This is a homemade version of a traditional South African Melk tert, or Milk tart, that is smooth and milky with a biscuit base.
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Growing up as a child, we used to buy a milk tart from the shop when we were having family gatherings or visiting someone at their home as we never went visiting emptyhanded.
Now that I live in the UK, a melk tart is a taste of home and a reminder of my childhood. This is the recipe my mum uses and she makes it healthier by adding additional protein to the base in the form of almond or peanut butter.
This recipe is nice to make as it uses ingredients that you typically have at home and can come together in an afternoon and be ready to have the same evening.
How long does the Melk Tert keep in the fridge and freezer
This dessert keeps in the fridge for 2 days. This is because the longer you keep the tert, the more soggy the base will become though I still enjoy it,
In the freezer, this dessert keeps for 3 months. To make it easier to serve individual portions, individually wrap each portion before freezing.
Tips for making Melk Tert
1. The filling can be made more rich by using only milk instead of milk and water or by using cream.
2. For the sugar in this recipe, you can use honey or coconut sugar. If using coconut sugar, one thing to note is that the custard will be more of a caramel colour.
3. The crushed biscuit base can be made in advance and kept in the freezer in batches. This would then make it faster in the future to make this recipe
South African Melk Tert Recipe
Base:
2 Tbsp butter, at room temperature
3 Tbsp almond butter or peanut butter
1 and 1/2 cup tennis biscuits or ginger biscuits, crushed
Filling:
2 eggs
4 tsp cornflour
1 cup water
11/2 cup milk
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
How to make South African Melk Tert
1. First make the base as you want to ensure it is ready for the filling. To make the base, combine in a bowl with your hand or a spoon the butter, almond or peanut butter and the crushed biscuits. You’ll know that the base is ready for your baking dish when it holds together when pressed – it should not break up.
2. Transfer the biscuit base into a baking dish and press down the mixture with a back of a flat glass or your hand.
3. For the custard filling, heat up on the stove in a saucepan 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of water until it comes to a boil. You want to whisk this liquid as it heats up until the top becomes frothy.
4. While the milk and water mixture is heating up on the stove, in a bowl mix together the eggs, sugar, cornflour, vanilla essence and 1/2 cup of milk.
5. Once the liquid in the saucepan has come to a boil, add in the egg mixture to the saucepan while whisking continuously. Once the mixture starts to thicken, reduce the heat to a simmer while continuing to whisk. The mixture is ready once it is thick enough to stick to the back of a spoon.
6. Transfer the custard mixture into the baking dish. To ensure the custard does not disturb the base, pour the custard into the baking dish via the back of a spoon.
7. Let the melk tert sit at room temperature for approximately 30 minutes or until the custard comes to room temperature then put the melk tert into the fridge to set and get cold for a minimum of 12 hours or overnight.
Tools you may need
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South African Melk Tert
This is a homemade version of a traditional South African Melk tert, or Milk tart, that is smooth and milky with a biscuit base.
Materials
- Base:
- 2 Tbsp butter, at room temperature
- 3 Tbsp almond butter or peanut butter
- 1 and 1/2 cup tennis biscuits or ginger biscuits, crushed
- Filling:
- 2 eggs
- 4 tsp cornflour
- 1 cup water
- 11/2 cup milk
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
Tools
- Saucepan
- Baking dish
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
Instructions
1. First make the base as you want to ensure it is ready for the filling. To make the base, combine in a bowl with your hand or a spoon the butter, almond or peanut butter and the crushed biscuits. You'll know that the base is ready for your baking dish when it holds together when pressed - it
should not break up.
2. Transfer the biscuit base into a baking dish and press down the mixture with a back of a flat glass or your hand.
3. For the filling, heat up on the stove in a saucepan 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of water until it comes to a boil.
4. While the milk and water mixture is heating up on the stove, in a bowl mix together the eggs, sugar, cornflour, vanilla essence and 1/2 cup of milk.
5. Once the liquid in the saucepan has come to a boil, add in the egg mixture to the saucepan while whisking continuously. Once the mixture starts to thicken, reduce the heat to a simmer while continuing to whisk. The mixture is ready once it is thick enough to stick to the back of a spoon.
6. Transfer the custard mixture into the baking dish. To ensure the custard does not disturb the base, pour the custard into the baking dish via the back of a spoon.
7. Let the melk tert sit at room temperature for approximately 30 minutes or until the custard comes to room temperature then put the melk tert into the fridge to set and get cold for a minimum of 2 to 3 hours.
Notes
1. The filling can be made more rich by using only milk instead of milk and water or by using cream.
2. For the sugar in this recipe, you can use honey or coconut sugar. If using coconut sugar, note that the custard will take on a caramel colour.
3. The crushed biscuit base can be made in advance and kept in the freezer in batches. This would then make it faster in the future to make this recipe
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