Portuguese egg tart cups (Printable)

Flaky phyllo cups filled with creamy, cinnamon custard and lightly dusted with powdered sugar.

# What You Need:

→ Phyllo Cups

01 - 12 sheets phyllo pastry
02 - 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

→ Custard Filling

03 - 1 cup whole milk
04 - 2 tbsp cornstarch
05 - ½ cup heavy cream
06 - ½ cup granulated sugar
07 - 4 large egg yolks
08 - 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
09 - ½ tsp ground cinnamon
10 - Pinch of salt

→ Topping

11 - 1 tsp ground cinnamon
12 - 2 tbsp powdered sugar

# How To Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 400°F.
02 - Lightly brush each phyllo sheet with melted butter. Stack three sheets and cut into squares large enough to fit muffin cups. Repeat to create 12 stacks.
03 - Press each phyllo stack gently into cups of a 12-cup muffin tin to form pastry shells.
04 - Bake phyllo cups for 8 to 10 minutes until lightly golden. Remove and set aside.
05 - In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk and cornstarch until smooth. Add heavy cream, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt.
06 - Cook mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly, until custard thickens, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat.
07 - Divide warm custard evenly among baked phyllo cups.
08 - Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until custard is just set and tops are lightly golden.
09 - Allow to cool slightly, then dust tops with cinnamon and powdered sugar before serving.

# Helpful Tips:

01 -
  • The phyllo cups stay crackling crisp even as they cradle the silkiest custard—it's the textural contrast that keeps you reaching for another.
  • That cinnamon and vanilla combination tastes like something a Portuguese grandmother perfected over decades, but you'll nail it on your first try.
02 -
  • Whisking the custard constantly is not a suggestion—scrambled egg custard is the one mistake that can't be fixed, so keep that whisk moving no matter what.
  • The phyllo will crisp up as it cools, so if it seems slightly soft straight from the oven, trust that it will firm up, and resist the urge to bake it longer.
03 -
  • Room-temperature egg yolks emulsify smoothly into the milk without scrambling, while cold eggs seem to seize up and refuse to cooperate.
  • The moment the custard coats the back of a whisk is your true done signal, not the clock—every stove is slightly different, so trust your senses.
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