Milk tart is an institution in the Karoo and is one of those things that South Africans who live abroad miss desperately. There is nothing complicated about it except that the pastry is very important. A crustless milk tart is not a milk tart and the right pastry makes it. The pastry used is an ancient recipe, called skilferkors by the old Boer women but it originated in Persia – it is so  delicate that the poet, Ibn al-Rumi referred to similar pastries as grasshopper wings!   The first recorded recipe for this skilferkors can be found in La Varenne’s book, La Patissier François, published in 1653!

The filling dates back to about 1510 and to a chef called Thomas van der Noot.  The recipe for the crust is included but should you have no time, use good puff pastry purchased at a local pastry shop.

THE FILLING

Ingredients

• 750 ml boiling milk
• 125 ml white sugar
• 4 jumbo eggs
• 7 ml butter
• 1 ml salt
• 1 piece of fresh cinnamon
• 15 ml cake flour
• 10 ml custard powder
• 15 ml  Maizena (cornflour)
• 25 ml cold milk
• 2 ml pure almond exctract
• Cinnamon sugar (optional)

Method

• Line two standard tart dishes with the dough and finish them with a double edging, crimping the sides.
• Boil the milk with the cinnamon stick and remove from the heat, adding the butter and the salt and stirring well.
• Mix the custard powder, the corn flour and the cake flour in the cold milk to form a smooth paste.
• Add a little of the hot milk mixture to this and make sure that you have a smooth, liquid mixture.
• Take this mixture and add it to the hot milk mixture, whisking constantly and add about 50 ml of the sugar whilst reheating it to boiling point.
• Stir constantly – don’t stop for anything.
• As soon as the mixture becomes thick, remove from the heat and discard the cinnamon stick.
• Whisk the egg whites until they are stiff but not dry and whisk in the rest of the sugar gradually.
• Whisk the egg yolks until they are smooth, add a little of the milk mixture first so that the eggs don’t set and then stir this into the rest of the milk mixture.
• Now add the almond extract.
• Finally fold in the egg whites and pour into the prepared tart dishes.
• Bake for 10 minutes at 200 C, reduce the heat to 180 C and bake for a further 10 – 15 minutes until the filling has set.
• Set aside to cool.
• Optional: Sprinkle on cinnamon sugar.

SKILFERKORS

Ingredients

• 250 g cake flour
• 250 g butter, chilled and grated
• 1 egg yolk*
• 15 ml lard (yes, lard!)
• 125 ml ICE cold water

Method

• Sift the flour and the salt twice and then rub in the lard with the tips of your fingers to get the consistency of bread crumbs.
• Combine the egg yolk with the water and mix well (I whisk the egg yolk first and then add it to the water).
• Add the water and egg yolk into the flour mixture with a knife and “cut” it in.
• When combined knead lightly on a floured surface until the dough is smooth and elastic and it looks as if there are little bubbles that are coming to the surface.
• If you have very hot hands, dip them in ice water and dry occasionally so that the dough remains cool – and work lightly.
• Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it is about 5 mm thick and then sprinkle about a third of the grated butter over the dough.
• Fold the dough across from the corners, like an envelope and roll out again.
• Repeat this process twice, using up all the butter.
• Wrap the dough in wax paper and refrigerate until you are ready for use.
• *You could substitute brandy for the egg yolk.