg custard filling. Most people have a decided preference when it comes to the crust and mine is for the shortbread. And the thing is, these egg tarts are really simple - a buttery crust and a lightly sweetened egg custard filling - and that simplicity may be the very reason for its appeal. I've not had many Portuguese egg tarts but I've certainly eaten loads of Cantonese ones. I still love eating at one of these tea shops when I can find one and now that we're on the subject of Macau, I can remember many delicious things we ate in Hong Kong originating from Macau, which was a ferry ride away. Neighboring Hong Kong was once a British colony (until 1997) and through the influence/confluence of both the Portuguese and British, the Cantonese egg tart was born and became a staple at Hong Kong-style tea shops, which specialize in a fusion of Cantonese and Western-style fare at low prices. I'll share some of what I learned for anyone interested:Īs it turns out, Cantonese egg tarts are something of a spin-off of Portuguese egg tarts, introduced in Macau, once a Portuguese colony (until 1999).

Preparing to make these Cantonese egg tarts, I did a little research to satisfy my curiosity about them. Warning: I have a lot (too much) to say on the topic of egg tarts! As you can tell, we had a sweet start that morning. It's a classic Hong Kong breakfast concoction, made simply with white toast, a little salted butter and a slathering of sweetened condensed milk. I made these egg tarts Saturday morning and thought I'd extend breakfast into a Hong Kong tea shop eats theme by also making toast with condensed milk.

Chinese egg tart puff pastry